China and South Korea's TV exports crush Japan, but Panasonic executives are overjoyed: there are no losers in this battle!

The global TV market data for the third quarter of 2025 has been released, revealing a clear picture that almost eliminates the need for further debate— the top five TV brands are entirely dominated by Chinese and South Korean companies: Samsung, Hisense, TCL, LG, and Xiaomi. These five companies together captured 64.3% of the global market share, with the remaining 35.7% divided among all other brands, where Japanese brands are almost negligible.

Looking specifically, South Korea relies on its technological barriers. Samsung and LG together account for about 38% of the global market share, with OLED and QD-OLED high-end panels almost monopolized by LG Display and Samsung Display. In 2025, more than 85% of OLED TV panels worldwide were supplied by these two South Korean companies, even Sony had to purchase panels from LG.

Meanwhile, Chinese brands rely on their comprehensive industrial chain integration capabilities. Hisense, TCL, and Xiaomi together accounted for about 22% of global shipments, backed by a fully self-controlled supply chain including panels (BOE, CSOT), chips (Amlogic, MediaTek), complete machine assembly, logistics, and e-commerce channels. For example, TCL's CSOT had the second-largest liquid crystal panel production capacity in 2024, trailing only BOE.

Looking at Japan, once a major TV manufacturer, now almost "invisible". In the third quarter of 2025, the three Japanese brands—Panasonic, Sony, and Sharp—had a combined global market share of less than 3%, with Panasonic's TV business shipment volume declining by 41% year-on-year, having already exited mainstream channels in North America and Europe.

Where is the problem?

Firstly, the loss of control over the supply chain. Japan relied on JDI (Japan Display Inc.) during the LCD era, but JDI stopped producing TV panels in 2023 due to investment mistakes and technical route fluctuations. Secondly, the cost structure is rigid.

A 55-inch 4K TV, the BOM cost for Chinese brands is approximately $180, while for South Korean brands it is about $210, whereas Japanese-made ones still remain above $260, lacking price competitiveness. Combined with a slow response to new trends such as Mini-LED, AI picture enhancement engines, and smart systems, Japanese TV brands have gradually been marginalized.

But surprisingly, this "collapse" has made Panasonic executives laugh. The reason is that they have long stopped making money from selling TVs. Exiting the TV market is like shedding a huge burden for them.

Since 2022, Panasonic has gradually divested its TV assembly business, licensing the brand to Turkish Arcelik and Chinese manufacturers. In terms of stock prices, since Panasonic announced its full exit from TV manufacturing in 2023, its stock has risen 128% over three years, far exceeding the Nikkei 225 index's gain. Once a manufacturing star, it is becoming increasingly Wall Street-like now.

Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1847936302482436/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.