LG Display unveils brightest OLED TV panel for turnaround

LAS VEGAS, NV -- LG Display Co., the global leading manufacturer of large-size organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panels, introduced the industry’s brightest screen for TVs as the South Korean tech company targets a turnaround in the near term.

LG Display on Monday showcased an 83-inch OLED TV panel featuring its latest Meta Technology 2.0, which improves image brightness by 42% compared to existing models to achieve up to 3,000 nits, ahead of the Consumer Electric Show (CES) 2024 in Las Vegas. One nit, a measurement of light brightness, is equal to one candela per square meter.

This marks the highest brightness level of any large-sized OLED panel yet as higher nits ensure a more vivid viewing experience akin to what the human eye perceives, LG Display said in a statement.

The subsidiary of the world’s No. 2 TV maker LG Electronics Inc. last year unveiled Meta Technology after a decade of research and development to enhance panels’ brightness.

Meta Technology 2.0, its updated version, comprises Micro Lens Array Plus (MLA+) featuring a pattern of optimized micrometer-scale lenses, the upgraded brightness enhancing algorithm META Multi Booster and the full-range brightness detail enhancing algorithm Detail Enhancer, allowing the OLED panel to express the precise colors and brightness nature intended in any environment, according to the company.

“We will firmly establish our technological edge in the OLED TV panel market with the latest evolution of our Meta Technology,” said Lee Hyun-woo, LG Display’s senior vice president and head of the large display business unit.

The company plans to apply Meta Technology 2.0 to its lineup of large-sized OLED TV panels, including the 55-, 65-, 77-, and 83-inch 4K OLEDs and the 77- and 88-inch 8K OLEDs, to further strengthen its leadership in the global premium TV market.

TURNAROUND

The plan came as LG Display aims to soon recover profitability after reporting an operating loss in the July-September 2023 period, extending its losing streak to six straight quarters.

“We will focus on the essence of the business,” LG Display CEO Jeong Cheol-dong told reporters at the company’s booth in CES 2024, the world’s largest tech trade show.

“The essence is to secure profits through customer value creation. We will concentrate on the goal to make the company financially healthy and achieve a turnaround.”

LG Display last month raised 1.4 trillion won ($1.1 billion) through a rights offering in South Korea to invest in growing smaller product lines such as tablet PCs and automobiles for a turnaround.

TALKS ON SALE OF GUANGZHOU LCD PLANT

Industry sources in Seoul said the company may sell its liquid-crystal display factory in Guangzhou, China.

“We are restructuring the business according to the schedule but we cannot mention the timing and the buyer for now,” Lee told reporters, regarding the talk. “We need to accelerate the restructuring through the OLED business. We will proceed with the restructuring and expect to complete it this year.”

LG Display predicted the global TV market to improve from 2025 on replacement demand and an economic recovery, another executive said.

“The large OLED market has been stagnant at around 18 million units as the large TV market remained sluggish after the surge in demand during COVID-19 in 2020,” said Kim KwangJin, the company’s vice president and head of TV sales & marketing.

“We will start seeing replacement demand from 2025. The world’s TV market is expected to improve from 2025 when the global economy normalizes, improving consumers’’ purchasing patterns.”

Write to Jeong-Soo Hwang at hjs@hankyung.com
 

Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.