Samsung Display plans to delay its quantum dot (QD) -organic light-emitting diode (OLED) investment to around 2024.
According to the electronics industry on Tuesday, Samsung Display is moving toward not investing in QD-OLED next year. Samsung Display is known to have prioritized the construction of OLED production lines for IT use, rather than investing in large-size QD panels.
Samsung Electronics is planning to expand its QD-OLED TV lineup from 55 inches and 65 inches to 49 inches and 77 inches, and to expand its lineup from North America and Europe to Asia and Central and South America. Currently, panel production is 30,000 panels per month based on the 8.5 generation substrate. Based on a simple calculation of 100 percent production, the annual production of QD-OLED TVS is 1.8 million units, which is small considering that Samsung has shipped around 40 million TVS a year.
Amid rising demand, Samsung Display believes it is imperative to strengthen competition in small - and medium-sized panels. Apple will launch its first iPad with OLED panels in 2024, before expanding adoption to MacBooks. Samsung Display needs to meet the demand for IT OLED. Choi Ju-sun, president of Samsung Display, said in his keynote speech at the International Information Display Conference 2022 in August that the company will invest in an eighth-generation OLED production line with the goal of putting it into operation by 2024.
Samsung Display is expected to begin production line construction in earnest by ordering OLED devices for IT use in the first or second quarter of next year. Some of the equipment has already been ordered. The OLED production line for IT uses 15,000 sheets per month.
The sluggish demand for TVS due to the global economic downturn is also interpreted as the reason for Samsung Display s delayed investment. According to a market research firm, global TV shipments next year are expected to reach 199 million units, down 1.4 percent from this year's 202 million units, to below 200 million units.
"It seems that Samsung Display will not be able to invest in both large and small sized OLED next year as the global economy is highly uncertain and demand for TVS and smartphones is unlikely to recover," a source said. Samsung Display is currently investing in the 8.7 generation line for IT, but the QD investment will be delayed until next year.
The increased production of QD-OLED is also cited as a reason why Samsung Display is not rushing to invest in larger panels. Samsung Display recently increased its QD output from less than 50 percent in the early stage of mass production to 90 percent. As the average time to produce a product also improved, production increased by 30,000 sheets per month, the report said.
"The main model of Samsung's premium TV lineup next year will be mini LED products, as it was this year," the official said. Samsung says unless Samsung says it wants to significantly increase QD-OLED TVS, Samsung Display has no reason to invest.
