The WSJ is reporting that, slightly close to what was rumored, market leaders
Sharp and Sony are getting hitched on a joint LCD HDTV panel production business -- not unlike how LG and Philips have LG Display (formerly LG.Philips LCD). While the venture has yet to be named (we'll call it Sharp.Sony for now, why not?), the $3.5 billion plant is under construction right now in Sakai, and is due to open its doors in March 2010 where it will produce as many as 72,000 HDTVs per month. Sharp is slated to own two-thirds of the business with Sony owning the remaining third. [Warning: subscription req'd for read link]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ken @ Feb 26th 2008 2:22AM
Lets do some math:
Cost of the factory (***NOT*** including labor, materials, utilities, maintenance, etc.) is $3,500,000,000.
72,000 HDTV's/month, lets assume they get 5 years out of the factory (before MAJOR retrofitting, probably sooner, I am giving them the benefit of the doubt).
So that is 4,320,000 HDTV's over the 5 years.
4,320,000 / $3,500,000,000 = $810 per panel
That is $810 per panel ***JUST*** to pay for the factory. This is BEFORE the labor costs, cost of materials, maintenance, and everything thing else - which is huge.
THIS IS NOT EVEN COUNTING THE TV ITSELF!
Either I suck at math (you know there the [-] button is...), or I am missing something.
88thmark @ Feb 26th 2008 1:55PM
3.5 billion is chump change, considering both companies are putting in the cash.
SimbaDogg @ Feb 26th 2008 4:22PM
if you really think any company builds a large scale factory for short term projects. you're crazy. and 5 years is very very very short term. a factory of this scale is easily up for the 20+ yr bid. brush up on your finance courses, 5 years...never that short.
HDpurist @ Feb 27th 2008 12:11AM
So what does this mean for the Samsung-Sony manufacturing venture? Is Samsung finally going solo with their LCDs?