Japan Companies try to hold on in small LCD

Joint venture - see news below.

JZ

Toshiba, Hitachi, Sony to set up LCD firm

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Toshiba Corp., Hitachi, Ltd. and Sony Corp. have basically agreed to jointly establish a company to manufacture small and midsize liquid crystal display (LCD) panels by year-end in a bid to compete with South Korean and Taiwan rivals, it has been learned.
According to industry sources, the envisaged company, intended to integrate the three companies' businesses in the field, will be partly financed by the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, a private-public investment fund established in 2009 to support next-generation businesses.
The agreement will be officially announced as early as Wednesday.
The new company's global market share is expected to be the world's largest, as the three companies' combined share in the field in 2010 was 21.5 percent, exceeding Sharp Corp.'s leading 14.8 percent share.
About 70 percent of the new company's capital will be financed by the investment fund. The remaining capital will be equally shared by the three companies.
The demand for small and midsize LCD panels has risen sharply due primarily to international growth in smartphone use, making the LCD business highly competitive.
Although Japan currently leads the LCD market, South Korean and Taiwan rivals, which have invested heavily in the industry, are catching up.
The joint project is being led by the investment fund, which aims to strengthen Japan's competitiveness and keep Japan's leading status in the field.
According to industry observers, the consolidation stems from the trio's decision that individually they cannot win the competition. The project's success is crucial for Japan's shrinking LCD business.
According to DisplaySearch, a U.S. research company, the global market for small and midsize LCDs in 2011 will be $25.1 billion (about 1.9 trillion yen), 20 percent higher than 2010.
Industry sources said currently Japanese companies have an advantage in LCD technology for touch screen devices.
However, Samsung Electronics Co. of South Korea leads in organic electroluminescence (EL) panels, which are said to provide higher-definition images.
Advanced technology and investment capital will be indispensible for competing in the LCD market. However, after Hitachi suffered a 2.5 billion yen loss in fiscal 2010 and Toshiba went into the red from 2007 to 2009 in the small and midsize LCD business, neither company can afford to invest much in their LCD business individually.
There is a fear that without this venture, the Japanese small and midsize LCD display industry may face a similar defeat to that of large LCD TV panels, which were technologically superior to those of foreign competitors, but lost in competition for investment.

(Aug. 31, 2011)