62 SMT Magazine • April 2017
Driving Value in the Digital Era:
Smart Mobility Disrupts the Traditional
Dealer Model
As consumers demand greater transparency, influ-
ence, and efficiency from the auto purchasing pro-
cess, most also wish to minimize time spent at a
dealership. In its new smart mobility report, ABI Re-
search finds recent, rapid gains in vehicle technol-
ogy will soon infiltrate the mainstream automotive
market and disrupt traditional business models and
consumer experiences.
Connected Home Solutions Adoption
Remains Limited to Early Adopters
Adoption of newer connected home solutions is still
at the early adopter phase, according to a recent
survey by Gartner Inc. The survey of nearly 10,000
online respondents in the U.S., the U.K. and Aus-
tralia during the second half of 2016, found that
only about 10% of households currently have con-
nected home solutions.
3D ICs Will Meet the Miniaturization
Demands of Next-Generation Electronics
With 2D integrated circuit (IC) technology nearing
its scaling limit, there is an urgent need to scale up
vertically to cope with the breakneck pace of ad-
vances in digital technologies.
BOE Takes First Spot in Large Display
Unit Shipment
Chinese display maker BOE takes top position in
terms of large TFT-LCD display unit shipments in
January 2017, according to IHS Markit. For the first
time ever, a Chinese display maker, taking a to-
tal share of 22.3% in unit shipments, is displacing
South Korea's display makers, the historical leaders
in shipment volumes.
February 2017 Manufacturing ISM
Report on Business
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector ex-
panded in February, and the overall economy grew
for the 93rd consecutive month, according to the
latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.
New iPhone Production Volume to
Exceed 100M Units This Year
The next major iPhone release will certainly be
one of the most anticipated events in the glob-
al consumer electronics market in the second half
of 2017. TrendForce's recent findings on the 10th
anniversary iPhone release reveal that Apple's lat-
est refresh of the device series will include three
new models, with one of them having significant
hardware and design upgrades such as an AMO-
LED display.
Global Tablet Shipments Down 6.6%
Annually in 2016
Market research firm TrendForce reports annual
tablet shipments worldwide posted a decline for
2016, dropping 6.6% to 157.4 million units. How-
ever, total shipments from branded tablet ven-
dors surpassed expectations because of the robust
year-end holiday sales.
Increasing Sales of Smartphones Trigger
Demand for Global ASIC Market
According to Transparency Market Research, the
global application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)
market is expected to be worth $35.23 billion by
the end of 2024 from $16.29 billion in 2015. The
progress of the market is estimated to be at a
CAGR of 9.2% between 2016 and 2024.
Worldwide Enterprise Storage Market
Sees Decline in Fourth Quarter
Total worldwide enterprise storage systems fac-
tory revenue was down 6.7% year-on-year while
reaching $11.1 billion in the fourth quarter of
2016, according to the International Data Corp.
(IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Enterprise Storage Sys-
tems Tracker.
Intel Continues to Drive Semiconductor
Industry R&D Spending
Intel Corp. continued to top all other chip compa-
nies in R&D expenditures in 2016 with spending
that reached $12.7 billion and represented 22.4%
of its semiconductor sales last year.
Electronics Industry News
Market Highlights
