Sony and Panasonic today confimed their agreement to
jointly develop OLED (organic light-emitting diode)
panels and modules for TVs and large-sized displays.
Sony and Panasonic plan to jointly develop
next-generation OLED panels and modules by each
utilizing their core and printing technologies. They
plan to jointly develop printing method-based
next-generation OLED technology, which will be suitable
for low-cost mass production of large, high resolution
OLED panels and modules. Sony and Panasonic aim to
establish mass-production technology during 2013, by
integrating their technologies to improve the overall
efficiency of development.
Sony launched the world's first OLED TV in 2007 with its
11-inch model. Sony also released a 25-inch professional
OLED monitor in 2011, and continued to develop products
and mass-produce OLED displays utilizing deposition
technologies. However, the company halted production of the $2,000 screens three years later amid the post-Lehman global downturn.Further, Sony has promoted the
research and development of next-generation OLED
technologies such as hybrid OLED element devices and
processing (manufacturing) technologies that combine
deposition and printing methods, thin film transistor
(TFT) drivers such as oxide TFTs, and flexible organic
TFTs, and has presented its development results at
academic conferences. Despite these development, Sony
has failed to effectively compete with South Korean
rivals LG and Samsung in the commercialization of large
OLED TV. Both Samsung and LG Electronics have displayed 55-inch OLED prototypes, with the sets expected to go on sale this year at a rumored price tag of as much as $10,000, or about four times the cost of an equivalent LCD model.
Panasonic has been also developing technology related to
large-sized screen, high-resolution OLED panels and
utilizes the "all printing method", among other printing
methods which have the advantage of being competitive
for producing large-sized screens at a lower cost.
Panasonic owns the production and equipment technologies
which enable the production of OLED panels through this
method. Panasonic is also pursuing the future
possibility of OLED panels, and is carrying out research
and development of advancements in flexible OLED panels
and aiming to develop large-sized sheet-type displays.
In parallel with the joint development of the
next-generation technologies of the OLED panels and
modules, Sony and Panasonic plan to continue to study
collaboration in the mass production of OLED panels and
modules. Also, each company plans to utilize its own
strengths to develop and commercialize its own
competitive next-generation OLED televisions and
large-sized displays.