Panasonic team-up to make OLED televisions

Struggling Japanese electronics giants Sony and Panasonic said Monday they would jointly develop organic light-emitting diode (OLED) televisions, in a bid to claw back market share from overseas rivals. The companies, both reeling from multi-billion-dollar losses, said they would aim to establish mass-production technology for OLED TV panels next year. The technology lets producers make TVs that consume less power while offering a sharper picture than conventional flat panels, and is expected to be the dominate the market for years to come. "Each company plans to utilize its own strengths to develop and commercialize its own competitive, high-performance, next-generation OLED televisions and large-sized displays," the firms said in a joint statement. The partnership marks the first time the two firms have joined hands in a core business, a major turning point for the struggling Japanese electronics industry. The move comes as South Korean rivals Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics reportedly plan to separately release 55-inch (140 centimeter) televisions with the advanced OLED technology this year. Sony and Panasonic lost over $15.0 billion combined in the year to March as falling sales and intensifying competition hit them hard. The losses have been particularly acute in the television business, where Japanese firms have been hurt by a strong yen, shrinking profit margins and stiff competition from foreign rivals. From TheDailyStar