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Global sales of 8K flat-panel TVs are expected to increase from 100,000 units in 2018 to 5.8 million in 2022, with China expected to lead the way with more than 60 percent of the market during this period, according to a new report from Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) and Insight Media.

The “Outlook on 8K TV” report said the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be a major driver in the development of 8K infrastructure, with Japanese broadcaster NHK leading efforts to produce and broadcast Olympic programming to homes. NHK continues to meet or exceed milestones for 8K broadcasting in 2020, according to the report, which noted that the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea marks the sixth major world event since 8K capture and display was first demonstrated in 2012.

"8K represents the next generation of the TV industry, and with the massive increases in Gen 10.5 capacity planned in the next few years, the adoption of 8K technology will be a key factor in the success of the flat panel industry,” said DSCC president and co-founder Bob O'Brien.

Expansion of Gen 10.5 capacity will enable efficient production of 65- and 75-inch panels for LCD and OLED TV, according to the report. Capacity of Gen 10+ substrates for displays is expected to increase from 8 million square meters in 2017 to at least 75 million square meters in 2022.

Next-gen 8K TVs are expected to include advanced features like HDR, wide color gamut, and advanced upscaling, which will be a key differentiating feature due to limited availability of native 8K content. "While the benefit of simply increasing pixel count from 4K to 8K is weak except for the largest TV sizes, there will be significant panel and TV supplier 'push' that will foster adoption in a way that is similar to the 4K adoption pattern, but at a slower pace," said Chris Chinnock, president and founder of Insight Media.

Current manufacturing costs for 65-inch 8K LCD panels are estimated at $1,000 per panel but expected to drop to $595 by 2021. The costs to make an OLED panel is estimated at $1,830 today and also expected to decline.