The commercial operation of 5G will be launched this year. Guo Ming-hao, an analyst from TF International Securities has pointed out that since the latest smartphones will use 5G technology, they will operate with a higher power consumption which will accelerate the increase of penetration of SLP. Guo is optimistic about the prospects of EMC, Zhen Ding, Unimicron, Compeq and other PCB supply chains for Apple mobile phones, who are expected to benefit. This should increase their turnover this year and next. The commercial operation of 5G is expected to start this year, with telecom operators in the US and South Korea telecom having already started their services with China and Japan expected to follow soon. Expecting the 5G wave to have a promising future, smartphone manufacturers have subsequently jockeyed for position as they release mobile phones that support 5G. Soon after the Android camp announced their new models this year, along with the lawsuit settlement between Apple and Qualcomm, the industry is expecting that Apple will release its 5G mobile phones next year, helping grow the trend of 5G mobile phones. 

         According to the latest report released by TF International Securities, the penetration of SLP in 5G/high-end mobile phones should increase rapidly in order to meet the demands for larger battery capacities to accommodate the significant increase in power consumption. Among them, battery capacity for the new model iPhone this year will be notably improved, and the key is the use of a more complex SLP motherboard design to save internal space. As for the mobile phone itself, it has adopted 5G technology with a higher power consumption which will help speed up SLP penetration. In the future, more Android brands will follow the designs by Apple and adopt SLP even more aggressively.

         Guo Ming-hao said that it is believed that EMC will be the exclusive supplier of CCL - the upper-stream material for SLP - for the new model iPhone this year and next. As Apple adopts 5G for the its new iPhone next year, it will enhance CCL specifications to benefit to the average selling price (ASP) of the product by 20-40%. Panasonic is the exclusive SLP CCL supplier for the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR, while EMC is the supplier of upstream materials for low-priced and small-sized interposers. However, EMC has the edge in cost and CCL design, which are favorable to the increased yield of SLP. As such, it is expected that EMC will replace Panasonic to become the exclusive supplier of high-priced SLP CCL for the new iPhone this year. 

         Guo Ming-hao further pinpointed that, since the new iPhone will support 5G next year, it will require lower dielectric loss; whereas EMC, with their technical and cost advantages, can become the exclusive supplier. Furthermore, it is expected that demand for ASP will increase by 20% to 40% as compared with that of 2019 for SLP CCL specifications of iPhone that will be upgraded next year. To meet the growth of demand for SLP CCL, it is predicted that EMC will expand its CCL capacity in the second half of this year and early next year respectively.

 

 

         In addition, Avary/Zhen Ding and AT&S are suppliers of the largest proportion of SLP. SLP suppliers for iPhone this year consist of Avary /Zhen Ding, AT&S, TTM, Unimicron, Compeq and Ibiden. It is expected that the majority of orders will be for Avary/Zhen Ding and AT&S, both of which are 25-30% and will be the greatest beneficiaries. It is believed that SLP suppliers for the new iPhone will remain unchanged next year, while Avary/Zhen Ding and AT&S should still be the largest suppliers and are expected to benefit from the increased SLP unit price with the release of the new 5G iPhone. (News source: United Evening News)