Samsung buying Sony’s 50 percent stake in LCD venture.
Samsung and Sony are splitting up their LCD panel joint venture, the companies announced. Samsung will pay 1.08 trillion won ($935 US million) in cash for Sony’s stake in S-LCD Corp., a venture formed in 2004, the Suwon. Concurrently, the two companies have entered into a new strategic agreement for the supply and purchase of LCD panels with a goal of enhancing the competitiveness of both companies. The agreement also allows Sony and Samsung to continue cooperative engineering efforts focused on LCD panel technology. In the near future, Sony will have access to a “flexible and steady supply” of S-LCD Corp.’s panels from Samsung (at market prices, of course) without having to maintain and operate its own manufacturing plant. The share transfer and payment are targeted to close by the end of January 2012, subject to necessary approvals from regulatory authorities.
