Last week we posted that Japan Display is set to raise its stake in JOLED for $100 million, following a $650 million USD cash injection from INCJ to grow its LCD and OLED business. JDI today confirmed this plan. The company received 45 billion yen ($382 million US) from INCJ in the form of unsecured subordinated convertible bonds and these funds will be used for R&D expenses on printing OLED technologies (and will probably include the $100 million for JOLED).
JDI also received 30 billion yen (about $255 million US) from INCJ in the form of subordinated loan, and this money will go towards OLED R&D in the field of evaporation OLED technologies.
JDI published a business plan detailing those loans and the status and plans of its OLED business. According to this plan, JDI will (as reported previously) start producing flexible displays (apparently not OLEDs?) in 2018, which will be followed later by flexible evaporation-based OLEDs. JDI expects to start printing OLED displays in 2019.
JOLED is expected to start operating as a consolidated subsidiary of JDI in the first half of 2017.
JDI was formed in November 2011 by Sony, Hitachi, and Toshiba who combined their small/medium panel production capabilities and received $2 billion from Japan's Innovation Network Corp (INCJ). JDI has always been involved with OLEDs, and has shown several prototypes (including the flexible one you see on above, demonstrated in 2015), which they refer to as film-type OLEDs. Last month JDI announced that is plans to begin producing OLED panels in 2018.
JOLED, meanwhile, has been reportedly concentrating on larger OLEDs for tablets and laptops. In August 2015 it was reported that JOLED is set to establish a new OLED research facility in Japan's Ishikawa Prefecture in a $161 investment. The facility will include a pilot line that will be able to produce samples by the end of 2016, and the facility will also evolve into a mass production fab that will begin production by 2018 (this will require, of course, a much larger investment).
Earlier reports suggested that JOLED is in talks with Apple for a possible supply agreement for Apple's future iPad devices.
