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Sharp settles LCD price fixing dispute with Dell and others for $200 million
In an LCD panel price fixing tiff that's been raging on for what seems like time incarnate, Sharp has settled with Dell and two unnamed companies for $198.5 million to make it go away. Japanese panel makers like LG, Samsung and Toshiba are also defendants in the legal dragnet, and numerous fines and settlements totaling more than a billion dollars have already been paid out to the likes of AT&T and the US Department of Justice. This decision comes hot on the heels of an $87 million setback in court for Toshiba -- a ruling that may have taken the edge off of Sharp's defense.
Sharp posts $1.4 billion extraordinary loss, refocuses on mobile displays
Sharp has reported an extraordinary loss of 117.1 billion yen ($1.4 billion) for the financial year ending March 2012. The company has cited restructuring costs and inventory losses as the causes for the write-down, but also projected that its TV business would lose a further 18.7 percent of its projected sales in the current year. The company has decided to convert some of its big-screen LCD production lines into mobile LCDs as it tries to reassert its dwindling display business. It's yet more bad news after the company sold part of its LCD manufacturing business to Hon Hai, Sony withdrew from a joint venture and refused to deal with Sharp in the future, plus an 86 percent collapse in profits.
Samsung, Sharp, Hitachi and others settle LCD panel price fixing consumer class action for $539 million
'Tis the season for settling antitrust lawsuits, folks. Earlier this month, Sharp, Samsung, Hitachi and other LCD panel producers settled out their price fixing lawsuit with direct purchasers (read: TV and computer monitor manufacturers) for $388 million. So the story goes, the companies colluded to assure higher prices on LCDs sold between 1999 and 2006. Now, those same seven companies have settled up with indirect LCD purchasers -- aka the folks buying TVs and PCs -- to the tune of $539 million. Samsung, Sharp and Chimei are dishing out the lion's share of settlement dollars at $240 million, $115 million and $110 million, respectively, with the other companies kicking in between $2.8 and $39 million for their (allegedly) anti-competitive ways. Of course, the settlement isn't final until it receives the court's blessing, but you can see what the judge will likely be rubber-stamping at the source below.
Taiwanese firm to ship 30 million iPad 2 screens
Reuters is reporting that Taiwanese tech manufacturer AU Optronics Corp. has won a major contract from Apple to provide flat panel screens for the ultra-popular iPad 2. With the high demand for the new device, it's no surprise that Apple is looking for new sources for this critical iPad 2 component. The AU Optronics contract will provide up to 30 million of the displays, occupying over half the capacity of the company's plant in Taichung. The report cites local Taiwanese paper The Economic Daily News as the source, and MacStories notes that AU Optronics is the world's fourth-largest supplier of LCDs. The move by Apple follows unprecedented demand for the iPad 2, which has likely sold just over a million units in just the first weekend of availability. There has been speculation that the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan would cause production constraints on certain iPad 2 components, including the screens. With this new source of displays, Apple's ability to produce and ship iPad 2s should remain unfettered.
Toshiba to buy Panasonic's shares in LCD joint venture
Around seven years after it was originally established, Toshiba has decided it best to stop waiting for Panasonic's input on decisions regarding Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology Company. If all goes to plan, Toshiba -- which currently owns a 60 percent stake in the joint venture -- will buy out Panasonic's 40 percent stake on April 28th. For those unaware, the venture was responsible for developing, manufacturing and selling LCDs and OLEDs, most of which were classified as "small to medium-sized." After the share transfer is finalized, TMD will change its name to Toshiba Mobile Display Company, and according to the jointly-issued release, it'll allow Tosh to "further accelerate decision-making and promote comprehensive restructuring of TMD's business." The consumer takeaway here? "Looking to the future, TMD aims to establish OLEDs as an engine for growth and to enhance its display business in the medium- to long-term." Boom.[Via Wall Street Journal]
LCD maker Chi Mei Optoelectronics suffers $125 million loss in Q3
Chi Mei Optoelectronics, one of the world's leading manufacturers of TFT-LCDs, is licking its wounds after announcing a staggering $125 million loss in Q3 of this year. Of course, it's not like this was difficult to see coming -- after all, those plummeting LCD prices that we consumers love so dearly have to be detested somewhere along the supply chain. At any rate, CMO's profit suffered a " three-fold decline compared to that in the same period last year," and there doesn't seem to be any end in sight for the free fall of LCD panel prices. President Ho Jau-yang asserted that the company would "review and modify its operational orientation" while "safeguarding liquidity" as it rode out the storm. We could be badly off, but we'd say the real beatings are yet to come.[Image courtesy of GigaComputers]
LCD manufacturer set to introduce 18.4-inch displays
Look, the LCD monitor market is hot. How hot, you ask? Well let's just say that panel manufacturer Chunghwa Picture Tubes (or CPT) has decided to circumvent the battle for ultimate supremacy in the 19-inch market by creating a totally new size of monitor: an 18.4-inch widescreen display. The new size will feature a 16:9 aspect ratio, 1366 x 768 resolution, a contrast ratio of 1000:1, and a response time of 5ms. The benefit of the slightly smaller size is that the cost to consumers will be lower than its 19-inch brethren, thereby giving CPT a cleaner shot a some market share. The first company to bite on the new size is Acer, which will be using the new panels in a Quanta-made laptop set to hit Europe in the second half of 2008.
