At 2:29 p.m. on November 15 of South Korea's local time (1:29 p.m. of Taiwan's local time), a 5.5-magnitude shock struck Korea's east coast. The epic center is located at 9 kilometers north to Pohang City, North Gyeongsang Province. Its depth was about 9 kilometers deep. About this surprising incident in Korea, WitsView, a division of TrendForce, analyzed that it influenced very little to the entire panel industry.

Samsung Electronics today announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2017. In the fourth quarter, Samsung will focus on profitability, by increasing the dominance in the premium QLED and ultra-large TV lineups, as well as reinforcing B2B growth including digital signage and Cinema LED businesses.

Industrial gases supplier Praxair announced it has signed a long-term agreement to build, own and operate an air separation plant that will supply 700 tons per day of nitrogen to Samsung’s display manufacturing complex in Tangjeong, South Korea.

CYNORA, a Germany-based provider of highly efficient organic emitter materials for OLEDs, announced that the two Korean tech giants have decided to support CYNORA on its way to becoming a major player for OLED emitting materials.

Major technology companies have been developing solutions and platforms for 3D sensing, which is expected to be featured on the upcoming iPhone devices. Market intelligence TrendForce anticipates that from 2017 onward, the market for 3D sensing solutions used in mobile devices will witness leaping growth. The total value of the global market for 3D sensing modules used in mobile devices is estimated to reach US$1.5 billion in 2017 and is forecast to grow at a massive CAGR of 209% to around US$14 billion in 2020. Note that the 3D sensing module that is being discussed includes IR transmitter and receiver components.

The LED industry had quite a peaceful time in 1H17. Apart from a few M&As, the most-discussed technology would be Micro LED. Lots of high-tech giants worldwide have already started a series of R&D and the number of participants is getting bigger. The supply chain of Micro LED, although of limited mature technologies, is slowly shaping up. Here, LEDinside lists out major events and milestones made on the path of developing Micro LED in the first half of 2017.

Samsung Electronics announced it has installed its first ever commercial Cinema LED Screen at Lotte Cinema World Tower in Korea. Designed as a High Dynamic Range (HDR) LED theater display, the Cinema LED Screen creates a more captivating and vibrant viewing experience through next-generation picture quality and true-to-life audio thanks to collaboration with HARMAN Professional Solutions.

It has been spreading like crazy that in 2H17 three iPhone models- the high-end iPhone 8 featuring an OLED display, iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus that continue to use LCD displays- will hit the shelves. Latest sources leaked Apple might increase OLED display use in its products and all the three new iPhones to roll out in 2018 are likely to sport OLED displays. That possibly implies orders Apple places with LCD display providers Sharp and Japan Display Inc. (JDI) would plummet. It will be much of a shock to JDI which earns over 50% of its revenue from Apple’s phone screen demand.

Could the fire of war in the OLED display market be as heavy as that in the memory industry? Samsung Display is reported to construct the world’s largest OLED display factory. Such a massive production ramp-up is believed to be the Korean display maker’s move to make competitive prices of its OLED products to confront the growing threats from Chinese contenders.

It seems Apple is planning on finding one more source of OLED displays for its iPhone. The Korea Herald reported that last month Apple talked with LG Display to invest around USD 1.75-2.62 billion into its new OLED plant, called E6.

Samsung Electronics America, a global leader in hospitality solutions, is showcasing its latest innovations at HITEC 2017 simulating a hotel experience to showcase how Samsung display technology and innovations elevate engagement for a hotel hosting an event. The broad range of hospitality offerings featured at the booth include the latest in indoor and outdoor digital displays, LYNK™ REACH 4.0 with HMS 2.0, and mobile products built for the enterprise. The SMART Signage displays will also be powered by the Tizen 3.0 operating system, the latest version of Samsung’s cross-architecture open source software platform. The Samsung HITEC Booth will be open for visitors at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre Convention Center, Booth #701, from June 27-29, 2017.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced component solutions, today announced that it has begun mass producing a new mid-power LED package, the LM301B, which features the industry’s highest luminous efficacy of 220 lumens per watt. The package is well suited for a range of LED lighting applications including ambient lighting, downlights and most retrofit lamps.

WitsView, a division of TrendForce, reports shipments of LCD TV sets for the first quarter of 2017 came to 44.05 million units, a decrease of 31% from the prior quarter and a year-on-year decline of 8.4%. Poor sales results in China during the Chinese New Year holiday period was a major factor behind the year-on-year shipment drop.

At this year’s LIGHTFAIR International (LFI), the world's largest annual architectural and commercial lighting trade show and conference, Samsung Electronics has underlined its dedication to bringing innovative LED lighting solutions to the market. In particular, Jacob Tarn’s (Executive Vice President, LED Lighting Business, Samsung Electronics) presentation in front of 15 media people showed how Samsung's LED business has evolved from mere LED component business to full-blown end-to-end solutions ranging from LED packages to LED engine & Smart Lighting platform.  

Micro LED has become an obvious technology trend that even Samsung has started to eagerly tap into. According to international OLED publication OLED-info, Samsung is rumored to acquire Taiwan-based Micro LED manufacturer PlayNitride for up to US$150 million. Samsung would use the next generation display technology for VR applications and TVs in the future, the report said.

Finally, the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are here. After countless rumors and speculations, Samsung on Wednesday officially unveiled its next-generation Galaxy S flagship models. Although most of the specs have been leaked, the launch of the S8 series was still highly anticipated as it is Samsung’s first major event since the withdrawal of Note 7s.

Samsung Electronics will unveil its latest visual display blockbuster, the new Samsung Cinema Screen. As the world’s first High Dynamic Range LED theater display, the cinema screen delivers unprecedented picture quality and brings movies and other on-screen contents to life with higher vibrancy and accuracy.

A partnership between Samsung SmartThings and general lighting provider LEDVANCE sees two leading brands with a global footprint connecting to increase the interaction between lighting and other domestic activities. The result is the provision of an affordable and reliable smart home offering to UK consumers.

Samsung Electronics America Inc. showcased a new way to think about TV with its 2017 Home Entertainment product line. The company announced availability of its premium flagship QLED televisions and revealed a new lifestyle TV, The Frame. Samsung also highlighted its new AV lineup including the Sound+ soundbar and new UBD-M9500 Blu-ray player.

After the detrimental Galaxy Note 7 recall, Samsung is hoping the upcoming flagship Galaxy S8 lineup can revive its smartphone business. Meanwhile, rival Apple is prepared to launch its first OLED iPhone in September. Analysts are now saying the S8 may lose the battle against the next iPhone due to a lack of eye-catching selling points.

Chinese LED manufacturer, Elec-Tech International (H.K) Co, Ltd, recently signed a MoU with South Korea’s Samsung Electronics in Shenzhen, China.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. announced its second generation of D-series chip-on-board (COB) LED packages. The second generation features the industry’s highest light efficacy in COB lineups and is suitable for directional lighting applications such as multifaceted reflector (MR) bulbs, parabolic aluminized reflector (PAR) lamps, spotlights, downlights and high bay lights.

There have been rumors that Apple will switch to OLED screen for its iPhone 8. Those rumors seem to carry more weight after Apple reportedly ordered an additional 60 million OLED panels from Samsung, bring the total number to 160 million. This means that Samsung may become the main supplier for iPhone 8 displays.

The recent leak of Samsung’s new smartwatch-related patents including a full-length display smartwatch and a hangable smartwatch will definitely catch gadget lovers’ attention, reported AndroidHeadlines. The patents show more than two types of smartwatches with groundbreaking functions that have not been realized on the market before. Instead of remaking the crown of the watch, through those patents released, Samsung takes it up a notch and presents its creativity redeveloping the already existing concepts and designs.

Samsung Electronics is making it clear that quantum dot (QD) technology will be at the center front of its 2017 TV product lineup, reported ZDnet.

Samsung Electronics is taking the lead in forming a quantum dot (QD) TV alliance to counter OLED TV manufacturers, reported Korean media the Pulse.

A recent Nikkei Asian Review report claiming Innolux would be scaling back LCD supplies to competitors because of Foxconn group policy was refuted by the LCD panel subsidiary recently.

The upcoming iPhone 8 will overhaul basic form factor designs, gone will be the flat glass screen design to sport a curved plastic OLED display made by arch-rival Samsung, reported The Korean Herald.

Foxconn subsidiary Sharp will no longer be supplying LCD panels to Samsung Electronics starting in 2017, a report from The Japan Times cited industry sources saying.

Facing a severe operation crisis Korean conglomerate Samsung Electronic is considering to take the advice of hedge fund management firm Elliott Management Corporation to spin-off into two independent legal entities, The Seoul Economic Daily cited sources familiar with the matter.