DSCC says that spending on equipment for the production of large area OLED panels (used in TVs and monitors) have decreased from $3 billion in 2019 to $2.05 billion in 2020, $1.47 billion in 2021 and will drop further to $1.42 billion in 2022.
DSCC estimates that in 2023, the spending on such equipment will be zero. But OLED producers will resume buying large OLED equipment in 2024. Spending in 2024 will amount $2.01 billion, and in 2025 - $1.51 billion.
This is a sponsored post by Merck
Merck inaugurated its first OLED production site in China, that has now begun operations, and it joins Merck’s China-based production of liquid crystals and photoresist materials.
Merck’s local OLED production will give Merck’s China-based and Asia-based customers easier and faster access to OLED materials and a stable and more flexible supply chain.
US-based Margik (previously Light and Charge Solutions) was featured at the Unicorn Hunters second season episode 14, and the company ended up raising 10 million Unicoins (a cryptocurrency initiated by the show, that is currently worth $1 million).
Margik, established in 2019, designs next-generation electron and hole transport materials (ETM, HTL) for organic electronic devices, including OLED lighting and display panels. The company says its materials offer high thermal stability and high resistance to moisture. Margik collaborates with Inuru to produce OLED based flexible "stickers".
OLED microdisplay maker eMagin reported its financial results for Q2 2022, with revenues of $7.2 million (up 14% from Q2 2021). The company's net loss was $1.4 million. At the end of the quarter, eMagin had $4.3 million in cash and equivalents. The company's backlog is $14.3 million.
eMagin says that it achieved increased sales of displays in both the defense sector (mainly the ENVG-B program) and also to the veterinary and surgical markets.
JOLED (Japan OLED) was established in August 2014 by Japan Display, Sony and Panasonic with an aim to become an OLED medium display producer. Following years of R&D and initial production, the company initiated mass production of its OLEDIO panels in 2021 at its new 5.5-Gen production line in Nomi, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan.
JOLED's panels appeared on the market, but only for high-end applications such as LG's professional monitor range. According to a new report from Korea, the company did not manage to find a new investor and is now on the verge of bankruptcy.
Universal Display reported its latest financial results, for Q2 2022, with revenues of $136.6 million, an operating profit of $53.3 million and a net income of $41.5 million. These results were less than expected by analysts. The company ended the quarter with $834 million in cash and equivalents.
UDC's 2021 revenues were a record high of $554 million, with a net profit of $184 million. UDC expects the OLED industry to continue to grow in 2022, and the company believes its revenues in 2022 will be between $625 million to $650 million (an increase of 12% - 17%).
Samsung Electronics reported its financial results for Q2 2022, with record second-quarter revenues of 77.2 trillion Won ($59 billion USD).
Samsung Display reported record second-quarter revenue and operating profit for mobile displays driven by solid demand from major customers. Samsung specifically mentions the growth in its laptop OLED business. Performance in the large panel business was weaker due to initial ramp-up costs of Samsung's QD-OLED displays, and a decline in LCD prices.
LG Display announced its financial results for Q2 2022, with a net loss of around $290 million (down from a profit of around $320 million a year ago) as the company's sales dropped 14.6%.
LGD says that the loss was due to weak demand for TV and IT displays, coupled with supply chain issues and the lockdowns in China. LGD says it plans to continue and reduce its LCD TV business, and to stop LCD production in Korea in 2023, earlier than expected before. The company will focus instead on OLED TV panels and the automotive market, and will aim to open up new markets for transparent and gaming OLEDs.
OLED microdisplay maker eMagin announced its preliminary financial results for the 2nd quarter of 2022. The company says it expects revenues to grow 11-14% compared to Q2 2022, to reach $7 to $7.2 million.
eMagin says that its strong performance was due to strength in its military business, as well as increased demand from medical companies. The strong sales were partially offset by a decrease in contract revenues. As of June 30, 2022, the Company’s backlog of open orders was $14.3 million, including $12.8 million of orders that were shippable within 12 months.
According to reports, Samsung Display acquired OLED material developer Cynora, for about $300 million. Samsung acquires just the IP and technology, and Cynora terminated its entire workforce a couple of weeks ago. Samsung is already an investor in Cynora, and so is LGD.
Cynora has been low on cash (its last financing round was in 2019), according to reports, and did not manage to find new investors, and so the company opted to be sold to Samsung. The reported sum seems to be rather high for an emergency exit, and some later reports quotes much lower sums, perhaps even around $30 million or so.
