The tl;dr version: Samsung is looking to protect its US market from the encroachment of cheaper panels from China as replacement screens for repair shops. Its actions have now given the USITC a chance to investigate BOE, adding to that company’s already run of bad news, including a staggering loss in sales.
Many wholesalers supply private repair shops with unmarked, cheaper panels imported from China to replace broken displays in devices like Apple’s iPhone and Samsung’s Galaxy series. Chinese panel makers, such as BOE, are believed to secretly sell panels not meeting quality standards to mobile phone manufacturers, which are then exported to the US and used for repairs.
In response to this situation, Samsung Display filed an OLED panel patent infringement lawsuit against US component makers (referenced in the quote below), prompting the US International Trade Commission (USITC) now to launch an investigation into BOE, China’s largest display company. This information looks like it is leaking from Samsung to the Korean press and it suggests that the USITC began its investigation on April 6, 2023.
The investigation is based on a complaint filed by Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. of Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Research America, Inc. of Mountain View, CA, and Samsung International, Inc. of Chula Vista, CA on December 5, 2022, as supplemented on December 19, 2022. The complaint alleges violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the importation into the United States and sale of components for certain environmentally-protected LCD digital displays and products containing same that infringe patents asserted by the complainants. The complainants request that the USITC issue a limited exclusion order and a cease and desist order.
USITC January 2023
