Samsung files trademarks for OLED TVs in Korea, are they getting ready to release new OLED TVs?

According to reports from Korea, Samsung filed for some new trademarks in Korea on January 26: Super UHD OLED, Ultra Super OLED, Samsung Super Ultra OLED, Ultra OLED and Super UHD. Obviously these trademarks (except the last one, perhaps) will be used for UHD (4K) OLED TVs.

SDC repeatedly stated that it does not aim to mass produce OLED TVs in 2015. SDC did produce OLED TVs back in 2013, but the production yields were low and they could not keep up with the low prices of LG's OLED TVs. LGD's chosen technology (WRGB and Oxide-TFT, as opposed to SDC's direct-emission and LTPS) has better yields and is much easier to scale up.

 

Samsung expected to return to OLED TV production in 2016 or 2017, once the technology they chose matured enough. In the meantime, the company is focused its high-end TV efforts on Quantum-Dots enhanced LCD TVs (branded SUHD TVs).

These new trademarks may mean though the the company is closer to OLED TV production then we assumed. It may be that Samsung will launch a high-end 4K OLED TV soon, but still with a very low production volume. It may also be that the company managed to increase yields and is confident they can scale-up production in the near future.

We even heard reports back in 2013 that Samsung considered licensing LGD's OLED technologies that may enable them to produce WRGB OLED TVs. LGD is actually selling OLED TV panels to several Chinese TV makers (including Skyworth, Changhong, Haier, Konka and KTC), and is in talks with Panasonic and maybe with Sony as well. But I cannot see Samsung actually buying TV panels from their Korean arch-rival.

And of course it's possible that these are just trademarks Samsung filed for, without any intention of launching OLED TVs in the next year or two.

Posted: Mar 05,2015 by Ron Mertens

Comments

good news after all .