Surprising Report Surfaces Claiming Sharp has Dropped Apple
A surprising Korean report this afternoon emphatically states that Sharp, the leading company in the small & medium-sized LCD panel market, is starkly changing its supply strategy. After inviting investments from Samsung, the Japan-based company is strengthening its cooperation with Samsung. According to the industry on May 8, Sharp stopped the production of LCD panels for iPad as of January this year and started supplying Samsung with small & medium-sized IGZO panels instead.
Korea IT News reports that "The Japanese LCD maker is going to focus on producing LCD panels for Samsung. IGZO panels commercialized around the end of last year will be provided for Samsung's laptop computers.
Starting from an 11.6-inch IGZO panel, Sharp is planning to supply various types of IGZO panels. As such, the company is expected to sharply increase the production portion for laptop computer LCD panels which the company hardly produced in the past. According to DisplaySearch, a market research firm, Sharp has a plan to double the production of laptop computer LCD panels on a quarterly basis. And the company is also planning to supply large-sized LCD panels for 15 inch laptop computers sometime soon."
An industry source told Korea IT News that "Sharp is focusing on the production of IGZO panels as its new growth engine. It was initially known that the company would provide the product to Apple, but it has changed its supply strategy for Samsung."
We covered BrightWire's report on this as far back as last December that such a move was in the works. Today's report seems to confirm that original report.
In March Forbes published a report titled Does Samsung's Investment in Sharp Threaten Apple? Forbes reported at that time that "industry observers believe that Apple must be alarmed in the extreme at the possible loss of intellectual property to Samsung as the result of a Samsung-Sharp equity tie-up."
However, on the flipside, the Japanese website called Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun (via AppleInsider) reported yesterday that Sharp would be producing the displays for the next iPhone.
Whether today's revelations are restricted to larger display panels starting at the 11.6" size as noted in the report is unknown at this time.
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Sharp isn't the only panel manufacture out there and they have been having a really poor financial time of late. If Samsung seems to be throwing them a money lifeline then maybe they should grab it with both hands.
On the other hand, we all know what and how Samsung operate. They already produce large panels for their TV market as well as have a smattering of small panels for their smartphone business. It may just be that they want to see the Sharp end of the business, reproduce they technology and dump Sharp, leaving Samsung basically with one less competitor to worry about.
Apple still has a great business model, and don't dismiss them. Some very interesting products to come, which the market hasn't got a clue about, and I hope it stays that way :)
Posted by: Phil | May 12, 2013 at 03:48 AM
iphonerulez, so you're basically saying the only way to succeed is to be a scumbag? Then I'm pretty sure Apple wouldn't be the most successful company in the world today if that were the case.
Scumbag tactics only get you so far. They're short term gains. Microsoft is a prime example of that. They had their time, but their tactics only got them so far. Now look at them. They're on the path to irrelevance. While Apple had a resurgence and not only surpassed Microsoft by making great products, but also surpassed every other company in the world.
Scumbaggery will ALWAYS catch up to the scumbags. Its a short term gain without any foresight. Maybe they'll beat Apple in the short term, but they'll keep their heads buried in the sand focusing on their present wealth, without looking into the future. And thats how companies like Apple swoop in from behind and catch them off guard, just like they did to Microsoft, and just like they'll do to Samsung.
Posted by: James | May 10, 2013 at 09:36 AM
Isn't Apple the most valuable company in the world? I'm sure they're not clueless. And I don't feel like a company that's sole interest is providing quality products to consumers is a very bad thing. As a consumer, that's what I want. Maybe Apple is soft, idk. But just because your soft doesn't mean you can't think for yourself and know the direction you want to take your company.
Posted by: Myporktoad | May 10, 2013 at 01:52 AM
We know very little about the IGZO panels, how is the yield? color saturation? sharpness? color reproduction? brightness? It is not known if IGZO is the solution to any problems yet. Maybe Apple has decided to go another direction?
Let us not forget that IGZO has been hyped up for many many years already, and yet it has not found its way to market.
I don´t think Apple will use Sharp or IGZO display panels in any of their future products. I think it is very likely that they have something else up their sleeve.
Posted by: mozfart | May 09, 2013 at 11:42 PM
Sharps barely hanging on. If I was an investor i'd be pretty nervous about their future and their current decision making.
Posted by: Hmurchison | May 09, 2013 at 04:07 PM
C'mon. Apple is constantly getting chumped by partners. Samsung is serious about destroying Apple's mobile business. It's a business and anything goes to take over market share. Apple should learn to grow a pair and start playing dirty. Good guys always end up on the losing end. Apple continually tries to save money while competitors spend money to get whatever advantage they can get. That's how wars are won. You get people or companies on your side by any means possible.
Whether Samsung looks like a scumbag or not, it's going to destroy Apple's smartphone business and then its tablet business. Samsung is going to do to Apple's mobile business what Microsoft did to Apple's desktop business. This is how the big boys are supposed to play for dominance. Apple is run by a bunch of clueless, passive pansies only interested in providing good products to consumers. Companies don't survive for long with such a narrow focus.
Posted by: iphonerulez | May 09, 2013 at 02:05 PM
Samsung is more and more makes itself look like a scumbag.
Posted by: Geo | May 09, 2013 at 01:48 PM