OSAKA (Kyodo) Sharp Corp. will tie up with Taiwan's Chimei Innolux Corp. to mutually supply liquid crystal display panels for television sets starting this year, industry sources said Friday.
The electronics maker is expected to provide Chimei with large LCD panels and technology for cutting the electric power consumption of LCD panels, while procuring inexpensive midsize panels from the major Taiwan LCD manufacturer, the sources said.
In the LCD panel market, price competition has become increasingly fierce, with South Korean manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics Co., taking advantage of the weakening of the nation's currency to sell their products at lower prices outside the country.
As the yen remains strong, Sharp is apparently aiming to strengthen its cost-competitiveness by cooperating with the Taiwan firm. Chimei Innolux is a group firm of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., the world's largest make-to-order electronics manufacturer.