Japanese display makers lose out in Apple OLED shift

September 3, 2024

Japan Display (JDI) and Sharp stand to lose lucrative display supply deals with Apple as a result of the US vendor shifting all its iPhone models to OLED screens, Nikkei Asia reported.

The Japanese news outlet stated Apple will drop LCDs from lower-tier iPhone SE models from 2025, effectively ending a long-standing relationship with the two component suppliers, which Nikkei Asia stated once held a combined 70 per cent share of the US device-maker’s smartphone display business.

Nikkei Asia reported Apple already began ordering OLEDs for its future iPhone models from current suppliers BOE Technology Group in China and LG Display in South Korea, though added the device maker remained tight lipped when asked about its plans.

It reported Samsung’s display unit is Apple’s biggest OLED supplier, providing around half of the vendor’s needs.

If correct, Apple’s switch to all-OLED iPhones would be bad news for JDI and Sharp, which Nikkei Asia states do not mass produce the screens for smartphones.

Apple accelerated a shift to OLEDs in 2019, having deployed the screen type on its iPhone X model in 2017.

At the time, reports linked JDI with an uptick in production of the displays, though Nikkei Asia’s article suggests the company has so far only scored wins in screens for Apple’s Watch and is instead focused on rejigging its LCD business for the automotive sector.

Sharp, meanwhile, reportedly closed one LCD plant mostly associated with the TV business, and cut back output at another facility.

Source:Japanese display makers lose out in A… – Mobile World Live