Giant, flexible displays will wrap around buildings and small, disposable displays could act as replacement for paper as a research body predicts that flexible display technology will undergo massive growth in the next seven years. IHS iSuppli says shipments will expand 250 times from 2013 to 2020. The Flexible Display Technology and Market Forecast predicts that global shipments will hit 792 million units in 2020 from 3.2 million in 2013.
“Flexible displays hold enormous potential, creating whole new classes of products and
enabling exciting new applications that were impractical or impossible before,†said Vinita Jakhanwal,
director for mobile and emerging displays and technology at IHS.
“From smartphones with displays
that curve around the sides, to smart watches with wraparound screens, to tablets
and PCs with roll-out displays, to giant video advertisements on curved building walls,
the potential uses for flexible displays will be limited only by the imagination
of designers.â€
IHS says that fourth generation flexible displays will cost so little
that they will serve as a replacement for paper.
The research body says
first generation units, that employ a flexible substrate to remain thin and rugged, are currently entering the market.