S.Korean IT firms expand market dominance

Posted on : 2011-11-11 11:38 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Technological advancements have continued to push S.Korean firms above competitors in Asia

By Kim Jae-seob, Technology Correspondent 
 
Amid the global economic downturn, South Korean IT firms are continuing to increase their market dominance, surpassing top companies in Japan and Taiwan.
According to data released by Display Search on Thursday, Samsung Mobile Display (SMD) posted sales of $1.9 billion in Q3 of this year. Its share in the global small and medium-sized display market was a world-leading 21.4%. This marked an increase of almost four percentage points over its market share in Q2 of this year (17.6%), pushing the alliance between Toshiba, Sony and Hitachi (18.3%) into second place. This is the first quarter in which SMD has recorded a global market share above 20%. Japanese firm Sharp’s share fell from 16.4% to 14.5% over the same period. Market experts are forecasting that SMD’s share will rise to more than 24% in Q4.
The expanded supply of active matrix organic light-emitting diodes (AMOLED), which began in May, had a significant effect in increasing SMD’s market share.
“Our sales and market share increased rapidly when AMOLED was chosen for devices such as Samsung Electronics’ ‘Galaxy’ series, Motorola’s ‘Laser’ strategic smartphone, and Nokia’s ‘Lumia 800,’” an SMD official explained. “‘Playstation Vita,’ Sony’s new portable gaming device, which is due to be released next month, is also expected to carry SMD AMOLED products.”
South Korean firms are also rapidly increasing market shares in areas such as memory chips, large LCD panels for use in TVs, smart TVs and smartphones. Data from DRAMeXchange show that Samsung Electronics and Hynix Semiconductor had a share in the DRAM market pushing 70% in Q3. This marks an increase of seven whole percentage points over the same period last year. Unlike South Korean firms, which have gained a competitive edge in terms of cost thanks to superior microfabrication technology, Japanese and Taiwanese firms have begun curtailing production, unable to cope with losses due to falling DRAM prices. It therefore appears that memory made in South Korea is set to further increase its market share.
The mood in the high-performance TV market, too, is one of effective solidification into a system dominated by Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics. Data from NPD show that the two Korean giants occupied almost 50% of the North American market in Q3 of this year. Their success forms a contrast to the target reductions and shrinking production lines of Japanese firms such as Sony and Panasonic.
“We need to note the fact that South Korean companies are increasing their market shares when it comes to key components that go into products for which demand is steadily increasing, such as smartphones, which are replacing personal computers,” pointed out Lee Seung-u, head of a team at Shinyoung Securities that works with semiconductors and IT.
   
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