[CES2020] Jung Ho-young, LGD President: "Ceasing Domestic LCD TV Panel Production... Focusing on Next Generation"

[Las Vegas (USA) = Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] Jung Ho-young, CEO of LG Display, announced a plan to halt domestic production of TV LCD panels next year and focus on next-generation displays.

On the 6th (local time), a day before the opening of the world's largest home appliance and IT exhibition 'CES 2020', Jung Ho-young held his first press conference since taking office at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) in the United States, announcing three key initiatives: accelerating LCD structural innovation, enhancing competitiveness in the P-OLED (Plastic OLED) business, and popularizing large OLEDs.

Regarding accelerating LCD structural innovation, CEO Jung stated, "We will convert the TV LCD panel production lines to IT use and mostly phase out domestic TV LCD panel production by the end of this year."

He added, "For LCD panels below the 6th generation, I believe domestic production is not appropriate even for general-purpose monitors. The Paju plant will focus on producing IT product panels such as advanced products." He further noted, "In the future, LCD production will focus more on Chinese factories than domestic ones, mainly targeting commercial use."

Along with the LCD business restructuring plan, CEO Jung also announced plans for future display businesses such as foldable displays and displays for aircraft and automobiles.

Jung Ho-young said, "We plan to release foldable laptops within this year in collaboration with our clients," adding, "Foldable technology can be applied to smartphones, laptops, and tablets without distinction. It will be implemented sequentially according to customer schedules."

He mentioned, "Rollable and foldable display technologies can also be applied to automobiles," and hinted, "Currently, it is difficult to eliminate wrinkles on foldable displays, but we have been researching design concepts and are proceeding in a direction to improve this."

He also revealed that the P-OLED (Plastic OLED) business is viewed as the area with the greatest growth potential, and LG Display plans to focus its capabilities there. This is because the importance of interior design in cars is increasingly emphasized with the development of electric and autonomous vehicles. P-OLED, which offers high design freedom and advantages such as image quality, response speed, and weight, is considered a blue ocean.

He stated, "I believe that sales from automotive and aviation displays should account for up to 30% of total sales in the future," and added, "Automotive P-OLED will be launched by the end of the second quarter this year. Its profitability is expected to be higher than that of home appliances and IT."

To popularize large OLEDs, LG Display plans to provide differentiated values unique to OLEDs such as rollable, bendable, and cinematic sound features. Jung Ho-young expressed confidence, saying, "Last year, the OLED business surpassed the break-even point," and "This year, OLED sales will account for about 40% of total sales, and next year, it is expected to exceed 50%."

He concluded, "Although there are difficulties due to intensified global competition and structural oversupply at present, as the OLED transition accelerates, the possibility of new market development is also high," emphasizing, "LG Display, with world-class technology and talent, can leap forward as a new and strong company if it properly executes the key tasks this year."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.