Santa Clara, CA – Total touch screen module revenue will reach $13.4 billion in 2011, and nearly double in six years, reaching $23.9 billion by 2017, says DisplaySearch.

“Touch screen penetration has rapidly increased in mobile phones, handheld games, game consoles, and tablet PC applications, which collectively will account for more than $10.5 billion in touch screen revenues this year,” noted Jennifer Colegrove, PhD, vice president of emerging display technologies at DisplaySearch.“In addition, we see strong touch screen growth over the next several years driven by demand in larger display applications such as all-in-one PCs, notebook PCs, and consumer gaming.”

Projected capacitive became the leading touch screen technology in terms of revenue in 2010. In 2011, projected capacitive shipments are expected to grow more than 100% year-over-year, and will account for 70% of all touch screen revenues.

In addition to dedicated touch screen suppliers moving into projected capacitive, several color filter suppliers and LCD manufacturers have converted lines to produce it. In fact, more than 60 companies are supplying projected capacitive in 2011, says the firm.

Shipments for in-cell touch, which first came to market in 2009, didn’t materialize in 2010. However, in-cell touch is expected to take off in 2012 as yield rates improve. On-cell touch, meanwhile, has seen greater adoption, but the mix has shifted to smaller screen sizes used in mobile phones and digital still cameras, whereas it has had difficulty competing with projected capacitive in tablet PC applications. Other touch technologies are experiencing market growth, such as combination-type touch panels, which offer both pen and finger touch.

Mobile phones are the major application for touch screens in terms of unit shipments, accounting for two-thirds of units shipped in 2010. DisplaySearch forecasts that 868 million touch screens will ship for mobile phone applications in 2011, up 68% year-over-year.

The tablet PC accounted for 26 million units in 2010. DisplaySearch forecasts more than 72 million touch screens for tablet PCs in 2011, and over 100 million in 2012. Revenues for projected capacitive touch screens in tablet PCs are expected to grow by more than $1 billion in 2011.

Touch penetration is increasing in consumer gaming devices, including consoles such as Microsoft Kinect, as well as handheld games such as the Nintendo 3DS. Over the next few years, notebook and all-in-one PCs, as well as automobile monitors, are expected to contribute to touch screen market growth as well. Touch technologies with high transmittance, low power consumption, multi-touch or gesture recognition will benefit the most, says the firm.

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