According to Taiwan's MIC (Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute), an ICT industry research institute based in Taipei, the notebook PC camera industry concentration will become increasingly intense amid the industry somewhat competitive and capital-intensive. In 2012, as branded vendors are increasing the number of notebook PCs with built in cameras, cameras are becoming a must-have feature for notebook PCs these days. MIC predicts that the share of notebook PCs with built-in cameras will top over 91.3% in 2012 with the industry's shipment volume reaching around 185.59 million units.
According to MIC analyst Nina Ko, due to the impacts of the replacement demand of netbook PCs for tablets, the global notebook PC shipment did not live up to expectations in 2011. Therefore, although global notebook PC market volume still witnessed a 7.4% year-on-year growth to around 195.0 million units in 2011, the global netbook PC market volume suffered a 23.7% year-on-year decline.
With the low-price trend becoming popular in the notebook PC industry, the notebook PC camera ASP (Average Selling Price) slipped quickly in the past two years. In 2012, the emergence of ultrabooks has triggered the development of notebook PCs towards slimness and the thickness of notebook PC camera is expected to reduce from the current 3mm-4mm to less than 2.5mm. The increase in technology barriers is likely to soften the price competition though. Regarding the recording resolution of notebook PC cameras, it is anticipated that HD cameras will account for over 40% of the total notebook PC cameras shipped in 2012 and will become the market mainstream in 2013.
Considering notebook PC branded vendors' effort to expand their market share with low-priced notebook PCs, the competition in the notebook PC camera industry is likely to become fiercer. As the importance of economies of scale for the industry has become increasingly evident, the space of second-tier notebook PC camera manufacturers will likely be further squeezed. It is evident that the industry has become increasingly concentrated as there were only two notebook PC camera manufacturers each holding over 10% of the market share in 2010. Currently, Taiwanese first-tier notebook PC camera manufactures include Chicony and LightOn, each holding over 30% of the market share; Bison Electronics, Suyin, Primax Electronics, and Foxconn are second-tier manufacturers. Amid the situation where the notebook PC industry face challenges associated with squeezed profit margins and low-price trend, not only second-tier manufacturers that are struggling for survival, first-tier manufacturers are also feeling increasing pressure on profit margins.
MIC predicts that Taiwanese notebook PC camera shipment volume will reach around 155.60 million units in 2012, witnessing a 1.6% year-on-year decline. In addition, the industry's global share in 2012 is expected to drop from 93.1% in 2011 to 83.8%. Looking ahead to the future, the global notebook PC market growth is expected to be underpinned by the anticipated increasing number of notebook PCs with built-in cameras in 2013. Consequently, Taiwanese notebook PC camera shipment volume is anticipated to see a modest growth in 2013.
More information can be found in the following MIC report:
Notebook PC Camera Development Trends and Challenges in 2012 and Beyond
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About MIC
Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC), based in Taipei, Taiwan, was founded in 1987. MIC is Taiwan's premier IT industry research and consulting firm providing intelligence, in-depth analysis, and strategic consulting services on global IT product and technology trends. MIC is part of the Institute for Information Industry. https://mic.iii.org.tw/english