Sony delays intro of new OLED TV's

[Boyd Ostroff]

From today's Wall Street Journal: Sony, Stung by Losses, Delays Thin TV - WSJ.com

Sony Corp.'s next-generation television, an ultrathin model hailed by executives as a symbol of the company's technological comeback, is now a symbol of another kind: the dilemma facing its TV business.

Sony will delay the launch of its next organic light emitting diode, or OLED, television because mass producing the new displays would exacerbate losses at its TV division, according to people familiar with the matter.

Some interesting points in this article, I didn't realize Sony's TV business was hurting quite this bad.

Sony's TV division lost 127 billion yen ($1.34 billion) last fiscal year, representing more than half of the company's operating losses for the year, which ended March 31. Televisions accounted for 16.5% of Sony's 7.73 trillion yen in revenue.

Evidently they are having production problems with OLED as well.

Research firm DisplaySearch estimates Sony's production yield for its 11-inch OLED panel is below 60%, meaning at least four of every 10 panels its factories produce aren't up to par and can't be sold. Larger panels would likely introduce more difficulties. Sony declined to comment on its production yields

[Paul Cascio]

Too bad, because Sony has produced some great products throughout the years.

[Boyd Ostroff]

And I am sure they will continue to produce great products (I have a house full of them, including a new EX1). If you read that whole article, some analysts see this as a positive sign that Sony is facing their problems. Throwing away 40% of the panels they make and selling an 11 inch TV for $2,500 doesn't seem like a good business model.