Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團) plans to acquire display start-up eLux Inc for about US$27.03 million in cash via four subsidiaries, including Sharp Corp, in an effort to accelerate its development of next-generation micro-LED display technology, company statements said on Monday.
The acquisition could provide a fast track for Foxconn — known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) in Taiwan — to commercialize micro-LED technology, which industry experts say could exceed organic LED (OLED) technology.
Micro-LED shares traits with OLED, but costs less.
Foxconn’s latest move came as its top clients, Apple Inc and Sony Corp, have been investing in micro-LED in pursuit of an alternative to OLED technology, seeking similar energy efficiency and ultra-high-definition display advantages at cheaper costs.
Apple is expected to crank out a small volume of next-generation micro-LED displays for wearable devices from a plant in Taoyuan’s Longtan District (龍潭) by the end of this year, IDC analyst Annabelle Hsu (徐美雯) said in March.
Apple has placed more focus on micro-LED after acquiring LuxVue Technology Corp in 2014.
Foxconn’s Cyber Venture Capital Corp, Sharp, Innolux Corp (群創) and Advanced Optoelectronic Technology Inc (AOT, 榮創) have inked agreements to invest in eLux, Sharp and Innolux said in separate statements.
Following the investments, Cyber Venture will hold the biggest stake of 45.45 percent in eLux, while Sharp and Innolux will own 31.82 percent and 13.64 percent respectively, the statements said. AOT will hold 9.09 percent.
Sharp will acquire the rights to 21 patents developed by eLux, Sharp’s statement said.
“Cooperation between Innolux’s research and development team in Taiwan and eLux’s team in the US will help accelerate the development of next-generation display technology,” Innolux said in its statement.
The deal is expected to be completed in October, Sharp said.
ELux was established in October last year in Delaware, according to information provided by Sharp.
Taipei-based TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said that micro-LED technology is to have a market value of between US$30 billion and US$40 billion per year once it fully replaces mainstay LCD technology.
The new technology is expected to become mainstream in three to five years, TrendForce said.
The manufacturing costs of micro-LED panels are still high, about three to four times their LCD equivalents, it said.
IDC said it expects micro-LED to become commercially available in 2020.
Micro-LED panels are suitable for smartphones and virtual-reality or augmented-reality devices due to the high demand for picture quality demanded by those products, TrendForce said.
The US dollar was trading at NT$29.7 at 10am today on the Taipei Foreign Exchange, as the New Taiwan dollar gained NT$1.364 from the previous close last week. The NT dollar continued to rise today, after surging 3.07 percent on Friday. After opening at NT$30.91, the NT dollar gained more than NT$1 in just 15 minutes, briefly passing the NT$30 mark. Before the US Department of the Treasury's semi-annual currency report came out, expectations that the NT dollar would keep rising were already building. The NT dollar on Friday closed at NT$31.064, up by NT$0.953 — a 3.07 percent single-day gain. Today,
‘SHORT TERM’: The local currency would likely remain strong in the near term, driven by anticipated US trade pressure, capital inflows and expectations of a US Fed rate cut The US dollar is expected to fall below NT$30 in the near term, as traders anticipate increased pressure from Washington for Taiwan to allow the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate, Cathay United Bank (國泰世華銀行) chief economist Lin Chi-chao (林啟超) said. Following a sharp drop in the greenback against the NT dollar on Friday, Lin told the Central News Agency that the local currency is likely to remain strong in the short term, driven in part by market psychology surrounding anticipated US policy pressure. On Friday, the US dollar fell NT$0.953, or 3.07 percent, closing at NT$31.064 — its lowest level since Jan.
The New Taiwan dollar and Taiwanese stocks surged on signs that trade tensions between the world’s top two economies might start easing and as US tech earnings boosted the outlook of the nation’s semiconductor exports. The NT dollar strengthened as much as 3.8 percent versus the US dollar to 30.815, the biggest intraday gain since January 2011, closing at NT$31.064. The benchmark TAIEX jumped 2.73 percent to outperform the region’s equity gauges. Outlook for global trade improved after China said it is assessing possible trade talks with the US, providing a boost for the nation’s currency and shares. As the NT dollar
PRESSURE EXPECTED: The appreciation of the NT dollar reflected expectations that Washington would press Taiwan to boost its currency against the US dollar, dealers said Taiwan’s export-oriented semiconductor and auto part manufacturers are expecting their margins to be affected by large foreign exchange losses as the New Taiwan dollar continued to appreciate sharply against the US dollar yesterday. Among major semiconductor manufacturers, ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光), the world’s largest integrated circuit (IC) packaging and testing services provider, said that whenever the NT dollar rises NT$1 against the greenback, its gross margin is cut by about 1.5 percent. The NT dollar traded as strong as NT$29.59 per US dollar before trimming gains to close NT$0.919, or 2.96 percent, higher at NT$30.145 yesterday in Taipei trading
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