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Samsung buys Sony’s entire stake in LCD joint venture

WiiHosting — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:52:28 +0000

Samsung Electronics has agreed to buy out Sony’s entire stake in their liquid crystal display (LCD) joint venture.

The Korean electronics maker said it will pay Sony 1.08tn won ($939m; £600m) in cash for its stake.

The move comes as Sony has been restructuring its TV business, which has been making a loss for the past seven years.

Samsung, meanwhile, has gone on to become the world’s largest maker of TVs and flat screen panels.

The joint venture between two companies was established in 2004, when a boom in the global economy saw a surge in demand for consumer electronics.”Under the agreement, Samsung will acquire all of Sony’s shares of S-LCD Corporation, the two companies’ LCD panel manufacturing joint venture, making S-LCD a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung,” Samsung Electronics said in a statement.

However, things have take a dramatic turn in the last three years.

Triggered by the financial crisis in 2008, the subsequent global economic uncertainty has resulted in a slowdown in consumer demand.

At the same time, falling prices of LCD panels and flat screens have also hurt profit margins.

“In order to respond to such challenging conditions and to strengthen their respective market competitiveness, the two companies have agreed to shift to a new LCD panel business alliance,” Samsung said.

Sony will continue to get LCD panels from Samsung based on prevailing market prices, without having to operate a manufacturing facility.

For its part, Samsung said the full ownership of the venture will give it “heightened flexibility, speed and efficiency in both panel production and business operations”.

Analysts said the deal was the right move, especially for Sony.

“In terms of direction it is positive,” said Keita Wakabayashi, an analyst at Mito Securities in Tokyo.

“But if they are making a loss on the sale, one could ask why they didn’t make this decision sooner.”

LG’s 55-inch ‘world’s largest’ OLED HDTV panel is official, coming to CES 2012

WiiHosting — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:34:17 +0000

We only have a few more days left until the festivities trulykick off at CES 2012 in Las Vegas, but LG has already tipped its hand with a press release promising the “world’s largest” OLED panel for the show. We’ve seen smaller screens from LG before and it had already promised a 55-inch OLED HDTV for mid-2012, so this news is just another sign the company is ready to take its technology mainstream. LG’s tech uses white OLEDs overlaid with colors, which it claims makes for a lower error rate and clearer “ultra definition” screen, with more colors than standard LCDs. Check after the break for one more promo pic of LG’s super skinny 5mm prototype, we’ll get a better look at it (and the inevitable competition from Korean rival Samsung) at the company’s booth January 9th.

Hacked Powermat lets you touch-to-charge your iPhone in stop-and-go traffic

WiiHosting — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:21:42 +0000

When you’re cruising down the highway, you’ve got much better things to do than fiddling with iPhone cables — like, you know, texting and playing Angry Birds. Thankfully, this handy little Powermat hack brings the fun of wireless charging to the comfort of your mobile office, to help free up your hands a bit — at least until Siri learns how to steer. Video after the break and instructions in the source link — but please, pull over to the side of the road before attempting to install.

‘Anonymous’ hackers hit US security firm Stratfor

WiiHosting — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:06:09 +0000

The activist hacker group Anonymous says it has stolen thousands of emails, passwords and credit card details from a US-based security think-tank.

The hackers claim they were able to obtain the information because the company, Stratfor, did not encrypt it.

The Austin-based company says it has now suspended the operation on its servers and email.They say Stratfor’s clients include the US defence department, law enforcement agencies and media organisations.

An alleged member of Anonymous posted an online message, claiming that the group had used Stratfor clients’ credit card details to make “over a million dollars” in donations to different charities.

Stratfor later announced that it would keep its email and servers suspended for some time.

It also said the disclosure was “merely a list of some of the members that have purchased our publications and does not comprise a list of individuals or entities that have a relationship with Stratfor”.

Anonymous has previously claimed responsibility for cyber attacks on financial institutions seen as enemies of the whistleblowing website Wikileaks.

Apple kicks off 12 Days of iTunes, offers a dozen freebies to last into 2012

WiiHosting — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 23:02:35 +0000

Find yourself something Apple-flavored underneath the Christmas tree yesterday? Need some gentle coaxing into using iTunes? Well, you’re in luck; Cupertino’s annual download giveaway starts today and runs through January 6th. The free gifts kick off with some Coldplay tracks and videos from the band’s latest Apple-sponsored festival appearance. But don’t let that put you off; we expect to see more music, some apps and even books over the next few days. Each one’s available for just 24 hours, so it could be worth checking the dedicated app daily. It’s up for grabs at the link below.

Update: The app appears to be Europe-only at the moment. No news just yet on whether a US edition will make an appearance later today. Let us know in the comments if you’re able to grab the free gifts.