Mainland TV makers to buy 30m Taiwanese FPDs

TAIPEI - The Chinese mainland's eight major TV manufacturers are expected to buy 30 million flat panel displays (FPD) with an estimated value of $4.5 billion from Taiwanese firms in 2012, according to figures disclosed by the mainland-based China Video Industry Association at a cross-Strait IT forum on Tuesday.

Bai Weimin, vice president of the association, gave the figures while addressing the event that featured a range of topics, including FPD, LED lighting, automotive electronics, the Internet of Things and cloud computing, and drew together representatives from major IT and electronic firms from across the Taiwan Straits.

Mainland TV brands Skyworth, TCL, Hisense, Changhong, Haier, Konka, Xoceco and Panda each signed letters of intent with Taiwan's top panel makers, Chimei Innolux Corp and AU Optronics Corp, on FPD procurement. Details about the letters of intent were not publicized.

The annual total value of flat panels that mainland TV manufacturers bought from Taiwan stood at $3.4 billion, $4.3 billion and $4 billion in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively.

Bai said the mainland's orders with Taiwan's two major panel suppliers would focus on panels sized 32 inches and larger as well as other high-end products, as the mainland's own flat panel makers have been increasing their shipments of ordinary panels.

By combining the advantages of the mainland's production capacities and huge market for consumer goods and the island's competitiveness in flat panel design and related development, Bai urged joint efforts from IT and electronic firms from across the Straits to shore up the Chinese nation's strengths in the era of smart devices.

The event also saw Taiwanese smartphone vendor HTC Corp sign letters of intent with the mainland's Internet giants Tencent Inc and Sina Corp on strategic cooperation in mobile application services, cloud computing services and customized smart phones - an effort believed to help bolster the popularity of HTC-brand phones among mainland consumers.