Touchscreens Get Cheaper As Demand Rises

Now that touchscreens are used extensively in even the smallest handsets, and multitouch is making its way to many of the newer display solutions, it would be quite predictable for suppliers to raise prices in order to score higher profits. However, this is not what has happened when it comes to those that supply the actual touchscreen ICs. In fact, according to market reports, the exact opposite situation has arisen, where touchscreen-controller makers have actually cut down prices in anticipation of the impending high demand from the handset sector.

Both first-tier makers like Cypress and Amtel and second-tier players, such as Sitronix, have reduced prices of their touch controllers. The top names slashed prices by ten to 20 percent, whereas the others were even more aggressive, in hopes that they would score better when the second quarter orders from the consumer electronics and handset markets kicked in.

This phenomenon, Digitimes reports, occurred because such controllers were no longer exclusive to the smartphone market, but are now featured in high-end and even mid-end phones. In this situation, and with the recovering economy signaling the approach of a significantly higher demand for such electronics, it makes sense for these companies to fight over contracts.

When the idea of mid-end feature phones with resistive touch panels first came to Samsung and LG, there might have been some reservation on the part of other companies. Still, these products proved that they could be quite successful, drawing the interest of other vendors, to the point where even Nokia intends to tackle this segment in the second half of the ongoing year. Reportedly, Nokia intends to release between three and five touch-capable handsets from Q2 onwards.

Other companies that have decided to adopt a similar aggressive pricing tactic are Weltrend Semiconductor, Ene Technology, Integrated Technology Express (ITE), Synaptics and Elan Microelectronics.