Samsung, LG Electronics top 2 global TV makers in H1

Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., two South Korean tech giants, respectively achieved the No. 1 and No. 2 spots in the global TV set market in terms of sales during the first half, according to research firm Omdia on Monday.

Samsung accounted for 31.2% of the global TV set market, which reached $45.5 billion, during the first six months of this year. LG came in with a market share of 16.2%, followed by two Chinese firms – TCL Technology scoring 10.2% and Hisense Group with 9.5%, the data showed. Japan's Sony Corp. ranked fifth with 5.7%.

For the premium TV market priced over $2,500, Samsung topped with a share of 61.7% by prioritizing its Neo quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) lineup. The company posted a 41.6% market share for 80-inch-TVs and larger, with its 98-inch QLED TV products.

The electronics giant also swept the world’s two largest markets of big screen TVs, according to Omdia. It logged 59.3% and 60.7% shares in the 80-inch and larger TV markets of North America and Europe, respectively, for the first six months of this year.

Samsung sold more than 4 million QLED TV units in the first half and posted cumulative sales surpassing 40 million last month. The company said it has solidified its market dominance by focusing on premium and big screen products amid challenges from Chinese competitors.

It also posted 352,000 units of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) TV sales in the first half, exceeding last year’s annual record. The company ranked second with 18.3% in the worldwide OLED TV market, following LG.

With its robust performance, Samsung aims to maintain the top spot in the global TV market in terms of sales for 18 consecutive years.

LG ranked second in the global TV market in terms of sales during the first half, with a 16.2% share.

For the OLED TV market, the home appliance behemoth topped with 55.7% share in terms of shipments, delivering 1.3 million units. Samsung and Sony followed with 18.3% and 17.9% shares, respectively.

OLED TVs accounted for around 30% of LG’s sales in the first half. The company plans to target the premium and big screen TV market in the second half with the LG Signature OLED M at 97 inches, the world’s first wireless OLED TV launched in July.

Worldwide TV shipments during the first six months reached 92.7 million units, similar to the same period last year, according to Omdia data.

Write to Ik-Hwan Kim at lovepen@hankyung.com

Jihyun Kim edited this article.