Samsung may have turned to South Korean rival LG to secure OLED panels for its TVs next year. Under the deal, LG will supply Samsung with 1 million panels in 2021 and 4 million panels in 2022.

The news came via South Korean broadcaster MTN and tech site Sammobile. What is surprising about this story is not that LG will supply the panels, but that it is the only company that manufactures this type of OLED display in large quantities. It is that Samsung is investigating OLED TVs for its own product range, rather than sticking with the proposed micro-LED or quantum dot OLED screens.

Samsung is reportedly planning its own production line of QD-OLED display technology that will fuse quantum dot displays with OLEDs to raise the brightness level OLEDs lose in this area when compared to LCD screens with full array backlighting. Increased brightness of OLEDs could improve HDR quality and extend the life of OLED panels.

If the rumors that QD-OLED displays are lagging behind are true, that may be why Samsung is trying to use LG's OLED panels to fill the gap. Samsung may have been planning both OLED and QD-OLED TVs all along, and they are likely to be developed in parallel with micro-LED panels, which could lead to an even more radical shift in display technology.

Given Samsung's plans to close its LCD production facility in Korea and move production of LCD-equipped TVs to China, it makes sense that the company is considering its next move.

For consumers, this is potentially great news. By selling more OLEDs, LG can finance production improvements that will create better screen technology. It will also lower the cost of OLED screens, as production efficiency can be improved over time.

Engadget cites TrendForce's claim that of the 25 million panels shipped last year, about 8 million were OLEDs; LG supplies panels to Philips in Europe and Vigeo in the U.S.

[14] LG is also a supplier of panels to Philips in the U.S. and to Sony in Europe. Sony, Panasonic, and of course LG itself are also in the OLED TV business.