Samsung to produce OLED TVs in 2017

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Mon, December 4, 2023 | 19:07

Tech

Samsung to produce OLED TVs in 2017

Posted : 2015-09-06 16:41

Updated : 2015-09-10 15:48

Merck's innovation center located in the German city of Darmstadt, where the company's headquarters are located, is seen through its advanced glass technology, Sunday. / Courtesy of Merck

By Kim Yoo-chul

DARMSTADT, Germany ― Samsung Electronics will jump into the OLED TV market in 2017 at the earliest as costs will be cut thanks to improvements in key materials to be used in premium sets, an executive at Merck said.

Samsung's plan to promote OLED TVs may fuel additional growth for suppliers benefitting leaders such as LG Display and will help expand Korea's leadership in next-generation displays.

"Of course, we never can speak for our customers, but some market experts assume Samsung doesn't want LG to gain more share in OLEDs. Samsung is more than just considering OLEDs, it's committed to producing them," Brian Daniels, senior vice president from performance materials-advanced technologies division at Merck, said in an interview with The Korea Times at the Merck headquarters last week.

The executive remained confident that costs in materials will be cut. "The timing of Samsung's advance into the OLED TV market might not happen until next year. We expect OLED TV panels could reach large volume by 2017," said the executive.

Merck is a global leader in materials in large-sized OLED panels. Currently, LG Display, the world's biggest display manufacturer, is relying on Merck's OLED materials tech.

At this year's IFA, OLED technology was the main theme for all leading TV manufacturers except for Samsung. LG CEO Han Sang-beom said OLED tech will change people's day-to-day lives.

Japan's Panasonic has already released its new OLED TVs.

OLED, which stands for organic light-emitting diodes, is self-illuminating; therefore, it doesn't require backlighting, making OLED panels light and energy efficient.

During the interview, he highlighted advantages of inkjet OLED printing technology, which is more cost-effective than older OLED printing methods.

Inkjet printing technology

Current OLED methods rely on evaporation processes, in which the organic materials are deposited onto a glass sheet through a thin metal stencil, also known as a "shadow mask." This process is problematic as a significant amount of the material is wasted because it disperses all over the mask, in addition to inherent mask changes which expose the sheet to dust and compromise yields (OLEDs are by nature sensitive to contamination), said officials.

Rather, inkjet OLED printing allows precision deposits without the use of a mask. It also produces less stray particles, thus boosting yields.

"This is why a lot of TV manufacturers are showing keen interests to join inkjet printing projects," said the executive.

He said OLED has much promise; however, he ruled out the possibilities of establishing a joint venture with LG Display in OLED materials. "We are cooperating," he said. "But that's all."

Merck supplies evaporable OLED materials to LG OLED TVs.

In a question about growing concerns over the rapid rise of Chinese display manufacturers, he said Korea is on the verge of losing its leadership in displays as existing liquid crystal display panels (LCDs) can be easily and economically maufactured.

"Samsung and LG understand that Chinese companies are manufacturing LCDs. OLED technology, however, is a lot more difficult to make as this technology is still in its early stage," according to the executive.

"But long-term, the potential of OLEDs looks good. Korea is still a global leader. But that may change in five or 10 years from now," he said.

Merck, Germany's largest company by assets, is eyeing new mergers and acquisitions (M&A) opportunities for further growth. "We will continue to work with small partners and if necessary, we may buy new ventures," he said.

For Merck, R&D is the backbone of the company, he said.

Emanuel Merck began production on an industrial scale in opium. The Merck family owns 70.3 percent while shareholders hold 29.7 percent.

"For long-term investment, ownership is helpful. In its early years, Merck believed opium was its premium product. Now, we believe OLED is our premium product. Our philosophy is to solidify the company's leadership in core businesses rather than reaching out to non-core businesses," Markus Kaiser, head of communications at the performance materials unit, said.

yckim@ktimes.co.kr