The global shipments of organic light-emitting diode panels surpassed 90 million units in the first quarter of the year, with Samsung Display Co., a South Korean panel maker, dominating the fast-growing market, data showed Thursday.

According to the data compiled by market researcher IHS, a total of 90.8 million OLED panels were sold in the January-March period, 96.2 percent of which, or 87.35 million, were for smartphones. The smartphone panels mark a 62.8 percent rise from a year earlier, the data showed.

The rise in OLED shipments for smartphones were attributable to more smartphone manufacturers, Chinese players in particular, opting to adopt the power-saving panel.

OLEDs emit their own light, eliminating the need for backlights and allowing handset manufacturers to produce thinner and lighter mobile phones. The panels also consume less power than LCDs.

Also, Apple Inc., the world's No. 2 smartphone maker, is widely expected to adopt OLED panels for its new smartphone model, fueling demand for the OLED panel.

The data showed that some 2.2 percent of global OLED shipments went for smart watches, and a total of 145,000 OLED panels were used for TV in the first quarter.

Samsung Display accounted for 97.7 percent of global OLED shipments in the first quarter, followed by its local rival, LG Display Co., with 0.9 percent, and Taiwan-based AUO with 0.7 percent, according to the data. (Yonhap)