Google to invest 1 trillion won in LG Display division to ramp up production of flexible OLED panels: reports

Google plans to invest 1 trillion won in LG Display division to ramp up production of flexible OLED panels for its next Pixel phone, according to South Korea media reports.

With the deal the search giant would secure OLED supply.

It would also allow the South Korean tech giant to reduce capex, according to ETNews.

The report further stated that the supply deal might go up during talks. LG Display is said to be reviewing Google's offer. According to commentators, the proposed amount of 1 trillion won was enough for LG to build an additional line for flexible display production.

According to the report the search giant offered no technical specifications for the displays.

LG Display currently supplies small flexible OLED panels for the Apple Watch and LG Electronics' watch line-up but does not have the capacity to produce units for smartphones.

Google launched the Pixel phone with OLED displays last year but ran into problems securing the displays.

Many flagship phones are expected to feature bendable OLED displays. According to reports, Apple had ordered 70 million units of the displays from Samsung Electronics for its next iPhone.

The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus featured bendable OLED panels and they would also be used in the upcoming Galaxy Note 8.

The previous Nexus phone were made by two companies, LG and Huawei, whereas the current Pixel phone had been manufactured by HTC.

Google had been using AMOLED displays made by Samsung for its Pixel and Pixel XL, but it looked like  Google wanted switch to another display provider.

The decision might not have anything to do with the latest rumours claiming Apple had struck a deal with Samsung for nearly 70 million bendable OLED displays that would be included in the iPhone 8, according to commentators.