Due to unexpectedly poor market performance and low yield rate, Taiwanese OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) maker, Opto Tech, has cut more than half of its OLED production line workforce to 200. Its OLED mass production, scheduled to happen at the end of 2004, is also being halted indefinitely. Opto Tech claims that it will process no more OLED contracts once shipments for existing orders have been completed.

 

Up to now, Opto Tech's OLED yield rate has not been able to break through the 30% mark, and the plan to achieve six OLED production lines by November 2004 has been aborted. The company currently owns two OLED lines.

 

Opto Tech started out as a maker of LED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) chips. Having signed cooperation contracts with Nichia in August to produce materials for InGaN LED, and with Harvatek expressing interest to adopt its blue LED chips, Opto will be turning back to focus on its LED business.

 

Two other Taiwanese OLED makers, RiTdisplay and Univision, are carrying on with their expansion plans. RiTdisplay hopes to increase to seven production lines by early 2005 to reach over one million units. Univision, with a 20,000 to 30,000 unit monthly capacity, is still constructing its second production line, to be completed by 2005.