Traditionally the realm of large screen HDTVs over 40-inches in size belongs
to plasma-based technology. LCD HDTV’s typically max out at 46-inches. Once you
hit the 50-inch and over flat panel TV realm, plasma is your main choice.
Two Japanese flat panel makers, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co and
Hitachi Ltd are in talks on a deal that would move Matsushita into the LCD
panel market in a much larger way. Currently, Matsushita is the world’s largest
maker of plasma HDTVs and is the maker of HDTVs under the Panasonic name.
The deal would have Matsushita taking over a joint venture making LCD panels
it has with Hitachi and Toshiba. Part of the deal would also have Matsushita
investing $2.7 billion into a new LCD factory as well.
Shinko Securities analyst Hideki Watanabe told
Reuters, “The timing is just too late.” If the deal is closed
and Matsushita invests the money into a new LCD factory, the new plant wouldn’t
come online until around 2010.
Analysts say that demand for LCD TVs is expected to peak in 2009 due to
broadcasters in the United States and other countries making the move to
digital broadcasting. This move is one of the major motivating factors behind
the booming LCD TV market currently as consumer’s trade larger analog CRT based
TVs for flat panels.
The problem with Matsushita’s plan for its new factory according to The
Nikkei is that the factory would likely use eight-generation mother glass.
By time the factory goes online, competitors like Sony and Samsung will have
been working with the eight-generation glass for years longer and Sharp will be using LCD panels with tenth generation glass.
Reuters reports that Canon, most well known for its digital cameras
and printers, wants to invest in Hitachi as a route to bringing OLED panels for
its line of digital cameras and printers in house to reduce costs.
OLED TVs have been big news recently with the promise of thinner panels.
Currently the process of building OLED panels is immature making costs for TVs
based on OLED technology like the Sony XEL-1 more than the market can
support in quantity. Toshiba announced just this week that it
would not bring its promised OLED TVs to market in 2009 citing cost
concerns.