Global television sales by South Korean tech companies grew 5.6 percent in 2014 from a year earlier, backed by brisk demand for premium models, data showed Tuesday.

Local TV makers, led by Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., sold a combined 87.05 million units in 2014, up 4.67 million from the previous year, according to the data by market tracker DisplaySearch.

That compares with a drop in TV sales by Chinese and Japanese rivals, which saw their annual shipments shrink to 51.2 million units and to 44.16 million units last year, respectively.

Based on the figure, the global share of South Korean TV makers climbed about 1 percentage point on-year to 37.1 percent as of end-2014, the market tracker said.

The growth of South Korean firms' global TV sales came as they gained an upper hand over Asian rivals in the high-end segment, analysts said.

Samsung and LG have focused on ultra high-definition TVs and organic light-emitting diodes models in a bid to grab a bigger share in the premium market.

Chinese players, including Hisense Co., TCL Corp. and Skyworth Co., had caught up in recent years with their cheaper UHD models but failed to extend the momentum as the low- to mid-end strategy took its toll on widening the gap in technology compared with premium models. 

Earlier this year, Samsung and LG said they will bolster their premium lineups in 2015 as part of efforts to keep their clout in the global TV market. They have both released an upgraded version of OLED models and a new screen made with a quantum-dot film that touts a high color reproduction. (Yonhap)