Author | Huang Yu Editor | Liu Baodan Last year, thanks to the success of the "Speeding" on iQiyi, the company has had a difficult time recently. On the one hand, the explosively popular TV series is on hiatus, and on the other hand, the derivative concert of the variety show "Plant Some Goodness" has been criticized for "free offline but paid online." According to Wall Street News, the second Wheat Field Music Festival, produced by iQiyi's reality show "Plant Some Goodness," was held on June 6th. Some viewers had previously received free offline tickets through official activities, while online viewers, even iQiyi members, had to pay RMB 12 for viewing, and the viewing period was valid until June 14th. This differentiated pricing model has caused dissatisfaction among many viewers, who question that iQiyi's move is "cutting corners." In response, iQiyi's customer service said, "You can buy tickets to watch the concert live according to your own needs, and the edited content of the concert will be launched on the main platform in the future." In fact, this is not the first time that long video platforms represented by iQiyi have been accused of "cutting corners." In recent years, membership grading systems, early access, and inventory restrictions have often caused user backlash, in addition to paying extra for derivative programs. The differential pricing model reflects the growth anxiety faced by long-form video platforms such as "i优腾."

The weather is good today Today's weather is good.

With the recovery of the panel industry, TCL Corporation has also made a big comeback.

On the evening of August 26, TCL Corporation (000100.SZ) disclosed its semi-annual report for 2024. In the first half of the year, it achieved operating revenue of 80.224 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 5.78%; a net income attributable to shareholders of 0.995 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 192.28%; and a net cash flow from operations of 12.633 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.28%.

TCL Corporation's main business sectors are semiconductor display panels and photovoltaics. Against the backdrop of the photovoltaic industry still being at the bottom of the market cycle, TCL Corporation attributes the significant improvement in its profitability to the improvement of the supply-demand relationship in the semiconductor display industry and the steady increase in the prices of its main products.

According to the financial report, in the first half of this year, TCL Corporation's semiconductor display business showed strong growth momentum, achieving operating revenue of 49.877 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 40.39%, and a net profit of 2.696 billion yuan, a year-on-year improvement of 6.145 billion yuan. In particular, it achieved a profit of 2.157 billion yuan in the second quarter alone, an increase of more than 300% compared to the previous quarter.

Semiconductor display panel is a widely recognized strong cyclical industry, and its cyclicality is mainly caused by the superposition of capacity and demand cycles with economic cycles. After experiencing the most severe semiconductor display industry cold winter in 2022, the industry has begun to warm up since the second half of last year, and TCL Corporation's semiconductor display business has also entered a phase of profit improvement.

Large size has always been an advantage area for TCL China Star. The proportion of the company's TV panel business products with a size of 55 inches and above has increased to 81%, with products of 65 inches and above accounting for 55% of the area, and the average size has increased by 1.2 inches compared to the same period last year.

From the perspective of market rankings, the company's TV panel market share has firmly held the top two positions globally in the first half of this year, and its commercial display product share ranks in the top three globally.

TCL China Star is still consolidating its leading position in the large-size field. Recently, TCL China Star has been selected as the preferred bidder for the equity of LGD's Guangzhou LCD panel factory, and after the acquisition, TCL China Star's share in the large-size LCD TV panel market will be further increased.

In addition to large sizes, TCL China Star has been making continuous efforts in the mid-size area in recent years, accelerating deep cooperation with new business customers such as IT and in-car, to enhance product competitiveness and market share.

It was reported that in the first half of this year, TCL China Star's overall monitor shipment ranking rose to second place globally, with the global market share of gaming monitors ranking first; laptop and tablet product shipments steadily increased, with LTPS laptops ranking second globally, and LTPS tablets ranking first globally; LTPS in-vehicle screens increased their shipment area to third place globally.

Some industry insiders pointed out that global TV panel prices have risen since February, and the capacity utilization rate has also increased since the post-Chinese New Year maintenance and remained at a relatively high level, driving the performance improvement of mainstream panel manufacturers; entering the second half of the year, panel manufacturers are expected to maintain the trend of on-demand production driven by stable profit momentum, therefore, panel prices are also expected to remain relatively high with moderate fluctuations.

In addition, TCL Corporation stated that with the closure and sale of part of the industry's capacity, the supply-side layout of the display industry will be further optimized, and the trends of large size and artificial intelligence will promote steady progress in display demand, and the benign supply-demand relationship is expected to drive the continuous improvement of the company's display business profitability.

As the panel business enters a period of recovery, TCL Corporation's other pillar business, photovoltaics, is affected by the imbalance of industry supply and demand, and its performance declines.

In the first half of this year, TCL Corporation's photovoltaic industry platform, TCL Zhonghuan Renewable Energy Technology, achieved revenue of 16.213 billion yuan, a decrease of 53.54% year-on-year, which affected TCL Corporation's net income of -0.914 billion yuan.

TCL Corporation pointed out that in the second half of 2024, the global photovoltaic industry will still be at the bottom of the cycle, and there will be fundamental changes in the industry market conditions, intensifying competition.

In order to help the industry quickly get out of the quagmire of low-price competition and follow the footsteps of another leading photovoltaic silicon wafer manufacturer, Longi Green Energy, TCL Zhonghuan Renewable Energy Technology confirmed on August 27 that it will also raise silicon wafer prices.

TCL Zhonghuan Renewable Energy Technology told Wall Street News that the price of G10N will be increased to 1.15 yuan/piece, the price of G12RN will be increased to 1.3 yuan/piece, and the price of G12N will be increased to 1.5 yuan/piece. The price increase is aimed at stabilizing market expectations, maintaining sustainable development of the industry, and improving the company's operating performance.

At the same time, TCL Zhonghuan Renewable Energy Technology will also appropriately reduce its own silicon wafer capacity utilization rate, reduce inventory, and improve the industry's supply and demand relationship.

The panel industry has gone through the most difficult time, and the turning point of the photovoltaic industry may come faster. TCL Corporation will embark on a new journey more calmly.