Samsung has extended its streak as the world’s leading TV vendor for a 15th straight year, according to numbers from research firm Omdia, as cited by The Korea Herald and Yonhap News service The South Korean manufacturer earned a record 31.9 percent of the market, followed by LG Electronics Inc. with 16.5 percent and Sony Corp. with 9.1 percent.

The sales by Samsung were “on the back of its QLED and large TVs,” the report said. Samsung sold 7.79 million units of QLED TVs in 2020, just accounted for a little over the third of its overall TV sales, Omdia said. 

The overall market of TVs, per Omdia, was listed at  225.35 million units, an increase of the year before, and fourth-quarter shipments jumped to a record high of 70.24 million units. The TV market in 2020 was at first depressed, due to supply chain constraints brought about by the pandemic, but lockdowns in much of the world had the effect of increasing demand for TVs. 

Samsung touted its achievement in a statement.

“Consumers use screens every day to entertain, connect with loved ones, work, exercise from home and do much more. And we have seen how different lifestyles and routines have not only evolved but converged,” Jong-hee Han, President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics, said in a statement.

“We continue to be incredibly humbled by the trust placed in our vision and products; it is what drives our relentless pursuit to deliver cutting-edge innovation and a best-in-class screen experience that meets the needs of the modern-day consumer.”

Omdia also found that LG remains the top manufacturer of OLED TVs, selling 2.04 million OLED TVs out of the overall market of 3.65 million units. Omdia predicted that the OLED TV market will rise to 5.6 million units in 2021. 

LG this week announced a major move related to its TV operating system. The company said that it will begin licensing webOS to other TV manufacturers. 

“LG is now expanding its expertise beyond TV manufacturing to encompass webOS TV software platform development and adoption by other TV brands. This has the potential to reshape the TV business for both technology and content providers while significantly growing LG’s presence and prominence in the global home entertainment market,” the company said. 

LG has already signed up such manufacturers as RCA, Ayonz and Konka. 

“The webOS platform is one of the easiest and most convenient way to access millions of hours of movies and TV shows,” Park Hyoung-sei, president of the LG Home Entertainment Company, said in the announcement. “By welcoming other manufacturers to join the webOS TV ecosystem, we are embarking on a new path that allows many new TV owners to experience the same great UX and features that are available on LG TVs. We look forward to bringing these new customers into the incredible world of webOS TV.”

Stephen Silver, a technology writer for the National Interest, is a journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philly Voice, Philadelphia Weekly, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Living Life Fearless, Backstage magazine, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.

Image: Reuters