Apple to Pay LG Display $2.7 Billion for New OLED Production Facility
Apple will invest $2.7 billion in a new OLED production facility with LG Display. The move will allow the Korean display maker to provide up to 45,000 iPhone display units monthly beginning in 2019, according to The Investor.
All of the iPhones for the 2018 cycle are expected to feature OLED displays. This year’s lineup, expected to be announced in the coming weeks, will only feature OLED on the 5.8-inch “iPhone 8.” The so-called 4.7-inch “iPhone 7s” and 5.5-inch “iPhone 7s Plus” will retain LCD screens like the current models.
By investing in a new OLED production facility with LG, one of its long-time LCD partners, Apple would secure a secondary OLED supplier in the coming years.
This isn’t the first time we heard that Apple hoped LG would play a larger role in the small and medium-sized OLED market.
In April, a report from Business Korea indicated that Apple hoped LG would bid for work for the 2018 iPhone lineup. At the time, some sort of agreement between the two companies was expected before the end of June.
See also:
