Taiwan Forms AMOLED Alliance to Compete Against Samsung

Taipei, March 7, 2012 (CENS)--The Ministry of Economic Affairs will coordinate Taiwan's organizations to form an active-matrix organic light emitting diodes (AMOLED) alliance to compete against Samsung, which has vowed to begin mass-producing the flexible displays as a replacement for LCDs late this year or early next year.

The organizations include Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), AU Optronics Corp. (AUO), Chimei Innloux Corp., MediaTek Inc., Acer Inc., Asustek Computer Inc., and HTC Corp. Among them AUO and Chimei Innloux are AMOLED makers.

Mobile device makers HTC and Asustek will reportedly secure all of the AMOLED capacities at AUO to boost the Taiwan industry.

Samsung is currently the world's No.1 supplier of the displays and its mobile-phone business is the primary user of its display supplies. This has kept HTC, which is Samsung's archrival in smartphone market, and other Taiwanese mobile-device makers out of access to its AMOLED supplies.

Exasperated by Samsung, HTC and its domestic peers have turned to Taiwan government for assistance.

The ministry will mobilize government sources, namely ITRI, and the island's AMOLED suppliers and buyers to put money into AMOLED R&D to boost the yield rate of the displays. Industry executives estimate the expenditure at around NT$10 billion (US$333 million at US$1: NT$30).

People familiar with the cooperation said that AUO will work out a report on the integration of the industry by the end of March. Chimei Innloux is said to produce its own AMOLED plan for government subsidization.

MOEA officials pointed out that Taiwan's smartphone supply chains needs to work together if Taiwan's smartphone industry is to hold a seat in international markets.

They noted that AMOLED is rising as a must for next-generation smartphones and likely to enter into tablet PCs and TVs. Samsung is moving to build 8.5-generation AMOLED panel production lines, and volume production at its 5.5-G lines is faring smoothly. By contrast, Taiwan's AMOLED production lines are still turning out 3.5-G products.