About three-quarters of all large screen televisions – those more than 50 inches – that were sold last year in the U.S. (and worldwide) were 4K, ultra-high definition (UHD) sets, according to Paul Gagnon, the director of tv sets research for IHS Markit. By 2018, all but 100% of big screens sold will be 4K-capable. In raw numbers, the Consumer Technology Association – the trade association for the U.S. consumer electronics industry – estimates that more than 80 million 4K sets will be sold worldwide this year, and next year the total will be in the 100 million unit range.
Adding CTA’s numbers up, by the end of 2018, there will be something like 300 million 4K television sets in homes and business worldwide. We don’t have sales figures for 2016 yet, but in 2015 the U.S. accounted for about 20% of 4K sales. That share appears to be dropping, though. According to CTA, 4K sales in China have been accelerating and account for the largest chunk worldwide. But even if you discount the U.S. share by half – make it 10% – we’re still looking at something like an addressable universe of 30 million 4K sets.
If you make another back-of-the-envelope cut and say that about a fifth of those – 5 or 6 million – are used in commercial establishments or for industrial purposes, then the ballpark estimate is that within two years, 20% of U.S. homes will have 4K UHD sets.
That’s good news for the consumer electronics industry, which has seen falling television sales. CTA estimates that worldwide TV sales have slipped by about 20 million units since 2014 and the dollar value is dropping even faster, at more than 10% per year. A quantum jump in picture quality will be a good reason for consumers to replace HDTV sets that are still working just fine.