Kodak, who was an early pioneer of OLED display technology, is set to sell all its OLED intellectual property to LG Display, who is currently working with Apple to develop new OLED display screens.Kodak took the decision to sell rather than develop OLED display screens because of the “high cost” of development. The deal, which is expected to close by the end of the year, will tighten Kodak’s investment focus and strengthen its financial position, the company said.
In a statement over the weekend, Kodak said that it will sell most of its assets in its OLED business to a group of LG companies for an undisclosed sum.
Kodak, who developed the world’s first viable OLED material in the 1970s, has been struggling to compete after consumers moved from film to digital camera technology.
Kodak said it will have continuing access to its OLED technology for use in its products.
To date, companies like Sony have struggled to develop OLED TV technology, with the Japanese company failing to deliver a 27″ TV earlier this year because of manufacturing problems and the high cost of setting up a manufacturing plant.
“OLED is one of the businesses we wanted to reposition to maximize Kodak’s competitive advantage at the intersection of materials and imaging science,” Laura G. Quatela, Kodak’s chief intellectual property officer and OLED business manager, said. “This action is consistent with that strategy.
“Our OLED intellectual property portfolio is fundamental; however, realising the full value of this business would have required significant investment.”
