Double-Digit Growth Looms in AMOLED Encapsulation Materials, Says IHS Markit

The global market for encapsulation materials used in active-matrix OLED displays is expected to rise 76 percent this year from last, to $111 million, said Richard Son, IHS Markit principal analyst-display chemical materials, in a Monday research note. Son sees a bright long-term outlook for the encapsulation materials market as AMOLED displays are expected to double their share of the overall display market to 22 percent in 2020, from 11 percent this year he said. AMOLED encapsulation surface area is expected to rise 62 percent year over year to reach 4 million square meters in 2016, he said: “Double-digit growth will continue, reaching 13 million square meters in 2020.” Of the three types of encapsulation materials -- glass, metal and thin-film -- used in AMOLED displays, Son sees glass getting 56 percent of the total encapsulation market this year, he said. “However, with rising demand for AMOLED TVs requiring much larger display surface area than smaller smartphone and wearable devices, metal encapsulation is expected to overtake glass encapsulation, to reach 53 percent of the market in 2017,” he said.