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LG Display reports first profit in 7 quarters thanks to work-from-home shift
- LG Display has recorded its first profitable quarter since Q4 2018.
- The company attributed the results to the work-from-home shift.
- LG Display has also signed a new partnership with Disney’s StudioLAB.
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in loads of tech companies suffering with reduced shipments and a downturn in financial results. But LG Display seems to have bucked this trend by actually scoring its first profitable quarter since Q4 2018.
The display manufacturer confirmed its Q3 2020 results today, declaring revenue of 6.73 trillion Korean won (~$5.93 billion) compared to 5.3 trillion won (~$4.63 billion) in the previous quarter and 5.8 trillion won (~$5.1 billion) a year ago.
LG Display also reported operating profit of 164 billion won (~$144.6 million), as opposed to a 517 billion won (~$455.9 million) loss in Q2 2020 and a 436 billion won (~$384.5 million) loss in Q3 2019.
The display manufacturer specifically pointed to the work-from-home trend during the pandemic, as well as a few other reasons:
The revenue increase of 27% quarter-on-quarter was driven by a continuous rise in panel shipments for IT products thanks to the growing trends of working from home and online schooling, as well as an increased supply of panels for new mobile products from strategic customers, strong global TV sales, and the start of full-scale mass-production at the company’s OLED panel production plant in Guangzhou, China.
The firm noted that displays for “IT devices” accounted for 43% of the revenue during Q3 2020, followed by “mobile and other devices (29%), and TV panels (28%).
LG Display is also aiming high for the rest of the year, saying it expects shipments of large OLED panels to double in the second half of the year compared to the first half. This is due to the aforementioned OLED TV panel production plant.
The news of LG Display’s encouraging recent performance comes alongside a newly-announced partnership with Disney’s StudioLab for OLED products. It’s still unclear what we’ll see as a result, but the companies note that the duo will develop “unmatched” viewing experiences. These will come via both professional and consumer displays that provide consumers with “fun, interactive and immersive experiences tied to the Studios’ film releases.” Furthermore, the brands note that LG’s 88-inch 8K OLED TVs are already being used by Marvel Studios for “visual effects review and color finishing.” Things are definitely looking up.