Manufacturers of consumer and other electronics are gradually
shifting towards OLED screens which are generally thinner and
are more flexible than liquid crystal display (LCD) screens.
Sharp said it will invest in pilot production lines at its
plants in Osaka and in Mie prefecture, western Japan, which are
due to start between April and June 2018.
Sharp is hoping to team up with its domestic rival Japan Display
Inc on OLED displays, the Nikkei business daily reported last
month, quoting new CEO Tai Jeng-wu.
Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd ,
secured control of Sharp last month in a deal that gives its
access to the Japanese firm's advanced screen technology and
which is likely to help strengthen its pricing power with major
client Apple Inc.
South Korean rivals have bet heavily on the technology over the
last two years. LG Display Co Ltd said last year it would invest
10 trillion won ($9 billion) in a new plant to make the
ultra-thin panels. Samsung Display, an unlisted unit of Samsung
Electronics Co Ltd that's the largest maker of OLEDs for
smartphones, is investing 4 trillion won by 2017 in an OLED
production line.
Research firm IHS has forecast that shipments of OLED smartphone
panels will overtake LCDs in 2020.
($1 = 101.1500 yen)
($1 = 1,101.7000 won)
(Reporting by Thomas Wilson; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
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