Source: Translated from the website "THE KOREA ECONOMIC DAILY", thank you.
South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. is switching one of its DRAM chip production lines to boost output of image sensors used in smartphones and other electronics as it looks to overtake industry leader Sony Corp.
Samsung, the world's second-largest image sensor maker, plans to increase production of complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors by about 20% in 2021 to meet strong demand.
According to the semiconductor industry on December 9, Park Yong-in, executive vice president of Samsung's sensor business, announced the plan at an investor forum held on November 30, saying that the company "did not produce enough wafers to meet the growing demand."
Samsung may convert its 13th DRAM line, which produces 12-inch wafers at its Hwaseong plant, into an image sensor facility, the sources said.
Under the expansion plan, Samsung's monthly image sensor production capacity will increase to 120,000 to 130,000 wafers from the current 100,000 units, with annual sales reaching 4.6 trillion won ($4.26 billion). Sony expects monthly production to be 137,000 wafers in 2021, according to market research firm Omdia.
Samsung's move comes as the global image sensor market is growing rapidly as competition intensifies for 5G smartphones equipped with high-end cameras.
Graphics by Jerry Lee
Increasing demand for high-resolution sensors
The growing demand for improved imaging solutions and increasing penetration of image sensors are driving the overall image sensor market, with key applications expanding to other areas including smartphones, autonomous vehicles, and smart factories.
Market tracker TSR predicts that smartphones will need an average 112-megapixel sensor in 2024, up from 59 megapixels this year as the latest phones come with more and more cameras.
According to KPMG, the global image sensor market will grow at an average annual rate of 12% from US$47 billion this year to US$143 billion in 2030.
The market for CMOS sensors alone is expected to expand from $19.7 billion in 2020 to $27 billion in 2024.
Graphics by Jerry Lee
The battle for global leadership in the image sensor market has intensified since sanctions were imposed on Huawei Technologies Co., the second-largest user of Sony sensors after Apple Inc., which has shrunk the Chinese tech giant’s smartphone market share.
To maintain its market leadership, Sony is building a 100 billion yen (10.4 trillion won) image sensor production line in Nagasaki Prefecture, which is expected to be completed in 2021. The Japanese company aims to increase its global market share to 60% by 2025.
As of the third quarter, Sony held 44.2% of the global CMOS image sensor market, second only to Samsung at 21.4%.
Samsung plans to focus on high-end products to increase its market share.
Graphics by Jerry Lee
Last November, the South Korean electronics giant released its 108-megapixel ISOCELL bright HMX, the industry's first mobile image sensor with more than 100 million pixels. It also plans to develop the industry's smallest 0.6-micron pixel image sensor.
Samsung’s clients include China’s Xiaomi, Guangdong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Corp., Vivo Communication Technology Co. and Motorola, a unit of China’s Lenovo Ltd.
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