Foldable Display Market is expected to reach over USD 18 billion by 2025. Technological advancements and continuous developments in the OLED technology are creating numerous opportunities for growth of the foldable display market. Display technology has evolved enormously in the past few years from LCDs to LEDs and now with the adoption of OLEDs. OLEDs have made devices thinner while imparting better picture quality, wider viewing angle, and faster response rate. Flexible OLED displays have penetrated the market with foldable displays expected to be commercialized by 2019 in smartphones and later PCs. Foldable displays use plastic or metal foils as substrates to make them durable and lightweight, which will enable new device factors such as tablets that can be used as phones and smart wearables that are compatible with smartphones.

Smartphone manufacturers have launched several prototypes for their foldable devices on which these companies are reportedly working. For instance, Xiaomi and Samsung showcased their foldable tablets/smartphones at the CES 2019. Other smartphone manufacturers, such as Huawei, Motorola, and Apple, are expected to unfold their foldable smartphones after Samsung. In December 2019, Huawei announced that it will launch its first foldable phone with 5G capabilities. Growing R&D in foldable displays and flexible materials is propelling the foldable display market. However, the high cost of these displays will result in steady adoption and will penetrate smaller devices initially. The foldable display market will grow on account of device manufacturers? technical capabilities to incorporate them in their offerings with distinct designs, validating their practicality and usefulness.

North America is projected to be one of the prominent markets for foldable displays owing to the flourishing smartphone industry in the U.S. American consumers are at the forefront of adopting technologically advanced gadgets that will drive the foldable display market in the region. In addition, the high disposable income of American households makes it a target market for foldable device manufacturers due to the high cost associated with them. In Europe, the foldable display market will witness lucrative growth owing to the strong market for Apple iPhone, Samsung high-end smartphones and the increasing market share of Chinese smartphone suppliers.

Samsung, Tianma, Royole Corporation, LG, Apple, and BOE, among others, are some of the prominent players in the foldable display market. Investments in R&D to eliminate drawbacks associated with the flexibility and durability of foldable displays and to ensure the compatibility of the software with foldable hardware is the major focus of manufacturers to mass produce such foldable displays. In addition, companies are expanding their OLED production capacities foreseeing the industry potential. Recently in December 2018, BOE expanded its production capacity of OLED panels by investing in a plant at Fujian. This will augment the foldable display market.