“LG Display said the supply deal for organic light-emitting diode panels to Apple’s iPhone X has not been settled, in response to industry speculation on a possible deal,” Shin Ji-hye reports for The Korea Herald. “‘Regarding the OLED supply deal for Apple’s iPhone X, nothing has been set in detail. When anything is confirmed in detail, we will announce it, or (otherwise an announcement will be made) in a month,’ LG Display said in its regulatory filing Wednesday afternoon. ”
“A local media outlet reported that LG Display signed a OLED supply deal with Apple for iPhone X and that the firm is now setting up production equipment for iPhone X in Paju E6 assembly line. After the setup is completed, the production would start around June to supply some 60 million OLED panels, a source was quoted as saying,” Shin reports. “Apple sells around 200 million smartphones every year and Samsung Display, currently the sole supplier, reportedly signed a deal for 67 million units for the iPhone X.”
“LG Display has been a solid partner of Apple over the last 10 years, providing liquid crystal displays,” Shin reports. “Apple’s partnership is crucial for LG Display that is recently accelerating the investment of OLED panels for smartphones. ”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Hopefully, the deal will be finalized and production ramped up ASAP as relying on any sole supplier, especially the slimy, thieving Samsung, is a risky situation.
SEE ALSO:
Apple teams up with LG Display for foldable iPhone due to concerns over tech leaks to Samsung – October 11, 2017
Apple, LG Display discuss OLED display deal for 2019 – September 7, 2017
LG Display to supply OLED panels to Apple – July 31, 2017
Apple to invest $2.70 billion in LG Display’s OLED production – July 28, 2017
Apple and LG Display plan to derail Samsung’s OLED expansion plans – July 25, 2017
LG Display to invest $3.56 billion in flexible OLED plant – May 30, 2017
Apple patent details foldable iPhone – January 26, 2017
Apple granted U.S. patent for bendable or foldable iPhone using advanced carbon nanotube structures – November 1, 2016
Will the next-gen iPhone be a flip phone? Apple is granted another patent for new flexible handset design – November 22, 2016
it seems like a good use of 270 billion dollars would be to build an Apple OLED giga-factory in the US…
I am not on board with that, macgadgetfreek. I am not disputing Steve Job’s assertion that Apple needs to “own” the core technologies in its products. But owning the design and IP is one thing – manufacturing the components is another thing entirely.
If Apple builds its own factories, then it will have to maintain, operate, expand, and upgrade them over time. If Apple uses third parties to manufacture the components it designs – for instance, the A-series processors – then the industry competes for Apple’s business in terms of cost and technical sophistication. Apple thus gets the best that industry has to offer at a competitive price without investing billions of dollars in assets. Apple also limits its downside exposure to the guaranteed components deliveries to which it has committed. If something does not sell well, then Apple does not exercise options for additional components.
Sure, there are cases in which industry is not currently capable of performing to Apple’s standards. In those cases, Apple generally works with the vendor to elevate their capabilities and processes (thus benefitting everyone in the longer term, not just Apple). Only in unique situations in which Apple has no other viable choice would I support Apple diving into the high-volume manufacturing business.