According to UK-based Futuresource Consulting, the international professional flat panel market in 2011 saw gains over 2010, as the market continued to find opportunities within difficult trading conditions. The 2011 combined display market grew 18.9 percent in 2010. The final quarter of 2011 saw Quarter-on-Quarter (QoQ) growth of 5.6 percent and Year-on-Year (YoY) growth of 22.3 percent, with the quarter posting volumes of one million units. The pure professional display market experienced an expected slow quarter with a growth of 1.0 percent QoQ, however, YoY growth was 9.7 percent with volume sales of 461k units.It was a very difficult year for the Japanese market, with the professional display market falling 47.6 percent on 2010. The country has shown strong recovery in the 2H 2011, with Q4 posting sales of 31k units, a QoQ growth of 19.5 percent. This result was in contrast to the overall Asia/Pacific region, which saw growth of -3.8 percent in the professional display market. India continues to show strong and steady growth in Q4, with QoQ growth of 16.8 percent and YoY growth of 82.4 percent.
- Q4 has seen a resurgence in the super narrow bezel products with growth of 27.8 percent QoQ and 89.7 percent YoY.
- The transition from CCFL backlighting to LED continues at pace, as the number of professional displays sold with LED backlighting doubled to 35.9k QoQ. The lower energy consumption and thinner form factor are key drivers for this technology as end users look for savings where they can.
- The market for professional larger screen sizes (≥46”) continues to grow, with 10.6 percent QoQ growth and 39.9 percent YoY. As the prices for these larger displays continue to fall — on average 22.5 percent YoY – the demand will continue to increase.
EMEA Projector Market
The full year EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Africa) performance posted a slight YoY decline of 1.24 percent, dropping from 2.38m units in 2010 to 2.35m units in 2011. On a quarterly basis, Q4 2011 posted a 5.41 percent YoY volume growth to reach 721k units. As anticipated, Russia posted a very strong result reaching unit sales of 76,322 which represents over 115 percent YoY growth. Much of this strong performance can be attributed to heavy investment in the education space with both national and regional funding driving classroom adoption. Despite the national election, which is due in 2012, signficant further investment is expected and market volumes are likely to accelerate.
The education sector remains a critical driver for the projector category and is perfectly highlighted by the Spanish market which posted 11 percent YoY growth in Q4 despite a change of government and troubled economic situation (although the funding models behind some of the tender activity in Spain are very unusual). While the outlook for Western Europe looks relatively weak in 2012, the Eastern European and Middle Eastern markets are expected to provide strong growth opportunities.
Global Projector Market
The global projector market reached 7.67 million units in 2011, representing a 3.48 percent year on year growth. With uncertain global economic conditions continuing to affect market demand, market growth is increasingly down to two major factors; emerging markets and increased penetration in the education sector.
Strong sales territories in Q4 included:
- Indonesia at 126K
- Russia at 76K, where numerous education tenders were issued and delivered (despite the pressures of a 60-day delivery and installation requirement)
- Brazil at 55K continues to accelerate with major tenders expected in the first half of 2012