(Yicai) Feb. 24 -- JD.Com, Skyworth Group, and BOE Technology Group have launched a mini light-emitting diode television with a 100-inch screen. Priced at over CNY10,000 (USD1,380) each, they are intended to take a bigger share of China’s premium TV market.

Skyworth and BOE jointly developed the TV’s LED-backlit liquid crystal display, which has a picture quality comparable with that of an organic LED TV screen, Yicai learned on Feb. 22 at a new product launch event organized by the three companies.

The cost of each set drops to about CNY9,000 (USD1,240) when national subsidies are priced in.

Mini LED TVs have become the focus for various manufacturers this year, with TCL Electronics Holdings, Hisense Group, Changhong Electric, and others pre-selling 98-inch and 100-inch models priced a taround CNY10,000, Yicai learned.

Though OLED screens generally offer better picture quality, OLED television sets struggle with scaling to ultra-large sizes and high production costs.

The mainstream TV size in China has reached 75 inches, while sales of 85-inch and 100-inch models are rapidly growing. But the largest OLED TVs only come in 83 inches. In addition, 55-inch OLED TVs are priced at around CNY8,000, or four times that of a 55-inch Mini LED TV.

Sales in China of TVs with 98-inch or bigger screens will surge 60 percent to 880,000 units this year, according to market researchers Runto. Global shipments of Mini LED TVs will likely soar 54 percent to 12.09 million and those in China will jump 88 percent to 7.83 million. 

Worldwide shipments of OLED TVs are expected to rise 6.4 percent to 6.51 million, though those in China will likely remain flat and end the year below 100,000.

Editor: Martin Kadiev