DisplaySearch Reports LCD TV Shipments Rise 125% in Q1'05 with Revenues Rising 141% Due to Increased Acceptance of Larger Sizes: Sharp Continues to Lead with a 21% Share.

AUSTIN, Texas -- DisplaySearch, the worldwide leader in flat panel display (FPD) market research and consulting, indicated in two recent reports that global 10" and larger LCD TV shipments grew 125% Y/Y while falling 13% Q/Q to 3.15M units in seasonally weak Q1'05.

Driving the growth were significant reductions in prices supported by significant cost reductions from new fabs optimized for larger LCD production. From Q1'04 to Q1'05, prices for the majority of LCD TVs 20" and larger fell at least 20% -- with a number of sizes experiencing 40% ASP reductions. At the same time, larger sizes continue to gain ground due to their more attractive prices enabling revenue growth to outpace unit growth, so that it rose 141% Y/Y while falling 5% Q/Q to $4.1B. In Q1'05, the average LCD TV diagonal was 12% larger than the Q1'04 diagonal at 22.6", and the percentage of LCD TV shipments 30" and larger rose particularly rapidly, up 254% Y/Y to achieve a 23% share, up from 15% in Q1'04.

LCD TV demand surged worldwide, but was particularly robust in China where shipments grew 55% Q/Q and over 400% Y/Y to a record 200K units. China's share of the worldwide LCD TV market jumped from 3.6% to 6.4%, with Chinese brands having a 67% share of their domestic market. China's TV shipments are seasonally strong in Q1 due to the March Festival, which supports the large share gains. The European LCD TV market rose the second fastest up 188% Y/Y while falling only 8% Q/Q to 1.27M units. With this growth, Europe remained the largest LCD TV market with a 41% share of the worldwide LCD TV market, up from 38% in Q4'04. Due to their emphasis on smaller TV sizes and desire for thinner form factors, LCD TV penetration continues to rise in Europe. North America had the largest Q/Q decline, down 31% but rising 102% Y/Y, to 648K units and a 21% share, down from 26% in Q4'04. The large decline in North America can be attributed to seasonal size preferences. Q4 TV buying emphasizes smaller displays, and Q1 TV buying patterns supports larger screens. Japan remained the #2 region with a 26% share, down from 27% in Q4'04, on 66% Y/Y growth and a 17% Q/Q decline to 824K units. The Japanese LCD TV market remained larger than North America's, and gained significant share vs. other technologies in Japan in Q1'05 due to their emphasis on form factor and smaller sizes.

In terms of growth by size, all size categories declined sequentially except for 35-39" and 40-44" which are just becoming more widely available. 10-14", 15-19" and 22-24" all declined at least 20% sequentially due to lower prices at larger sizes along with seasonal buying habits. 20-21" overtook 15-19" to become the single largest category with a 25% share, up from 23%. 15-19" fell to #2 with a 21% share, down from 25%, while 30-34" jumped from 18% to 20%.

Branded TV shipments are provided for 34 different brands by region by size: Audiovox, BenQ, Changhong, Daewoo, Dell, Gateway, Haier, Hisense, Hitachi, Hyundai, Ingram, JVC, Konka, LGE, Loewe, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Philips, Relisys, Sampo, Samsung, Sanyo, Sharp, Skyworth, Sony, SVA, Sylvania, Syntax, Tatung, Toshiba, TTE, ViewSonic, Westinghouse and Xoceco.

In Q1'05, Sharp remained #1 worldwide with a 21.0% share, down from 21.9%, as shown in Table 1. Sharp remained the #1 LCD TV brand in North America and Japan, was #2 in ROW, #3 in Europe and #4 in China. Philips remained #2, although its unit share dropped from 14.7% to 10.9%. It remained #1 in the dominant European market, but fell to #5 in North America. Samsung overtook Sony and nearly caught Philips for the #3 position with a 10.8% share. Samsung led in ROW, rose to #2 in North America and remained #2 in Europe. Sony dropped to #4 with a 10.0% share, holding #2 in Japan and #6 in North America, while falling to #5 in Europe. In China, Hisense held onto the top position followed by Skyworth and Xoceco.

Table 1    Worldwide Branded LCD TV Market Share and Y/Y Growth

                 Share       Y/Y Growth
             -------------
Brand        Q4'04   Q1'05     Q1'05
Sharp        21.9%   21.0%       82%
Philips      14.7%   10.9%      129%
Samsung       9.8%   10.8%      109%
Sony         11.0%   10.0%       74%
LGE           6.7%    7.3%       57%
Other        35.9%   40.0%      216%
            --------------      -----
Total       100.0%  100.0%       125%

By size category, Sharp continued to lead at 10"-14", 20"-21", 25"-29", 35"-39" and 45"+ and overtook Sony at 30"-34". Samsung overtook Philips at 15"-19", Philips overtook Sony at 22"-24" and Sony continued to lead at 40"-44".

DisplaySearch's historical LCD TV shipment data along with its rolling 16-quarter shipment forecast can be found in its Quarterly LCD TV Shipment and Forecast Report available from $5995 or its Quarterly Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report which covers all TV technologies for $8995. For more information on any of these reports, please contact Carl Steudle at 408-459-1192, or [e-mail].

DisplaySearch will host the 9th DisplaySearch Japan Forum on June 15-16 at the Tokyo Conference Center Shinagawa. Join DisplaySearch analysts and special guests for this popular two-day event. Register now for $980 online at: http://www.displaysearch.com/japan/9japanforum.html or in Japanese for 102,900 Yen at http://www.displaysearch-japan.com/seminar9.

DisplaySearch will also hold its annual HDTV Conference 2005: The Future of Television August 23-24, 2005 in Los Angeles, California at the Beverly Hilton, which will be broadcast on HDNet this fall. For more information, please visit www.displaysearch.com/hdtvconference or contact Kendra Smith at 512-459-3126 x107 or [e-mail].

About DisplaySearch

DisplaySearch has a core team of 29 employees located in North America and Asia who produce a valued suite of market forecasts, technology assessments, surveys, studies and analyses, and organize influential industry events worldwide. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, DisplaySearch has regional operations in Chicago, Hong Kong, Houston, Kyoto, Shenzhen, San Diego, San Jose, Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo, and the company is on the web at www.displaysearch.com.