Samsung SDI Begins Mass Production of `Dream Displays
By Kim Yoo-chul
Staff Reporter
CHEONAN, South Chungcheong Province _ South Korea’s Samsung SDI said Wednesday it started mass production of next-generation active matrix light-emitting diode (AM OLED) in September for the first time in the promising industry and will double its capacity in 2008.
``With an investment of 477.5 billion won since 2005, we finally completed construction of the fourth-generation line. We have already begun mass production in the Cheonan plant,’’ Kim Jea-wook, chief of the company’s display division, said.
``We will double monthly output for two-inch AM OLEDs to three million units next year,’’ Kim added.
The company has plans to produce 3-inch to 7-inch displays for portable multimedia players in 2008 and expand to larger 10-inch and 30-inch ones for laptops and TVs in 2009.
AM OLEDs, often called ``dream displays,’’ are seen as promising technology because they are self-luminous and, unlike liquid crystal displays (LCDs), do not require expensive backlighting. This results in thinner displays that consume almost 40 percent less power, key advantages for mobile phones and other portable devices.
The displays are already being used in some smaller portable devices such as music players.
The global AM OLED market is expected to reach 119 million units in 2011, from seven million in 2007, according to DisplaySearch, a U.S.-based market research firm.
Asked about worries over price fluctuations, Samsung SDI simply dismissed the speculation by saying the company has already secured major local and overseas clients to provide the displays.
Kim said Samsung does not have any immediate plan to hand over its OLED division to Samsung Electronics and showed strong confidence in high earnings.
Shares of Samsung SDI soared 14 percent, its biggest daily gain in more than five years, Wednesday on higher hopes that its new display product will boost earnings.
Competition among South Korean flat panel makers are getting much fiercer to take bigger stakes in the next `` goose laying golden eggs.’’
LG.Philips LCD, the world’s second largest maker of liquid crystal displays, is close to finalizing acquisition talks with LG Electronics over its OLED division to create synergy in the business.
``Some technical issues still remain, but the talks will be completed by the end of the year,’’ Kwon Young-soo, CEO of the flat panel maker told reporters Tuesday after the company's upbeat quarterly result.