What Display Daily thinks: In simple terms, if the DOD sanctions Chinese display makers it won’t make one bit of difference to them. Second of all, it is an election year and nothing screams patriotic fervor for politicians than tilting at foreign windmills.
The only thing that we can surmise here is that the Korean display industry is at a loss as to what to do against Chinese competition. And, seeing as the only competition against the Chinese is Korean, it doesn’t bode well for the rest of us if one of the main protagonists is aimlessly wandering around the ring looking for a helping hand.
By US standards, Chine’s playing with a loaded deck when it comes to competitive practices simply because of government support, but the US could do as much if it had a display industry. Every time someone decries government intervention in China they should look at how often the US has been willing to intervene to prop up failing companies if they saw some strategic or political benefit. The Korean government doesn’t do too badly supporting its display industry but hasn’t really got much to offer in terms of its own domestic market so, it has less clout.
There is no regulatory help here that can change the course of the Chinese display industry. That may be what Korea’s display industry fears the most.
Nothing to see here, folks, move it along.
The Elec Goes Sanctions Crazy
The ongoing tension between the United States and China regarding technological dominance has prompted significant coverage in The Elec, but there was a spike in coverage recently over the potential sanctions against Chinese display manufacturers, BOE and Tianma.
In response to the potential sanctions, both BOE and Tianma have expressed that the request to add them to the US Department of Defense’s blacklist is still merely a suggestion. The Elec acknowledges that they downplayed the immediate impact on their operations but says that being blacklisted could affect their ability to secure new contracts and attract investments from US entities.
Other than coverging the Congressman’s letter to the DOD, the Elec also covers the musings of the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF) suggesting a more assertive stance by the US government against China’s display industry.
The Elec also talks about how the Korea Display Industry Association (KDIA) has been closely monitoring the situation. KDIA chairman Choi Joo-seon remarked that it is too early to predict the sanctions’ impact but indicated that if they were enacted, Korean display makers might stand to benefit.
Other than being the primary western source for mainstream Korean display industry business news, The Elec also acts as a forum for the Korean display industry, its companies, and associations, to beat the drum for political and regulatory support. So, it comes as no surprise that a simple letter from a US congressman, with little or no real impetus for action, has created such a storm in a teacup. As Barry Young said in his open letter to the DOD, it would be a lot easier if the US just put some money into building a US factor to supply the displays the department needed localy because they don’t buy that much and it ain’t that difficult to make the kind of displays they want.
