PMOLED (Passive Matrix OLED): introduction and basics - Page 23

China-based TCL Group will invest RMB587 million (around $70 million) in a new PMOLED production factory in Huizhou, Guangdong. China's Science & Technology Ministry will grant RMB5 million (around $600,000) for this factory.

OSRAM Opto Semiconductors announced the new Pictive User Kit - which is an assessment platform to simulate and test Osram's Pictiva PLED based PMOLED displays.

OSRAM also announced that Canada's DigiCharm is the first company that selected the user kit for use in its "wearable" products - which include highly customizeable name tags aimed to marketing and sales environments.

Shanghai SVA NEC LCD has developed a new 0.8" color PMOLED panel. The company already makes monochrome PMOLED panels (in red, blue and green) and this is their first color one. The company is still testing aging, and lifespan to make sure it meets international standards.

SVA NEC also revealed it is testing production of 1.8" color PMOLED panel for mobile applications.

There are reports that PMOLED panels used in MP3 players will account to more than 30% of RiTDisplay's shipments in 2005. MP3 players panels will amount to about 50% of Univision's sales. This is a large jump from the situation in 2004 where MP3 players panels represent only 3.8% of the market (and mobile phones accounting to 88%).

Univision also plans to start offering 65K-color PMOLED panels for mobile phone external displays later this month.

There are reports that Samsung SDI is now the world's larger supplier of PMOLED displays. It is also the leading Plasma (PDP) panel supplier - jumping ahead of Matsushita, Pioneer and NEC.

The reports suggest that Samusng SDI's OLED market share is about 40% - in just 2 years (Samsung started OLED production in August 2002).

Both RiTDisplay and Univision reported their financial results for Q3 2004, and both companies report a drop in PMOLED shipments and sales.

RiTDisplay sales dropped 37% (compared to Q3 2003) to NT$379 million, due to excessive handset inventory in China. Univision's sales dropped 28% to NT$80 million, mainly due to declining shipments caused by a tight supply of OLED driver ICs.

Innoled announced their PMOLED production project back in August 2003, and they have finally raised the money required for this $25 million project. Innoled expects to begin pilot production in Q2 2005.

At full capacity, Innoled will be able to produce 1.5 million 1.5" PMOLED per month.

Taiwan's Univision president says that the company's first PMOLED production line (Gen 2, 370x470 mm) is now in operating, making around 5,000 substrates per month. Towards the end of 2004 their second production line will begin operation.

The company is developing more efficient and longer lasting OLEDs. They are also developing more efficient production methods.

Fairlight is introducing a new mixing console called the Constellation XT that is fitted with 72 PMOLED displays. Fairlight says that the PLED displays allow them to show super high resolution, detailed information on any selected parameter value.

Apparently the wide viewing angles are also very important in this application.

Osram says they have received an order for 1.5 million PLED PMOLED displays to be used in mobile phones.

The company says this makes them the largest P-OLED producer.