LG is spending billions to improve its OLED production capabilities, suggesting a big future for the technology in smart and automotive tech.
Recent reports from Japan had claimed that LG was looking to pump serious money into improving its OLED production facilities, and now the company itself has confirmed those rumours.
LG today issued a press release claiming that the company will invest 1.84 trillion South Korean won (£1.06 billion) in beginning construction of a new panel plant in Paju, Korea. Total investment is expected to amount to more than 10 trillion won.
“The company decided on the new plant, known as P10, because of anticipated demand for OLED panels over the next several years,” says LG.
“The P10 plant will mainly produce both large-size OLED TV panels and flexible OLED panels for smartwatches and automotive displays.”
The South Korean company has effectively had the OLED TV market to itself in recent years, thanks to a technological breakthrough that enabled it to achieve a level of production consistency that its rivals have struggled to reach.
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But LG’s statement suggests that its OLED ambitions stretch beyond TV to other, smaller devices. The company references smartwatches and automotive displays, and with the Apple Watch using an OLED screen it’s easy to see where demand for the former might increase massively over the coming years.
However, the estimated timing of the new OLED facility’s construction in 2018 would appear to tie in nicely with recent reports (see the first link) about the iPhone. It’s been claimed that Apple will turn to OLED technology for the iPhone line from 2018 onwards.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
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