On the map of the semiconductor industry, the name of Samsung Electronics is undoubtedly a heavyweight symbol. However, Samsung Electronics recently announced that it will fully withdraw from the LED business, a decision that not only marks the end of an era, but may also herald a new trend in the future of the industry.
1. the rise and fall of Samsung's LED business
Samsung Electronics officially entered the LED lighting field in 2012 by merging with Samsung LED Corporation. However, over time, the business's performance continued to be sluggish and its competitiveness in the international market gradually weakened. Although the annual sales can still reach about 10.4 billion yuan, it is insignificant compared to the overall revenue of Samsung Electronics. As a result, Samsung Electronics decided to spin off the business and concentrate its resources on core areas with more growth potential, such as power semiconductors and micro LEDs.
Pictured: Samsung has announced that it will fully withdraw from the LED market
2. the global competition pattern of the LED market
In recent years, the market size of the LED industry has shown a development trend of continuous rise first, and then fluctuating at a high level. In 2022, the market size of China's LED industry will reach 675 billion yuan, despite the impact of complex and severe domestic and foreign situations and multiple unexpected factors, the overall output value of the industry will decline by 13.16%. However, with the continuous advancement of technology and the continuous change of the market, the LED industry will usher in more innovation and change.
3. Samsung's new battlefield: power semiconductors and Micro LEDs
This decision by Samsung Electronics means that more resources and attention will be diverted to the field of power semiconductors and micro LEDs. Power semiconductors are widely used in fields such as electric vehicles and energy storage, and are considered to be the key drivers for the rapid development of the industry. As a new generation of display technology, Micro LED is still regarded as an important breakthrough in the future display field despite facing many challenges in mass production and cost control.
4. the development status and challenges of Micro LED technology
Micro LED display technology is an effective supplement to the current mainstream display technology, and fills the shortcomings and gaps of the current mainstream display technology in application. Micro LED display has no limitation of photoresist and filter, and the brightness can easily reach 2000-4000cd/m², which can achieve ultra-high contrast and high-quality HDR display effect. In addition, the LED chip has high wall-plug conversion efficiency, and the power consumption of Micro LED display is only 50% of that of OLED display. However, Micro LED technology is still immature, and there are still some technical bottlenecks in chips, backplanes, mass transfer, full color, bonding, driving, and testing and maintenance.
5. the impact of Samsung's withdrawal from the LED business on the industry
This decision of Samsung Electronics will not only affect the export competitiveness of Korea's semiconductor industry, but also affect the upstream and downstream enterprises that cooperate with it. Considering that these companies have created a large number of jobs in Korea, some analysts have pointed out that Samsung Electronics' plight may trigger a deeper economic crisis that is not limited to a single company.
6. Editor's point of view
From the decision of Samsung Electronics to withdraw from the LED business, the editor of China Exportsemi believes that several key market signals can be seen from it. First of all, the competition in the LED market has been very fierce, especially under the price competition of Chinese brands and international brands, even the industry giants are difficult to maintain their original market share. Second, rapid advances in technology and changes in market demand have forced companies to constantly adjust their strategies and focus on areas with more potential. Finally, this decision also reflects the profound changes that the global semiconductor industry is undergoing, and enterprises need to be more agile and agile to respond to market and technology challenges.
In summary, Samsung Electronics' exit from the LED business is a landmark event that not only reveals the current state of the LED market, but also provides us with deep insights into the future development of the semiconductor industry. With the continuous advancement of technology and the continuous change of the market, we can foresee that the semiconductor industry will usher in more innovation and change.
