South Korean tech behemoth Samsung Electronics Co. retained its No. 1 market share in liquid-crystal display and light-emitting diode monitors in 2011, a market research firm said Monday.

DisplaySearch said Samsung’s share stood at a combined 15.1 percent, outperforming rivals such as Dell Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Co. that controlled 12.9 percent and 11.2 percent of the market each.

The South Korean company’s market share was unchanged from the year before when it ranked first overall in LCD and LED sales.

Samsung pushed aside LG Electronics Inc. to become the largest producer of LCD panels, with the company doing well in both the general and premium market sector with the launch of its TB750 units.

The market researcher said Samsung expanded its presence in the hotly contested 24-inch LED monitor sector by securing a 34.7 percent share of the global market, outpacing Apple Inc., whose share stood at 14.1 percent.

In 2010, Apple enjoyed a 53.3 percent market share, compared with 12.3 percent for Samsung.

Samsung’s presence in China, the world’s single largest monitor market, reached 20 percent last year, just behind Taiwan-based AOC, whose share hit 21.5 percent, according to DisplaySearch

Market watchers, meanwhile, said Samsung’s strength in monitors is linked to its ability to sate market demand and churn out quality products. (Yonhap News)