The latest market data shows that Samsung has increased its dependence on Chinese and Taiwanese panel suppliers for the production of its televisions. Data from market researcher IHS shows that Chinese and Taiwanese suppliers accounted for 68.4 percent of panel supply in March while Samsung's internal supply accounted for only 25.1 percent.
Samsung Display reportedly provided some 885,000 panels during this period whereas Taiwan's Innolux supplied 850,000 or 24.1 percent of the required panels. Chinese panel suppliers BOE and China Star accounted for 15.9 percent and 16.9 percent, whereas Japan's Sharp took 6.5 percent and Taiwan's AU Optronics took 11.5 percent. In the same period last year, Samsung's internal supply stood at 45.5 percent but we saw a decline in internal supply earlier this year in January when it hit 32.1 percent. The trend continues, showing that Samsung is increasing its reliance on third-party panel suppliers.
