What’s new: South Korean technology giant Samsung is selling its majority stake in an LCD-making factory in the Chinese city of Suzhou to TCL Technology Group Corp., one of China’s top three players in the space, for $1.08 billion.
TCL said it would pay for the deal with a combination of cash and shares. It expects the deal to close by next year.
Why it matters: Samsung has been gradually moving out of LCDs in favor of more cutting-edge and less power-consuming technologies based on organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) and quantum dot displays.
In the meantime, the purchase would help TCL consolidate its position in the older technology, taking advantage of Samsung’s rich experience to acquire a facility with mature and competitive products.
The Suzhou factory was set up by Samsung in 2011 and currently produces generation-8.5 LCDs. Before the purchase, Samsung had owned 60% of the facility, while a local state-owned enterprise held 30% and TCL held the remaining 10%. After the deal TCL, will own 70% of the factory.
Contact reporter Yang Ge (geyang@caixin.com)
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