There are reports that the Korean police is investigating a new case of OLED technology leakage - this time by Israeli company Orbotech's local Korean branch. Six Orbotech employees are suspected of leaking AMOLED (and WRGB, or WOLED) technology from LG Display and Samsung to several Chinese and Taiwanese companies.
According to the prosecution, Orbotech's employees photographed circuit diagrams of LG's and Samsung's 55" OLED TV panels when they visited the company's factories to check defects of inspection equipment. The images were stored on portable memory cards, slipped into their shoes, belts and wallets, and later relayed to display-making rivals.
The Korean reports say that this technology leak could pose a major threat to Korea's display industry - which is a national interest and a core industrial strategic technology.
According to the reports, one of the companies that bought the leaked information is BOE Display. Just last month we reported that BOE started the construction of its 5.5-Gen AMOLED fab in Ordos, inner Mongolia. BOE's plan is to start with LTPS LCDs and later on move to AMOLED production (this will happen in 2014).
This is not the first OLED technology theft reported in South Korea this year. A couple of months ago it was reported that LG Display employees are suspected of stealing Samsung's Small Mask Scanning technology secrets.
