Display Drivers Market

Market Overview

The global display drivers market size was valued at USD 6.3 Billion in 2023 and is projected to reach a value of USD 10.2 Billion by 2032, registering a CAGR of 4.5% during the forecast period (2024-2032). The increase in demand for display driver integrated circuits and the growing number of device makers are key market drivers boosting Display Driver's market growth.

Display drivers are electronic components or integrated circuits (ICs) that control and regulate display operation in various electronic devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptop computers, televisions, monitors, and automotive displays. These drivers are critical in converting low-voltage signals from the device's processor into the high-voltage signals required to activate and control individual pixels or segments of the display. 

Furthermore, as LCD panels become more prevalent in electronic devices, the demand for display Driver integrated circuits (DDIC) grows. LCD screens are used in various devices, including televisions, laptops, and smartphones. The widespread use of large electronic display drivers also influences the market because they are easy to use, cheap to manufacture, read, and low-power, and rapidly develop the display driver market. As a result, the growing presence of display drivers is propelling the display drivers market growth.

Highlights

• Display Driver IC accounts for the largest share of the market by type.
• Smartphones generate the highest revenue share through the device.
• OLED led the market by technology.
• Chip-on-film is the primary packaging type in the market.

Market Dynamics

Global Market Drivers

Rising Demand for High-Resolution Displays

The growing consumer demand for high-resolution displays in electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, and televisions is a significant driver of the display drivers market. Consumers expect sharper images, more vibrant colors, and better visual experiences, necessitating advanced display driver technologies supporting higher resolutions and pixel densities. In 2023, the global smartphone market shipped 1.14 billion units, representing a 4% decrease from 2022. However, the demand increased 8% year on year in the fourth quarter of 2023, reaching 319.2 million units. This shows signs of recovery and stability. 

As of 2023, 6.8 billion people, or 86% of the world's population, use smartphones. This represents an at least 5% increase over the previous five years. The number of smartphone users is expected to reach 7.34 billion by 2025. The United States has the highest percentage of smartphone users (81.6%). In the United States, 94.4% of millennials use smartphones. 80% of men in the United States own a smartphone, compared to 75% of women. Smartphones are a significant driver of the demand for high-resolution displays. Manufacturers constantly work to enhance the visual experience by incorporating higher-resolution screens with improved color accuracy, contrast ratios, and pixel densities. For example, flagship smartphones from Apple, Samsung, and Huawei have displays with resolutions higher than 1080p (Full HD) and, in some cases, 4K (Ultra HD).

Moreover, the growing demand for high-resolution displays in various consumer electronics devices is a significant driver of the display drivers market. As display technology advances, display driver manufacturers must innovate and develop solutions that can meet the performance demands of modern high-resolution displays while maintaining compatibility, dependability, and energy efficiency.

Global Market Restraints

Technological Complexity and Development Cost

The rapid evolution of display technologies, such as OLED, AMOLED, HDR, and high refresh rates, has made display driver development more complex. For example, OLED and AMOLED displays necessitate specialized driving schemes and compensation techniques to achieve peak performance and image quality. Advanced features such as HDR and high refresh rates require sophisticated algorithms and circuit designs in display driver ICs. This complexity lengthens development timelines and raises R&D costs for display driver manufacturers.

GlobalFoundries, one of the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers, estimates that the global semiconductor industry spent USD 105 million on research and development (R&D) in the fourth quarter of 2023. The growing complexity of display technologies and the demand for higher performance drive R&D investment in display driver development. Smaller businesses may need help to compete with companies with larger R&D budgets and resources.

Furthermore, automotive displays pose additional challenges due to stringent reliability, durability, and safety standards. Display driver manufacturers must create automotive-grade solutions that withstand extreme temperatures, vibrations, and electromagnetic interference. Achieving compliance with automotive industry standards such as AEC-Q100 (Automotive Electronics Council) complicates and increases the cost of display driver development, especially for new entrants.

Thus, new entrants and smaller players may face entry barriers due to the technological complexity and development costs associated with display drivers. Established companies with strong R&D capabilities and access to capital are better positioned to innovate and develop advanced display driver solutions, thereby consolidating their market leadership. This dynamic can result in market concentration and limited competition, potentially stifling innovation and increasing consumer costs.

Global Market Opportunity

Integration with Advanced Technologies

Display drivers can incorporate advanced features like HDR (High Dynamic Range), high refresh rates, variable refresh rate (VRR), and adaptive sync technologies to improve visual quality, reduce motion blur, and reduce screen tearing in displays. Developing display driver solutions that support these advanced features allows manufacturers to differentiate their products while meeting the growing demand for immersive gaming, multimedia, and entertainment experiences. For example, Qualcomm's Snapdragon mobile platforms include integrated display processing units (DPUs) that support HDR10 and Dolby Vision standards, allowing for immersive HDR experiences on smartphones and tablets.

However, high refresh rate displays, with refresh rates of 90Hz, 120Hz, or even 144Hz, provide smoother motion and less motion blur than traditional 60Hz displays. Display driver manufacturers can create solutions optimized for high refresh rate displays, resulting in seamless frame delivery and minimal input lag for gaming, multimedia, and VR applications. For example, MediaTek's Dimensity 1200 smartphone chipset supports high refresh rate displays of up to 168Hz, resulting in fluid and responsive user experiences.

Furthermore, the use of VRR technologies in gaming displays and consoles is increasing. DFC Intelligence predicts that VRR technologies will be available in more than 52 million gaming devices by 2023, including consoles, PCs, and monitors. Display driver manufacturers can capitalize on this trend by creating solutions that seamlessly integrate VRR-compatible displays, improving users' gaming experiences.

Regional Analysis

Asia-Pacific Dominates the Global Market

The global display drivers market analysis is conducted in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America.

Asia-Pacific is the most significant global display drivers market shareholder and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 4.9% over the forecast period. China is expected to dominate the Asia-Pacific market during the forecast period. The display driver market in China is expanding due to rising consumer electronics sales, demand for 3D and high-definition images, digital signage for media and advertising, demand for wearable devices, and sales of automobile display products. The major market players are investing heavily in improving their production facilities, primarily to mass-produce products to meet increasing demand. For example, Novatek Microelectronics, a company that manufactures display Driver integrated circuits, expanded its product portfolio in June 2022. The company has expanded its offerings to include SoCs, LCD timing controller (T-Con) chips, and power management ICs while expanding the target markets for its DDIs to include automotive and VR/AR product segments. Novatek is preparing for increased demand for automotive and VR/AR display products that require high-speed transmission and low power.

Additionally, the automotive sector in China is thriving due to the rapid adoption of electric vehicles and increased consumer spending power. Market players are strategically forming partnerships and mergers to expand their product portfolio. For example, in June 2022, Volvo Cars announced a collaboration with Epic Games to integrate photorealistic visualization technology into its next generation of electric vehicles. The company will use Epic Games' Unreal Engine. The partnership will provide infotainment displays with sharper rendering, richer colors, and 3D animations. Advances in material technology are driving the development of new flexible electronics applications. Flexible displays are expected to account for a significant portion of market demand and revenue during and after the forecast period.

North America is anticipated to exhibit a CAGR of 4.7% over the forecast period. North America dominates the display driver market due to increased demand for smartphones, laptops, and other electronic devices. As the economy recovers, the US smartphone market is expected to grow at a low single-digit rate through 2024. Smartphone shipments rose 8% year on year in Q4 2023, with Apple's market share reaching 64%, its highest level since Q4 2020. However, the market contracted 5% in Q3 2023, while shipments increased 21% sequentially to 31 million units. This was driven by Apple's latest iPhone release and carrier promotions aimed at premium device upgrades. For example, flagship smartphones from Apple, Samsung, and Google use advanced display technologies like OLED or AMOLED displays with high resolutions and HDR support. Display drivers ensure these devices perform optimally, have accurate colors, and use less power.

Europe is a significant market for automotive displays, with leading manufacturers prioritizing integrating advanced display technologies into vehicles. Luxury car manufacturers like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi use digital instrument clusters, infotainment systems, and heads-up displays (HUDs) to improve driver convenience, safety, and connectivity. Display drivers are critical to ensuring that these automotive displays operate smoothly and optimally, providing features such as high resolution, fast response times, and compatibility with automotive-grade standards.

Segmental Analysis

The global display drivers market is segmented based on type, device, technology, and packaging type.

The market is further segmented by type into Display Driver IC and Touch Display Driver Integration.

The display driver IC segment generated the most revenue in the display driver market in 2023. Display Driver ICs (Integrated Circuits) are semiconductor devices that control and manage the operation of electronic displays. These integrated circuits are essential in converting low-voltage signals from the device's processor into high-voltage signals needed to activate and control individual pixels or display segments. Display Driver ICs are available in various configurations to accommodate different display technologies, resolutions, and sizes. They may include features like signal amplification, row and column selection, pixel and timing control, and interface compatibility. Display Driver ICs are critical components in devices such as smartphones, tablets, televisions, monitors, and automotive displays, allowing optimal display performance and user experience.

Touch Display Driver Integration combines touch sensing functionality with display driver ICs in a single package or module. This integration allows displays to render visual content and detect and respond to user touch inputs, resulting in interactive and intuitive user interfaces. Touch Display Driver Integration eliminates the need for separate touch controller ICs, making the design and assembly process easier for device manufacturers. Touch Display Driver Integration makes creating slim, lightweight, and affordable modules for smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other touchscreen devices easier by combining display drivers and touch sensors into a single component. This integration improves the overall user experience by allowing touch interactions like tapping, swiping, pinching, and zooming on the display screen.

Based on devices, the market is fragmented into Smartphones, Tablets, Wearables, TVs, and Automotive Displays.

Smartphones are one of the most significant segments in the display driver market. With the growing demand for high-resolution, vibrant smartphone displays, display drivers are essential in providing optimal visual performance. Smartphone display drivers must support various display technologies, resolutions, and features, including HDR, high refresh rates, and touch sensitivity. Manufacturers strive to incorporate advanced display driver solutions into smartphones to improve the viewing experience, increase battery life, and support innovative features such as edge-to-edge displays and under-display fingerprint sensors.

Tablets use display drivers to power their larger displays, which offer users immersive multimedia experiences, productivity tools, and gaming capabilities. Tablet display drivers must support larger screen sizes, higher resolutions, and touch sensitivity while optimizing power consumption to ensure long battery life. With the increasing demand for tablets in the education, entertainment, and enterprise sectors, display driver manufacturers are focusing on developing solutions that provide crisp, clear visuals and responsive touch interactions on tablet displays.

Based on technology, the market is sub-segmented into LCD and OLED.

OLED technology emits organic compounds when an electric current passes through them, eliminating the need for a separate backlight as in LCDs. OLED display drivers control the electrical currents that flow through individual pixels, allowing for precise brightness and color modulation to produce vibrant, high-contrast images. OLED displays have deeper blacks, wider viewing angles, and faster response times than LCDs, making them ideal for applications that require high image quality and energy efficiency. To optimize display performance and longevity, OLED display driver solutions must support features such as pixel-level dimming, color calibration, and power management.

LCD technology uses liquid crystal molecules sandwiched between two layers of glass to control the passage of light and produce images on the display screen. LCD drivers drive the electrical signals that control the liquid crystal molecules, allowing for precise manipulation of pixel colors and brightness levels. These drivers enable precise row and column selection, timing control, and signal amplification, producing sharp and vibrant images on LCDs. LCDs remain the dominant display technology in various consumer electronics and industrial applications, from smartphones and tablets to televisions and monitors.

The market can be further bifurcated by packaging type into Chip-on-Glass and Chip-on-Film.

Chip-on-film (COF) packaging involves mounting the display driver IC on a flexible film substrate bonded to the display panel's glass substrate. COF packaging provides flexibility and scalability, enabling higher pin counts, denser integration, and simpler interconnections between the display driver IC and the display panel. COF uses flexible film substrates to enable conformal integration of display driver ICs onto curved or irregularly shaped display panels, expanding design possibilities for applications such as automotive displays, curved TVs, and wearable displays. COF packaging also allows for easier handling, testing, and repairability than COG packaging.

Chip-on-glass (COG) packaging entails mounting the display driver IC directly onto the glass substrate of the display panel. This packaging technique has several advantages, including a smaller footprint, more straightforward assembly, and better signal integrity. By integrating the display driver IC onto the glass substrate, COG eliminates the need for separate packaging components like printed circuit boards (PCBs) or lead frames, resulting in cost savings and increased reliability. COG packaging is widely used in applications requiring space constraints, weight reduction, and thin form factors, such as smartphones, tablets, and wearable devices.

Recent Developments

• March 2024- ROHM developed 45V rated 500mA output primary LDO regulators: BD9xxM5-C. These devices are suitable for providing power to automotive electronic components such as ECUs that run on vehicle batteries.
• January 2024- Intel's new "Xe" driver was submitted for Linux 6.8, along with Imagination's PowerVR driver.