14 DAY TRIAL // While tablets are giving PC makers a hard time, since sales of computers are dwindling, it seems that another market will suffer because of them, that of displays, only in a very different way.
As tablets keep selling, especially now that more models have been launched, PC's have been losing share and failing to meet analysts expectations.
Meanwhile, the same phenomenon is gearing up to having quite the opposite effect on the display segment.
With slates expected to sell massively this year, they will, naturally, need many LCD screens, especially 7-inch and 10-inch ones.
Thus, there is a high chance, as said by IHS (iSupply), that the global display industry will be faced with shortages of certain products, while others will end up in higher quantities than necessary.
For those that want numbers, tablet shipments are poised to more than triple in 2011, from 17.1 million of last year to 57.6 million units.
“IHS believes that as these iPad competitors turn their focus to tablets, the demand for netbook and notebook displays will soften,” said Joe Abelson, vice president of displays at IHS.
“And because the tablet market is so new and volumes are unpredictable, display suppliers will be forced to gamble production capacity on the unrealistically high projections of their tablet customers,” he added.
“With different panel sizes and specs in play, the industry should expect to see significant inventory shortages and excesses to occur at the SKU level throughout 2011, potentially accompanied by heavy discounting or scrapping of unused displays,” Abelson went on to saying.
Apple should remain dominant, with a share of about 70.4%, while the rest will be divided between Samsung Electronics, HP, Dell, Research in Motion and others.
This dominance should more or less hold over the next four years, but iSupply expects Apple to have to work especially hard against the others once they gt better at the game.