On August 22 Canon announced it will build an R&D center for SED (Surface conduction Electron-emitter Display) flat panel technology in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. The company said it will invest 20.8 billion Yen in the new facility, which is expected to start operations in July 2006 with an initial workforce of 150 engineers.

 

Canon and its partner in the development of this next-generation panel technology, Toshiba, plan to introduce the first SED television in the market in the first half of 2006, after which mass production is forecasted to begin in 2007. SEDs have image quality comparable to CRT displays, while at the same time consuming less power than LCD panels and PDPs.