DISPLAYS IN EUROPE     
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 Evolution of the display market in europe, trends in 2004

            

Trends in the sector:

· Growing convergence of AV technology with control systems, and of the audiovisual industry with IP systems.
· Growth of the domotics sector, control of AV equipment at a residential/domestic level.
· Convergence of the professional and residential/domestic markets.
· Manufacturers back large size flat screens (80 ins.)

General data for the sector:

The Western Europe projector market represents a volume of 2.1 billion Euros and has a growth forecast of 19.1% between 2001 and 2006.

The home cinema market expects a growth of 250% in 3 years: 660,000 Plasma monitors and projectors in 2005.

In 2001, the display and digital peripherals market in Europe came to 36 billion Euros, of which the corporate market, made up of large companies and government organisms, represented 12.96 billion Euros, i.e. 36% of the total. The market for monitors reached 8.8 billion Euros, followed by the video projection market (500,000 units at a value of 2.4 billion Euros, of which 70% corresponded to the corporate market and 30% to the consumer market). Plasma monitors achieved sales valued at 534 million Euros, with 80,000 units sold. The "pure" market for displays therefore represented close to 12 billion Euros in 2001, without taking into account other video technologies such as videowalls, LED panels, ... which are tending to develop.
   The projector market

The projector market is still far from saturated. Some studies point to it almost doubling by 2006, with a final world volume of almost 7.1 million units, representing a total of 17.9 billion dollars. Two categories stand to benefit principally from this growth, the first being portable projectors. These projectors represented less than 30,000 units a year ago, and sales should multiply by 40 between now and 2006. Their presence in travelling sales forces is encountered more and more often. The second category to benefit is that of projectors devoted to Home Cinema, representing in units half of the market.

Japanese manufacturers, defenders of LCD technology, have for a long time considered this to be the only valid technology. The commercial offensive of Texas Instruments' DLP technology has, on the other hand, found a very favourable echo in Taiwan, which is gaining ground at a rapid rate. It is already possible to find projectors costing less than 1,500 Euros. The future looks to be a busy one; the Japanese intend to increase the features available and the Taiwanese have invested heavily in LCD technology, the technology of the future, which is economical and has multiple features.
The leaders:

SONY occupies the leadership in Western Europe, representing 14.8% of the total number of units sold in 2001. In close pursuit come INFOCUS/ASK/PROXIMA with 10.8% each and NEC which is rapidly gaining ground.
   The monitor market    The Plasma market

2001 saw the consolidation of the entry of LCD technology into the volumes market. The big manufacturers adopted policies of increased investment in this technology; Samsung decided to construct a factory devoted to the production of sixth generation screens, with output expected to begin now in 2004. The Korean manufacturer aims to lower the cost of the panels substantially.

The price drop experienced from 2000 to 2001 has had diverse consequences for the LCD industry. The position of Japanese manufacturers has changed substantially; victims of their high structure costs, they have been obliged to minimise their investment. In terms of units produced, their share of the world production of LCD panels larger than 10 ins. fell from 44% to 31% during 2001. Korea overtook Japan in the second quarter of 2001, and Taiwan overtook them by the end of 2002. There are currently 20 production centres in Japan, which is still leader in terms of production "floor area", however the Japanese factories are mainly concentrated in the manufacture of second or third generation 10 and 12 inch panels. They are faced with a current demand centred on fifth generation 14 and 15 inch panels.

The Korean and Taiwanese players, though more recent arrivals in the LCD market, have invested in more modern, fourth and fifth generation production units. Hence Korea's superiority over Japan in the large size panel manufacturing domain, with the same being true for Taiwan.

THE FIVE LEADING EUROPEAN PLAYERS (LCD and CRT):
Samsung, Compaq, Dell, LG, Philips

THE FIVE LEADING EUROPEAN PLAYERS (CRT):
Samsung, Compaq, Dell, LG, Fujitsu-Siemens

THE FIVE LEADING EUROPEAN PLAYERS (LCD):
Samsung, Philips, Ingram, Fujitsu-Siemens, Dell

During 2003 a clear trend of CRT monitors being replaced by TFT ones was observed, at a rate that can be seen to be related to the "state of health" of the different countries' economies, together with a shift in sales from 15 to 17 inch screens.

This activity sector is forecast to represent 6.2 million units by 2007, with earnings of 10.3 billion dollars.
This spectacular growth will be accompanied by a significant change in the market, which is currently 75% devoted to the professional sector. Nevertheless, despite its growth potential in other areas, success depends on the evolution of the (large size) LCD and projection markets. It is forecast that within four years, Plasma will be employed for domestic use, which could reverse these proportions, with 75% of sales being destined for the domestic market.

The main quality feature of Plasma monitors is their slimness, regardless of screen size. Their weight, at around 30kg for a 42inch device, is another matter. The combination of these two factors make them particularly vulnerable when being moved. Contrast is from 250 to 600:1, and the viewing angle, both horizontally and vertically, is normally 160š.
The range of sizes on offer continues to grow, with the classic 42, 43, 46, and 50 inch being joined by 60, 61, 63 and 80 inch models. Manufacturing difficulties are however considerable.
While 65% of the Plasma devices sold in Europe in 2001 were destined for the corporate sector, this percentage will fall to only 47% in 2004; i.e. corporate applications are losing ground to Home Cinema.

Plasma sales are forecast to double in Europe in 2004.


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