TOKYO, April 18 (Kyodo) — Sony Corp. is making arrangements to develop a next-generation organic electroluminescence display television jointly with Taiwan's AU Optronics Corp., sources familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
The TV is likely to hit the market within several years if the development proceeds smoothly, the sources said, as Sony aims to turn around its slumping TV business and catch up with South Korean rivals like Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, which lead others in the development of the product.
Sony has said it would collaborate with another company to develop the TV, which has such features as high definition and low energy consumption.
For the business year ended March 31, the Japanese electronics maker expects to see a record group net loss of 520 billion yen, largely due to the TV business which is expected to have fallen into the red in the just ended business year for the eighth year in a row.
Sony aims to turn its business around by accelerating the development of the new product, while keeping down investments by teaming up with the Taiwanese firm.
Sony, which already sells a 25-inch organic electroluminescence display monitor for business use, aims to mass produce a TV with a large screen by combining its technology with AU Optronics' know-how in LCD panel manufacturing and cost competitiveness.
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics of South Korea have both succeeded in developing a 55-inch organic electroluminescence display TV, the world's biggest, and are aiming to put it on the market by the end of this year.