Apple said to be close to signing OLED deal with Samsung and LG Display for future iPhones

iPhone 6 Retina HD

A report Wednesday by ET News contends that Apple is “close” to signing a definitive supply agreement with both Samsung Display and LG Display concerning OLED screens for future iPhones.

Although iOS devices have used ubiquitous liquid-crystal display (LCD) panels since their inception, organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology features deeper blacks and requires less power because it doesn’t need a power-hungry backlight module to illuminate the pixels.

“LG and Samsung Display are close to a final agreement with Apple for the screens,” the report said, adding the two Korean firms plan a combined 15 trillion won ($12.8 billion) in capital expenditure to build up OLED production capacity over the next two to three years, as per Reuters.

The paper added that Apple will likely “provide some funding” to both Samsung Display and LG Display to help with the investments.

Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported last month that Apple plans to start using OLED screens for iPhones starting in 2018.

LG Display is currently building a $4 billion facility as it looks to significantly increase its OLED panel production between 2017-2018. A November 2015 report by ET Times said that Apple and Samsung were on the verge of signing a deal to provide OLED panels for future iOS devices.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo thinks Apple will not be switching to OLED screens for iPhones anytime soon and will continue using the existing LCD display technology for at least the next three years.

Source: ET News (Google Translate) via Reuters