Samsung Display will end all production of LCD panels in South Korea and China by the end of 2020, the company said in statements to Korean media and Reuters.

Samsung to end LCD production
After having announced that it will invest close to $11 billion dollars into next-generation QD displays and start production in 2021, Samsung Display has now made it official that it will end all production of LCD panels by year's end.

The company confirmed its plan to Korean news media and Reuters.

- "We will supply ordered LCDs to our customers by the end of this year without any issues," the company said in a statement to Reuters

Samsung Display is currently operating two LCD production lines in South Korea and two factories in China. It supplies LCD TV panels to Samsung Electronics' "QLED" LCD TVs as well as LCD displays to other brands' TVs, PCs, and mobile devices, including Apple's iPhones. All employees and subcontractors have been notified. Workers will be shifted to other business divisions.

 Also read: Investment into LCD to dry up by 2022, says IHS Markit

Samsung Electronics, the consumer electronics division, is not expected to stop sales of LCD TVs in the near term. The company is already sourcing LCD TV panels from other panel makers, including AUO and CSoT (TCL).

Will transition to QD displays
The focus will now be on ramping up next-generation displays, it said. The company is exploring novel concepts such as QD-OLED (blue OLEDs with QD color converters), microLED, and QNED (blue LEDs with QD color converters).

The move could indicate that at least some of these display technologies are ready for prime time. Samsung Group heir Lee Jae-yong visited Samsung Display on March 19 to inspect the latest development. As part of the visit, the company released photos that would appear to show a prototype display.


 LG C9 OLED (left), Samsung QD prototype (middle), Samsung Q950TS (right). Source: The Elec

The other Korean display maker LG Display announced in January 2020 that it will end its LCD TV panel production in South Korea by the end of 2020.

It is the end of an era for LCD TV panel production in South Korea.

- Source: Korea Bizwire, Reuters, The Elec