Flat Panel Display Market Research
A great introduction to flat panel display industry
[Back to Birds-Eye.Net Market Research]

By: Bruce Bahlmann - Contributing Author (your feedback is important to us!)

Birds-Eye.Net was asked to complete a research project flat panel displays for a client. As with all research projects, Birds-Eye.Net retains rights to all research produced such that it is free to publish any details of its completed research 6 months after presenting to the paying client. Some of the highlights of this research completed are described below.

Public companies to watch who have products or interesting in Flat Panel Displays ...

Flat Panel Display Technologies 101:

LCD - Liquid Crystal Display

Two types of LCD displays: passive matrix and active matrix

How does passive matrix work - Passive-matrix LCDs use a simple grid to supply the charge to a particular pixel on the display. Creating the grid is quite a process! It starts with two glass layers called substrates. One substrate is given columns and the other is given rows made from a transparent conductive material. This is usually indium-tin oxide. The rows or columns are connected to integrated circuits that control when a charge is sent down a particular column or row. The liquid crystal material is sandwiched between the two glass substrates, and a polarizing film is added to the outer side of each substrate. To turn on a pixel, the integrated circuit sends a charge down the correct column of one substrate and a ground activated on the correct row of the other. The row and column intersect at the designated pixel, and that delivers the voltage to untwist the liquid crystals at that pixel.

How does active matrix (also called TFT or Thin Film Transistor) work - Active-matrix LCDs depend on thin film transistors (TFT). Basically, TFTs are tiny switching transistors and capacitors. They are arranged in a matrix on a glass substrate. To address a particular pixel, the proper row is switched on, and then a charge is sent down the correct column. Since all of the other rows that the column intersects are turned off, only the capacitor at the designated pixel receives a charge. The capacitor is able to hold the charge until the next refresh cycle. And if we carefully control the amount of voltage supplied to a crystal, we can make it untwist only enough to allow some light through. By doing this in very exact, very small increments, LCDs can create a gray scale. Most displays today offer 256 levels of brightness per pixel.

Gas Plasma

How does gas plasma work - Plasma panels are an array of tiny cells, known as pixels, which contain phosphors corresponding to the colors red, green and blue. Sandwiched against these cells is a thin layer of gas in a plasma state. Electric alimpulses enter the gas, which emits bursts of ultraviolet light at precise locations and intervals. The phosphor cells absorb these signals and then re-radiate the energy as visible light, producing the vivid images that appear on screen.

OLED - Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

Squaring off in the flat panel display market (July 15, 2002) In comparison to LCDs, which transmit light and thus require a backlight, OLEDs are self-luminous and emit light. OLEDs advantages over LCDs include reduced power consumption, improved brightness and contrast, wide viewing angles and high switching speeds that allow displays to be refreshed faster and to support better graphics. OLED displays are expected to be less expensive to produce than LCD displays because of fewer materials and manufacturing steps, but actual cost savings have yet to be demonstrated, notes Robert Pinnel, chief technology officer of USDC. "In monitors, 65 to 70 percent of the cost is in materials, so the hope is that if OLEDs can be made efficiently, you will gain from lower material cost," explains Norman Bardsley, director of roadmaps and standards at USDC. Initially, fabrication costs of active matrix (AM) OLEDs will be higher than those of AM-LCDs, says Mr. Bardsley. By 2004, AM-OLEDs are expected to be established commercially but with lower yields and higher costs than AM-LCDs. By 2007, AM-OLEDs may be competitive in price to AM-LCDs, projects USDC. Passive matrix (PM) OLEDs are less complicated to manufacture than AM-OLEDs, and several PM-OLED products are commercial. PM-OLED products have improved performance attributes, such as brightness, but it is questionable if consumers will pay more for the improvements, says Mr. Pinnel. However, AM-OLEDs have performance attributes such as fast response that will meet market needs, he adds. The first commercial areas of OLED technology growth will be cell phones, personal digital assistants and games. OLED technology gives people more viewing choices and will lead to a growing market overall for flat panel displays rather than just stealing market share from LCD technology, says USDC's Mr. Ciesinski. The two main OLED technologies in development are small molecule OLED (SM-OLED) and polymer-based OLED (pLED, poly-OLED), sometimes called light-emitting polymers (LEP). SM-OLED, produced by evaporation deposition of several layers of material, has the advantage of being further along the development learning curve and has better color characteristics. Poly-OLED can be produced with solution processing techniques such as spin coating or conventional printing methods, allowing easier and less expensive display fabrication, notes Dow AEM. Dendrimer materials for OLEDs, a second-generation technology in development by Opsys, a Cambridge, UK-based OLED technology developer, combine advantages of small molecule and poly-OLEDs. Dendrimer materials have "highly efficient phosphorescent emitting cores" and are solution processable, explains Opsys. Although dendrimers are in an earlier stage of development than other OLED technologies, their long-term potential may be greater, projects Michael Holmes, CEO of Opsys. Opsys plans to produce commercial product in 2004.
 

SED - Surface-conduction Electron-emitter Display technology

Price Moves Spur Flat-Panel Growth (March 21, 2005) A new wild card to enter the flat-panel game this year is surface-conduction electron-emitter display technology (SED) technology, developed by Toshiba and Canon. Though more expensive than comparably sized LCD TVs at first, Toshiba will position its first 50W-inch SED HDTV offering late this year as the Ferrari of television technologies. The technology promises to deliver the superior picture quality of traditional cathode-ray tube devices with the flat-panel form factor of plasma and LCD TVs. SED is said to handle fast images without producing jagged edges, while consuming one-third the power needed by plasma.

SED: Rising Star in TV Market? (January 2005) Canon and Toshiba Corp of Japan announced that they will begin small-lot production of surface-conduction electron-emitter display (SED) panels in August 2005, shifting to full-scale production in 2007. According to the business plan released by their joint-venture firm, SED Inc of Japan, which will handle development, manufacture and sales, the 2010 shipment volume will have reached 3 million panels with a revenue of 200 billion (Fig 1). The average per-panel shipment value will be about 67,000. And considering that its budget shows the firm making a profit that year, the per-panel cost must be even lower. The main battlefield for SED panels is expected to be the large-screen TV market, in the 40- and 50-inch range, where already liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs are challenging the established position of plasma display panel (PDP) models. Prices are steadily dropping, with TVs in the 40-inch class expected to hit about 5,000/inch by around 2010. In contrast, Canon and Toshiba believe that a volume production stance cutting SED cost to significantly under 70,000 by 2010 will make it possible for them to compete with LCD panels and PDPs on an equal price footing. [Must Read]

Surface Conduction Electron Emitting Display (SED)

DLP - Digital light processing

TVs use a sort of micro-projection technology, using a million tiny mirrors on a semiconductor chip that flip on or off in response to information encoded in the video signal. DLP TVs are boxy but are more shallow and lighter than CRT counterparts.

 

Performance/Longevity of Displays:

What consumers should know about TV choices (June 20, 2003) Experts say that among the choices, plasma has some drawbacks. For one, plasma monitors' pictures degrade slowly over time, and manufacturers claim the newest models will last 30,000 hours — an estimated eight years for average American use, said Michael Heiss, an industry consultant. And static images can be "burned" into the display if a set is left on for 24 hours or longer. LCD and CRT models are expected to last at least 10 years, though the light bulbs in some LCD displays can burn out after about two years, requiring replacement at roughly $200 apiece.

Markets for Flat Panel Displays:

Consumer Electronics -

Displays - Laptop computers, home computer desktop monitors
Entertainment - High-end televisions and monitors
Handhelds - personal gaming (e.g. gameboy), PDAs, wireless devices (cell phones, etc.), wrist watches
Home Appliances - Ovens, washers, etc.
Network Appliances - Servers, tools, etc.

Commercial -

Electronic signage (billbords, highway information, etc.)

Automotive -

Status displays

Military -

Avonics - Displays, test equipment
Communications equipment
Status screens
War room operations screens

Market Research on Flat Panel Displays:

SYNTAX MOVES TO HIGHER PRICES (April 18, 2005) 49 percent of LCD purchases in the fourth quarter of 2004 were below $750. The $3,000-plus price range accounted for 6.7 percent of purchases. She added that the biggest gainer for the fourth quarter for LCD TVs was the $1,000 to $1,500 price range, which rose three percentage points to account for 10 percent of purchases. While the new 42-inch Olevia brings Syntax into a higher price echelon, it is still below the average sale price for its size. How will Syntax generate profit margin on these screen sizes? "The panel makers need quantity. They are asking us to help them more with larger volume. To them, economy of scale is more important than profit margin," Li said. With its 42-inch LCD, Syntax is looking to go head-on with plasma TVs, as this is the most common plasma size. However, 42-inch plasma EDTVs are available at retail for under $2,000. "As more consumers increase their awareness of plasma's high power consumption, heat and fan noise, plus image burn-in effects and shorter life cycle, our high-value 42-inch Olevia will be their obvious choice,"

SONY COULD BE A RISING LCD TV STAR (April 18, 2005) Sony slipped four notches to the number-eight spot for North American LCD TV shipments in the fourth quarter of 2004 from the same period in 2003, according to market research firm DisplaySearch. The company grabbed a 4 percent market share for the last quarter of 2004. Sharp, Philips and Samsung topped the list with 23 percent, 17 percent and 10 percent market shares, respectively. Sony's key to differentiating itself in flat panel is integration. "It's going to be about integration, like offering high-speed connectivity with other Sony devices or high-speed wireless connectivity around the home. Sony has to show consumers how to take advantage of their breadth."

Flat panel revenue to increase 66% in 2005 says Strategy Analytics' research (April 14, 2005) Devices service, global sales of flat panel TVs will increase by 66 percent in 2005, generating $25.6bn in retail revenues. Since 98 percent of the world's TV homes have still not bought their first flat panel TV, vendors can drive further growth by targeting these untapped segments. By 2010 annual sales will reach 83.5 million units and retail revenues of $45bn. Strategy Analytics predicts intense competition among various flat panel TV technologies. LCD technology continues to dominate the flat panel TV market. LCD TV sales in 2004 reached 8.3 million units, compared to sales of 2.2 million plasma TVs. Plasma technology will continue to play a role in large screen sizes--above 40 inches. LCDs will dominate smaller screen sizes, while DLP (Digital Light Processing) will provide competition in larger displays.

Demand for Flat Panel, CRT Material to grow (April 2005) World demand for material used in flat-panel and cathode-ray-tube (CRT) displays is expected to grow 12 percent per year through 2008, reaching nearly $22 billion, according to a recent survey by Cleveland-based research firm the Freedonia Group. Glass is expected to remain the single largest material component, although chemicals, coatings and films will significantly increase their overall market presence, the study predicts.

Price Moves Spur Flat-Panel Growth (March 21, 2005) The flat-panel TV segment, which today is comprised of plasma display panels and LCD TV screens, is expected to swell behind a 67.9 percent increase in plasma TV sales to 1.4 million units in 2005, according to the Consumer Electronics Association's (CEA) forecasts. Factory dollar volume for plasma displays is expected to reach nearly $3.5 billion for 2005, up from $2.5 billion last year. This follows a record 2004 that saw sales of plasma TVs grow 149 percent from 342,000 to 853,000 units. LCD TV sales during 2005 will total $3 billion, up from $2 billion in 2004, according to the CEA. Factory unit sales will rise 49 percent from 2.6 million units in 2004 to 3.8 million in 2005, as the average price of an LCD TV climbs to $799, due to stepped up sales of larger screen sizes, according to CEA forecasts. One of the main reasons for the sudden popularity of flat TVs has been price reductions spurred on by waves of new competitors. For example, Orion was said to be planning to enter the plasma business this year with a Sansui-branded HDTV monitor that will see street retail for just over $2,000. The Maxent brand, meanwhile, is retailing a 50W-inch HDTV monitor for under $4,000. Being squeezed are EDTV level plasma models, many of which retail for at or near the $2,000 price point. To keep pace, third-tier EDTV level plasma TV monitors are selling for between $1,500 to $1,800 on e-commerce sites. Much of the activity is occurring before the FCC's July 1, 2005 HDTV tuner mandate requires all televisions with NTSC tuners measuring 36-inches and larger to include ATSC tuners, which add cost.

The resolution wars (March 2005) According to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), sales of DTV products increased 78 percent in 2004, reaching U.S. 810.7 billion in dollars and 7.3 million units. One of the largest contributors to this trend, the association says, is the popularity and infiltration of liquid crystal display (LCD) and plasma display technologies. Total sales of LCD TVs, both analog and digital, passed the $2-billion mark in 2004 and are expected to surpass $3 billion in 2005. Additionally, unit shipments of plasma screens, according to CEA, reached 853,000 units in 2004 and are forecast to nearly double to 1.4 million units this year.

SECOND-TIER LCDS TRY AND GET WITH PROGRAM (March 7, 2005) tier-two brands are apt to succeed within relatively smaller LCD screen sizes. "Consumers are more likely to buy tier-two LCD TVs when they are smaller screen sizes and a lesser amount of money. At three, four and five thousand dollars, the threshold to take the leap is much more significant," she noted. Pratt said that the screen-size sweet spot for these brands is 15 and 20 inches, but "for them to succeed they need to be at 26 and 32 inches to be the true TV brand in the main TV watching space."

Display's the thing: consumers pounce on flat panel (February 21, 2005) Typically, the independent channel struggles to get allocation of product. Thanks to some of the new warehousing initiatives we made in the past year, we were fortunate to have sufficient microchip rear projection, and plasma was not an issue at all. Our forecasts were met. While we had very good availability for the members overall, we did have some issues with LCD panels. Those issues were price compression, and with that the underestimation by the whole CE community of just how quickly consumers were willing to adopt and pay more to get this hot new technology. We thought that delta might need to be lower, but we all were wrong.

Eyeing Competitors, Samsung Elec Unveils New TVs (April 7, 2004) Samsung is launching high definition TV sets with its new DNIe (Digital natural image engine) imaging technology. Samsung said the technology also enabled consumers to adjust the displayed colors -- for example, to make the sky appear in what they think is a more natural blue. The brightness could also automatically adjust according to the light in the room. Samsung, the world's top maker of memory chips and third-largest mobile phone manufacturer, expects the global digital TV market to grow 70 percent this year to 1.75 million units, worth $25 billion. Samsung has about 13 percent of the global digital TV market in terms of number of units.

Sony keeps top spot in plasma display market (July 26, 2004) Average Selling Price: $5,557,58 Key features: * All-in-one design * DVI-HDTV interface * 43% improved brightness * Improved contrast ratio (1000:1) * HDTV monitor (1024 by 1024 pixel resolution * Built-in NTSCTV tuner * Built-in stereo speakers (9Wx2) * Digital pixel generator system * Pixel-by-pixel I/P conversion * CineMotion reverse 3-2 pull-down technology

Dusty brands make a rerun in TV market (February 6, 2004) For now, the margins are also fairly high. A 15-inch LCD TV might fetch $700 at retail while a nearly identical LCD monitor for a computer might sell for $350, even though the two products cost about the same to make, according to David Mentley, an analyst at iSuppli/Stanford Resources. History suggests that success won't come easy. A similar gold rush attracted AT&T, Zenith and other established brands to the emerging PC market in the 1980s. Some did well for a while: A group of Israeli entrepreneurs used low prices and the old Packard Bell brand to turn that company into one of the biggest PC makers in the world. Still, the ultimate winners were companies such as Dell, Gateway and Compaq, which didn't even exist before the PC came along.

Exploiting The Flat Screen Frenzy (December 12, 2003) This year, $14 billion worth of these thin TVs are due to be sold worldwide, giving them a quarter of the global TV market in dollar terms, according to projections by Matsushita (nyse: MC - news - people ), the world's largest consumer electronics firm. By 2005 these big screen beauties will control half the world's $45 billion TV market, although in volume terms there will be still be a lot more $100 CRTs sold than $5,000 plasma screens. Investors trying to ride this wave should consider that Sharp, Samsung and LG-Philips are the biggest makers of LCDs. These screens use a liquid that becomes transparent when hit by electricity, which lets a colored picture dot or pixel shine through. Matsushita, Pioneer (nyse: PIO - news - people ) and Hitachi (nyse: HIT - news - people ) dominate the market for plasma, which is akin to a massive array of miniature cathode ray tubes. But LG and Samsung are catching up fast. Two entirely new technologies may eventually replace both LCD and plasma. These are field emission displays (FEDs) and organic light emitting displays (OLEDs). FEDs shoot light through tiny slits at a phosphorescent screen and are being developed by Canon (nyse: CAJ - news - people ) and Toshiba. Kodak (nyse: EK - news - people ) is the main developer of OLED, which uses organic materials that beam color when electricity is applied. In theory both FED and OLED can produce much cheaper TVs because they can be made using fewer production steps. They also offer equal or better picture quality. [Must Read]

Bold Clothes and Thin TV's Top Lists (November 26, 2003) An exceptionally thin 15-inch flat-panel high-definition television monitor by Samsung ($699) is zooming out of the big-box electronics stores, retailers say. Bill Cimino, a spokesman for Circuit City, said that his company "brought in as many as we possibly could for the holidays." Samsung "really ramped up production," Mr. Cimino said.

Dell moves into family room with LCD TV (October 21, 2003) LCD TVs are one of the fastest growing segments in consumer electronics. Worldwide shipments of LCD TVs hit 734,000 in the first quarter, up 223 percent from the first quarter of last year, according to market research firm DisplaySearch.

The TV Tech Tussle - Coming to a Screen Near You (September 7, 2003) With screens just a few inches thick and often measuring 40 inches or more diagonally, TVs using plasma or liquid crystal display (LCD) technologies are one of the most desirable products to reach electronics showrooms in years. Priced in thousands of dollars, however, a television you can hang on the wall remains a dream for most consumers, and flat screens have grabbed only three percent of a global TV market estimated at $31 billion. plans by South Korean and Taiwanese companies to invest $25 billion in LCD production could lower costs dramatically. The companies, which produce nearly 70 percent of the world's LCD panels, expect to bring their larger screen price down to around $2,000 in 2006, helping to lure more customers.

Sony's new plasma TV adds home smarts  (August 5, 2003) The remote control unit can operate independently as a Web pad, or with the main display as a secondary TV screen. It has a small 6-by-3.5-inch display with an 800-by-480-pixel resolution--about the same image size and quality as large handheld computer. It connects with the main unit with 802.11a networking, which is a high-speed wireless LAN standard more commonly used in computer networks. This standard has a theoretical speed of 54mbps, compared with the 11mbps of standard 802.11b Wi-Fi-based networks. The need to stream video from the main unit to the handheld requires the higher speed.

Sony Electronics Sees U.S. Growth in Flat-Screen TVs (August 8, 2003) This year the driving force is going to be the (television) display business," Komiyama, who is charged with overseeing operations at the $11 billion electronics arm of Japan's Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news) (news - web sites)., told a press gathering in New York. Sony Electronics expects to see revenue for flat-screen TVs, which include high-definition and other digital TV screens, increase to about 30 percent of its total U.S. television sales in the fiscal year ending early in 2004, from about 10 percent a year earlier. Komiyama said CRT television sales in the United States would remain strong at about 70 percent of the total in the current fiscal year. The company remained optimistic about sales of CRT televisions, which on average cost far less than flat-screen models.

HDTV: What's Wrong With This Picture?  (January 15, 2002) one of several companies developing a TV picture technology known as liquid crystal on silicon, or LCoS -- announced deals to sell LCoS products to three different China-based TV manufacturers.

Flat panel display market trends: LCD market will be twice as large as CRT market by 2005 (07/2001) The global display market reached over $51 billion in 2000 and is expected to grow to almost $100 billion by 2005. Flat panel displays (FPDs) comprise about 45 percent of the total display market, with $24 billion in 2000, and $70 billion expected in 2005. It is evident that the FPD market is one of the fastest growing electronic business segments.

Digital TV / HDTV (?) With FPDs (Flat Panel Displays) being the window to the Internet and replacing CRTs (Cathode Ray Tubes) on the desktop and in the TV market, the FPD market is poised for rapid growth. In fact, the FPD market rose 77% in 1999 and is expected to grow at 22% CAGR (Combined Annual Growth rate) from $20.2 billion in 1999 to $66 billion in 2005. Driving revenue growth is the record capital spending and increased demand resulting from lower prices, new applications, and improved display performance. The vast majority of FPD's are addressed in a matrix fashion; such that powering the corresponding row and column activates a given pixel. This means that an individual LCD element is required for each display pixel, unlike a CRT which may have several dot triads for each pixel.
 

New Product Introductions:

LG Unveils Large Plasma Display (October 14, 2003) LG Electronics has beaten its own record for the largest prototype PDP (Plasma Display Panel) yet produced with the development of a panel that is 76 inches in diagonal width. The panel is a jump on the company's 71-inch panel announced in July this year and a 70-inch panel developed by rivals Samsung Electronics that was announced in May. The 76-inch panel was unveiled by the company at the Korea Electronics Show, which took place in Seoul, South Korea, last week. It has a resolution of 1,920 pixels by 1,080 pixels, according to a company statement. That resolution makes it suitable for widescreen high-definition television and matches the resolution of the LG and Samsung panels mentioned above.

Toshiba Adds Ethernet to TVs (September 4, 2003) Toshiba intends to keep its latest range of flat-panel television sets up-to-date by offering new firmware that can be downloaded over a broadband Internet connection present on the televisions. Toshiba says it will provide an update to ensure the televisions are fully compatible, and plans to distribute it before the scheduled start of broadcasts in December. Those upgrades won't use a network connection, and will be supplied to customers on a memory card. In addition to the ethernet connection, the sets also have the standard gamut of video and audio connectors, a D4 digital video connector, digital audio output, an IEEE 1394 interface, and memory card slots for SmartMedia, SD, MultiMediaCard, and Memory Stick.

Manufacturing Ramp Up:

Samsung Doubles Plasma Production (December 16, 2003) South Korea's Samsung SDI is planning to almost double its production of Plasma Display Panels next year, the company says. The company will invest $494 million between January and October 2004 to build a third production line at its plant in Chonan, south of Seoul, says Bryan Sohn, a spokesperson for Samsung SDI. The bulk of the production at the new facility is initially expected to mirror existing manufacturing and be largely 42-inch and 50-inch panels although Samsung also offers panels in sizes 37 inches, 63 inches, and 70 inches, Sohn says. In Japan in the first 10 months of this year shipments of PDP-based televisions are 28 percent above year-ago shipments at 168,000 units while that of LCD-based televisions is 45 percent higher at 1.1 million units. Last week Japan's Matsushita Electric Industrial, better known as Panasonic, said its PDP factory in Shanghai, China, has hit full production at 20,000 panels per month. The company's total PDP production is currently 50,000 panels per month.

Mergers of Interest:

Zoran to Acquire Oak Technology (May 5, 2003) Zoran makes integrated circuits for DVD players and digital cameras, while Sunnyvale-based Oak makes them for HDTV and the digital imaging market.

Helpful Research Links:

Semiconductor Materials and Equipment International - Flat Panel Display Home Page
 

Flat Panel Display Vendors:

Can Motorola crack flat-screen TVs? (January 6, 2004) Demand for LCD TVs is growing fast. They made up only 2.4 percent of last year's overall global TV sales, but that is expected to hit 4.5 percent this year and 8.3 percent in 2005, IDC said.  As sales surge, prices and profit margins will drop, analysts said. O'Donnell expects the average price for LCD screens in the 30- to 39-inch range to fall to about $1,250 by 2006 from between $3,000 and $3,500 now.

Dell Says Flat-Panel TVs Fit Naturally into Product Lines (September 11, 2003) According to a supplier interviewed by Bloomberg News, Dell plans to offer 26-inch and 30-inch screens next year. Attacking new markets is nothing new for Dell, which recently began selling printers in a direct assault on its rival and the leader in printer sales, HP. The No. 1 personal computer maker and its competitors have increasingly woven consumer electronics into their product lines as demand for PCs has waned. For example, Gateway already offers flat-screen TVs, and Hewlett-Packard sells digital cameras. Dell's entry into the flat-screen TV market, populated by Sharp, Samsung and others, has been the source of much speculation in recent days.

HITACHI Electronic Devices USA, Inc., (HED(US)) The HED(US) product line includes a broad array of picture tubes for projection TV's, color display tubes for the personal computer market, and lightweight liquid crystal diode (LCD) displays used for laptop computers and other applications.
 

Companies of Significance in the Area of Flat Panel Displays:

Intel planning flat-panel TV chip (December 17, 2003) ``We think that Intel is going to try to leapfrog (Texas Instruments) with a more attractive-cost chip and a higher-resolution chip,'' said Doherty, director of research at Envisioneering Group in Seaford, N.Y. Intel's new chip is based on a technology known as liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS), which works differently from DLP chips. While DLP chips use a million tiny mirrors that tilt to create an image, LCOS uses tiny crystals that sit on top of a mirrored surface, but do not tilt -- making it theoretically cheaper to mass-produce.

Basic Component Companies that make Flat Panel Display parts:

Cetek Technologies Inc. - based in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., is a specialty material company with a focus in ceramic substrate applications for the electronic industry. For the past five years, the company has worked on producing a ceramic substrate with specific mechanical and electrical characteristics that is flat, smooth and has a large surface area. has secured a license from Motorola for its carbon nanotube triode (CNT) technology, which Cetek will use to produce flat-panel displays.

Motorola - Holder of carbon nanotube triode (CNT) technology.

Plastic Logic - a U.K.-based plastic electronics company

Applied Nanotech, Inc. (ANI) - ANI has more than 80 issued patents surrounding the use of carbon nanotubes in next-generation cathode ray tube (CRT) displays. The flat-panel display market is currently split between plasma displays and liquid crystal displays (LCD). Such displays, however, are complex and expensive to manufacture compared to CRT displays.

Optiva, Inc. - Is the creator of a new class of nanomaterials for advanced optical applications as well as thin optical coatings for the display industry. This technology replaces complex optical film laminations with Optiva TCF™ polarizers, retarders, and enhancement films allowing manufacturers to build thinner, more durable and better looking displays.

Viztec - Manufactures LCDs using two sheets of very thin flexible plastic from roll stock, which are combined to make a display with a diameter of .010 inches.

Some Unthinkable Differences Between FlatPanel Displays and CRTs

Energy Conservation

Apple Computer claims their 23-inch Cinema HD Display, for instance, uses a as low as one third the power of a CRT monitor (of comparable size). A CRT of that size uses about 180 Watts of electricity. How does a savings of 120 watts (2/3 of 180 watts) over the course of a year add up:

Simple calculation = residental energy rates of $0.0735 per kwh
Hours in a year = 365 * 24 = 8760 hours per year
Savings per year = 120 w * 8760 hours/year * $0.0735 * 1/1000 = $77.26

CRTs give off more heat than LCDs. A room full of monitors must be sufficiently air conditioned at an additional cost. A room full of LCDs requires may not require additional cooling

Environmental Considerations

CRTs use up more space in a land fill, in some cases they can represent hazardous waste
Some environmentalists are strongly against CRTs because of the waste products they produce.

Radiation Emission

CRTs (especially older ones) give off significant radiation. Newer ones less, but still significant. LCDs have no such problem.

Space Considerations

CRTs require larger desks to accomidate them. Flat panel displays can squeeze more office space by reducing the size of required desks.

NOTE: Flat panel displays may not last as long as CRTs - screen brightness fades over time. CRTs also prone to decay over time.

Other References:

	Electron-Emissive Materials, Vacuum Microelectronics and Flat-Panel Displays Papers presented in San Francisco in April 2000 look at developments in technology and devices with implications for improvements such as instant on/off; high brightness; high current density; large transconductance- to-capacitance ratio; low-voltage operation; and the continued commercialization of flat panel displays. The 75 papers are organized within categories including field emission and display applications; fundamental processes; field emitter arrays; diamond and wide bandgap; carbon nanotubes and nanostructures; cathodoluminescence; organic light emitter devices; electroluminescence; and laser crystallization.
	Report on Flat Panel Display Manufacturing Related Equipment and Materials Fuji Chimera's research report studies all prominent technologies and companies. The report examines total market value by equipment and material type, market share estimates by company, pricing, company strategies, market growth estimates and more. There is detailed analysis of a wide array of LCD and PDP manufacturing-related equipment and materials, as well as those in the EL and FED fields.
	Flat Panel Display Annual market data and projections are presented in US dollars, and growth rates for the years 1999 through 2005. Market shares by key competitors is presented in US dollars and relative percentages. The report analyzes the following product segments of Flat Panel Display separately - LCDs, PDPs, FEDs, AM LCDs and others. Players discussed in this report include - Sharp Corp, Hitachi, Nokia, IBM, iBIZ Technology Corp., Samsung Electronics Co., LG Electronics, Orion Electric and NEC Electronics Inc.

Readers who use this information for investment purposes do so at their own risk! Opinions expressed are just that and not based on insider information or information otherwise obtained illegally.

 

Can Birds-Eye.Net help you or your Company? Receive your Birds-Eye.Net articles and white papers hot off the presses by adding our RSS feed to your reader.

 

 

(C) Copyright Birds-Eye.Net, All rights reserved.
It is against the law to reproduce this content or any portion of it in any form without the explicit written permission of Birds-Eye Network Services, LLC. Federal copyright law (17 USC 504) makes it illegal, punishable with fines up to $100,000 per violation plus attorney's fees.