Samsung Electronics Co, the world's biggest TV manufacturer, expects the global television market to grow around 7 to 8 percent this year, and aims to grow at double that rate with a company sales target of around 50 million sets.

Grappling with slowing demand and cut-throat competition, global TV manufacturers are hoping again that premium products with slimmer designs, powerful chipsets and crisp displays will revive growth this year after a flat 2011.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, TV makers from Samsung and LG Electronics Inc unveiled improved versions of Internet-enabled TVs with 3D, voice and motion recognition capabilities.

Executives from Samsung, one of the few profitable global TV makers, said on Monday the company was targeting at least a doubling in sales of Internet TVs this year ,to at least 22 million sets, from a year ago.

Both Samsung and LG unveiled 55-inch TV with OLED (organic light emitting diode) screens, which displays sharper images and do not need backlighting, making them slimmer than LCDs, the most popular type of flat TVs.

Both plan to start commercial production in the second half of this year.

(Reporting by Miyoung Kim)

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