LG Electronics has shipped 10 million OLED TVs since the launch of the first model in 2012-2013, according to analyst firm Omdia. Sales are accelerating.
OLED TV milestone
It took the South Korean TV manufacturer 7-8 years to sell its first 5 million OLED TVs, but it took just 2 years to sell the next 5 million, the report from Yonhap noted.
- "Analyst firm Omdia said LG's TV business logged strong growth in the July-September period, selling 899,000 units of OLED TV, up by a whopping 80 percent from the same period last year," reported Yonhap. "For the first nine months of this year, a total of 2.63 million units of LG OLED TVs were shipped, double the tally from a year ago and already surpassing last year's total shipments."
The report did not disclose OLED TV sales for other manufacturers such as Sony, Panasonic and Philips (there are approx. 20 in total), but did note that global OLED TV shipments reached 1.53 million in the third quarter of 2021. Sales are expected to surpass 2 million in the fourth quarter, for a total of 6.5 million unit sales in 2021 (up 80%).
In the third quarter, LG Electronics accounted for almost 60% of OLED TV sales globally, and OLED TV sales will soon take up over 30% of the company's total TV sales as measured in value.

LG's first OLED TV from 2012. Photo: LG Electronics
Samsung to challenge LG next year
LG Electronics unveiled its first large-sized (55-inch 1080p) OLED TV in early 2012. It launched in a few regions later in 2012 for around $8000 and more widely in 2013. You may recall that LG briefly experimented with curved OLED TVs before it found its way. Early models also supported passive 3D technology.
LG is currently selling 48- to 88-inch OLED TVs with either 4K or 8K resolution. The company is expected to expand its line-up to include both 42-inch and 97-inch models next year.
Samsung unveiled its first OLED TV at the same time but ultimately abandoned the project of commercializing RGB OLED TVs due to low production yields.
Samsung, one of the remaining holdouts, is expected to reenter the segment next year with a new QD-OLED panel type. Sony is also rumored to launch QD-OLED TVs while TCL, another holdout, is investing in inkjet-printing OLED technology.
- Source: Yonhap, Omdia