Sony follows Samsung and completely abandons OLED TVs to focus on 4K LCD

In order to save itself, Japan's Sony is undergoing an unprecedented business restructuring and direction adjustment. After abandoning the digital reader project, according to the latest report from Nikkei News, Sony has adjusted the development strategy of its TV business and will abandon the OLED TV project and focus on LCD 4K TVs with lower costs and better market prospects.

The full name of OLED TV is "Organic Light Emitting Diode" TV. Unlike LCD TV, this type of TV uses diodes to display images. It does not have the viewing angle problem of LCD TV. It has a higher pixel density and better picture quality. However, OLED has a fatal weakness - it is too expensive and unpopular.

Sony has always been the main R&D manufacturer of OLED TVs. However, according to Japanese media reports, Sony has stopped related R&D and production. Its future focus will be on 4K TVs based on traditional LCD technology.

Sony has also reportedly reorganized its TV business, with members of the OLED group being integrated into other divisions within the company. In addition, including other adjustments, Sony will also reduce the number of employees in its consumer electronics business by 20%.

4K LCD TVs have low manufacturing costs and are relatively cheap, and are now available in large quantities. It is reported that 4K LCDs will account for half of Sony's TV sales next year.

Japanese media said that the reason why Sony adjusted its TV strategy is actually very simple. OLED TVs are too expensive and the market has not started, but 4K TVs are selling well in the market and it is difficult for Sony to miss this market.

In the TV industry, OLED is facing elimination by 4K TVs. Previously, South Korea's Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics quickly adjusted their strategies, abandoned OLED's leading position, and focused on 4K TVs. Media commented that Sony was slow in adjusting its direction and has fallen behind its South Korean competitors.

At the end of last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Sony and Panasonic had decided to cancel their joint R&D plan on OLED TVs and focus on LCD TV technology. Compared with OLED, the manufacturing process of LCD is simpler.

According to reports, OLED TVs have advantages in color reproduction, but Sony and other manufacturers have spent too much time in manufacturing large-screen TVs and reducing costs. To this day, OLED TVs are still very expensive, costing three to four times more than technologies such as plasma.

In addition, at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in the United States, traditional LCD TVs showed a new development direction. In addition to large screens, many manufacturers launched curved TVs. They said that LCD curved TVs can improve the weak point of viewing angle and improve the viewing effect, which can further enhance the vitality of LCD TV technology.

A few days ago, foreign media reported that Samsung Electronics has abandoned its OLED TV plan and will now focus on high-quality LCD TVs. Samsung is currently producing OLED screens on a small scale at a factory in Chungcheong Province, South Korea, and originally planned to expand production capacity by the end of this year, but the investment plan has been canceled.

According to analysis, the reasons why Samsung Electronics gave up OLED TVs are basically similar to those of Sony, namely, OLED prices are too high and the market is too small.

According to data from professional organizations, only 4,400 OLED TVs were sold worldwide last year. Sony, which is in a survival crisis, obviously cannot rely on such an unreliable technology concept to stake its future.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.