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From smartphones and tablets to computers and televisions, screens have deeply integrated into people’s daily lives, covering the vast majority of work and life scenarios. The product forms of smart terminals continue to innovate, and consumer demand is increasingly diverse. For example, the trend of foldable screens is heating up, with devices featuring large folds, small folds, and even triple folds emerging in abundance; televisions are evolving towards high-end, large-screen formats, transforming from a single audiovisual tool into the smart hub of the living room ecosystem.
The demand and scenarios for smart terminals are constantly expanding, and the upstream display panel industry is undergoing a profound transformation. Driven by multiple factors such as capacity expansion, technological iteration, and supply chain restructuring, the global panel industry landscape is being reshaped, with Chinese panel manufacturers’ dominant position and influence continuously increasing.
China has dominated LCD panel production capacity. According to market research firm TrendForce, from the global distribution of LCD production capacity above the fifth generation, Chinese panel manufacturers have completed the leap from followers to leaders, with the global capacity share rising from 20% in 2016 to over 60% in 2024, and it is expected to exceed 70% by 2025.
This leap is inseparable from the collective efforts of Shenzhen panel companies. In the 1980s, Shentianma (000050.SZ) became the first company to take the plunge, establishing the first TN-LCD production line in Shenzhen, producing small-sized liquid crystal displays, thus starting the path of independent development for China’s display panel industry.
Subsequently, with further industry development, in 2009, TCL invested in Shenzhen to establish Huaxing Optoelectronics, expanding from the t1 production line to the t11 production line; in 2015, Shenzhen company Huike Co., Ltd. began investing in LCD panel production lines. After years of accumulation, Shenzhen has gradually formed a trillion-level high-definition display industry cluster led by TCL Huaxing Optoelectronics, Shentianma, and Huike Co., Ltd., covering a complete industrial chain from glass substrates, polarizers, panel manufacturing to terminal applications.
The Shenzhen panel industry has evolved from nothing to a leading position, thanks to the relentless efforts and continuous innovation of generations of practitioners. It is this steadfast investment in key areas and overcoming challenges in core technologies that ultimately established Shenzhen’s unshakeable position in the global display industry.
A “Struggle” in the Shenzhen Panel Industry
In the 1980s, Shentianma built the first TN-LCD production line in Shenzhen, which is widely regarded as the beginning of the development of China’s panel industry. However, due to the overall technical equipment level and funding limitations of the domestic LCD industry, the development of China’s panel industry was slow, and for a long time, it still had to rely on imports.
It wasn’t until 2009 that things began to change. At that time, the global financial crisis of 2008 had just ended. To stimulate domestic demand, China launched policies such as “home appliances going to the countryside,” leading to a rapid increase in demand for LCD televisions. Under the leadership of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, several mainland TV manufacturers formed groups to purchase LCD panels from Taiwan. During this period, several panel companies suddenly joined forces, raising panel prices by 30% within five months, which directly led to a downturn in the mainland TV industry.
This event made decision-makers deeply aware of the importance of independently controlling the panel industry. Consequently, a large number of industrial support policies were introduced. Many domestic panel companies began to pursue independent innovation, with TCL being one of them. The sudden price increase made TCL’s founder, Li Dongsheng, acutely feel the embarrassment of relying on others, prompting him to decide to venture into the upstream panel industry.
Undoubtedly, this was a difficult decision. TCL Huaxing’s first project was to build an 8.5-generation LCD production line (code-named t1). The total investment for this project reached 24.5 billion yuan, exceeding the total assets of TCL at that time. Everyone viewed it as a “gamble.”
But Li Dongsheng did not see it that way. In his view, TCL decided to enter the panel industry with a 70% confidence level. Therefore, TCL’s decision was not a “gamble,” but a “struggle,” a fight calculated after assessing the risks.
Several factors supported Li Dongsheng’s judgment: First, the technical barriers for display technology had relatively lowered; although there were many challenges, domestic companies had already built three fifth-generation LCD panel lines: BOE, Shanggong Optoelectronics, and Kunshan Longteng; second, TCL had previously invested in building its own LCD module factory, providing a certain foundation; third, TCL had the advantage of vertical integration in the industrial chain.
Li Dongsheng believed the most important point was that the state had a clear strategic plan and policy support for the display industry at that time. Although TCL’s funding for the panel production line was insufficient, it could seek investment from the Shenzhen municipal government, which could potentially solve the funding issue.
For this reason, in 2009, TCL proposed to collaborate with the Shenzhen government to independently build a high-generation LCD production line. After multiple evaluations, this project received support from the Shenzhen municipal government. In January of the following year, the Huaxing Optoelectronics 8.5-generation panel project, or TCL Huaxing’s t1 production line, officially broke ground on a vacant lot in Guangming New District.
As China’s first high-generation LCD production line built without relying on technology imports, the t1 line’s emergence is seen as a symbol of the maturity of China’s independent high-generation line technology. In the context of global competition, the Chinese panel industry sounded the horn for a counterattack.
In the following decade, several 8.5/11-generation lines from TCL Huaxing, Huike, and BOE were successively built and put into production, strongly impacting Korea’s 7-generation lines. Subsequently, the outdated capacity of Korean manufacturers accelerated clearance, and Chinese panel manufacturers gradually established a dominant position in the global panel industry.
The leap in development for Chinese panel manufacturers is inseparable from policy support. The LCD industry has experienced a transfer from Japan to Korea and then to China, with strong government promotion behind each transition. Senior panel industry insider Zhang Qi (pseudonym) analyzed to the Times Weekly that heavy asset, long-cycle panel projects require government support, as the upgrade to 4K/8K not only requires advancements in display technology but also upgrades in supporting infrastructure such as data transmission.
“Relying solely on corporate strength is difficult to drive industry-wide transformation; policy guidance plays a key role in this process. The leap from follower to leader for China’s panel industry is undoubtedly the result of collaborative efforts from industry, academia, research, and government,” Zhang Qi said.
The New Long Battle of OLED
Although Chinese manufacturers have already taken the lead in LCD, the battle for the panel industry is far from over. The panel industry, with multiple technological routes such as LCD, OLED, Mini LED, and Micro-LED, as well as continuously upgrading production lines, is destined to be a long-term upgrade battle.
Especially in the OLED technology route, Korean manufacturers hold the initiative. For instance, TrendForce’s research deputy general manager Fan Boyu has analyzed that in the technological layout of major global panel manufacturers, Chinese panel manufacturers have made significant investments in traditional LCD but have deep technical accumulation.
“However, in the OLED field, Chinese panel manufacturers have certain capabilities in RGB OLED products below the sixth generation, but in medium and large-sized QD-OLED, W-OLED, and RGB 8.6-generation capacity, Korean panel manufacturers still hold the advantage,” Fan Boyu stated.
To catch up, a series of Chinese panel manufacturers, including TCL Huaxing, Shentianma, and BOE, are increasing their investments in the OLED field. According to senior industry economic analyst Ding Shaojiang, in the small and medium-sized OLEDs mainly used in flexible screens for smartphones, Chinese panel manufacturers are catching up, with their overall scale gradually approaching Korean companies, now in a “running alongside” stage, with the potential for future overtaking.
In the large-sized OLEDs mainly used for TVs, Chinese manufacturers currently lack large-scale production line layouts, primarily due to the small market size for large-sized OLEDs for TVs, which faces competitive pressure from technologies such as Mini LED, RGB Mini LED, and Micro LED, and is not the market core. However, Ding Shaojiang pointed out to the Times Weekly that Chinese panel manufacturers are continuously tracking technologies such as evaporation and printing, with companies like TCL Huaxing and BOE already having technical reserves.
For example, TCL Huaxing chose to initially pursue printed OLED as the technology route for large-sized OLED screens back in 2013. At that time, LG Display had successfully launched a 55-inch OLED screen using traditional evaporation technology, while the printed OLED technology route was not favored by the industry.
TCL Huaxing’s printed OLED center director, Cao Weiran, recalled to the media that the company also had hesitations early on, and not everyone supported printed OLED; many voices suggested following LG or Samsung’s direction. However, TCL believed that following meant being constrained by patents and supply chains, and thus decided to challenge the printed OLED technology. After a long 11 years of R&D investment, in November 2024, TCL Huaxing announced the official mass production of its first printed OLED screen.
From this perspective, Ding Shaojiang believes that in the OLED field, Chinese panel companies are also likely to replicate the successful path they previously took in the LCD field. “China’s rich industrial chain resources and mature upstream and downstream enterprise capabilities are conducive to Chinese panel companies gradually achieving a transition from ‘latecomer catch-up’ to ‘global leadership’ in the OLED field.”
This judgment is gradually becoming a reality. For instance, Guosheng Securities’ research report analyzed that although Korean manufacturers started earlier in the OLED field and maintained a high market share due to their first-mover advantage and technical accumulation, global OLED production capacity is accelerating its transfer to mainland China.
Market research firm Omdia data shows that the OLED production capacity area in mainland China has risen from 1.43 million square meters in 2018 to 17.22 million square meters in 2023, with an average annual growth rate of 58.6%, and the capacity share has increased from 10.5% in 2018 to 45.7% in 2023.
Zhang Qi analyzed that once Chinese companies collectively enter a field, they can fully leverage their manufacturing advantages and gradually establish and expand their competitive edge through excellent cost control and rapid technological updates. The successful leap in the LCD field and the catch-up in the OLED field vividly illustrate this logic.
(Source: Times Weekly)
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