Universal Display Corp. (UDC) and Sumitomo Chemical have signed a new OLED Technology License Agreement, granting Sumitomo non-exclusive license rights to manufacture and sell solution-processed OLED lighting products. The agreement will last for the life of UDC’s relevant IP rights.
Sumitomo will use the licensed Universal PHOLED technology to increase the luminous efficacy of its polymer OLED (P-OLED) lighting panels, which it has been developing for some time. The company planned to begin mass production in early 2014, but this did not materialise.
Comment
Sumitomo is also developing P-OLED materials for display applications, but these are not covered by the agreement. (TA)
UDC and Sumitomo were, effectively, competitors when Sumitomo bought CDT (Display Monitor Vol 14 No 31) – for the company to license UDC materials is good for UDC. Back a large number of years, there were four broad OLED technologies, short molecule and long molecule with fluorescence and phosphorescence (which is more efficient). UDC covered the short molecule materials, developing on work from Kodak. CDT was studying long molecule fluorescence, while Oxford -based Opsys was developing long molecule phosphorescent materials. In 2003, CDT bought Opsys, and then Sumitomo bought CDT in 2007, so Sumitomo had the long molecule materials. Sumitomo has been in battles with UDC over patents. The fact that Sumitomo has now licensed the UDC patents suggests that UDC has really got to a strong position. (BR)
