[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Display, an affiliate of Samsung Electronics, is expected to separate its liquid-crystal display and organic light-emitting diode business divisions in a planned reshuffle next week, the Electronic Times reported on July 5.

This is the first reshuffle since Samsung Electronics vice chairman and CEO Kwon Oh-hyun took the helm of the display business division in April, hinting at the company’s strategic shift toward more lucrative OLED. 

The company’s LCD and OLED business divisions have been operated separately but quality control and module assembly organizations are shared. The company will announce a more detailed reshuffle plan on July 15, the newspaper said.

The company is also expected to relocate some employees. Those working at LCD development especially for laptops and monitors are likely to be relocated to the OLED division.

Samsung has reduced its LCD production lines and equipment in recent years to pour more resources into OLED. About the business separation, some sources note the possibility of Samsung spinning off the LCD business completely.

In the first quarter this year, Samsung Display posted an operating loss of 270 billion won (US$232.2 million), hit hard by cheaper LCDs from its Chinese rivals. Its robust OLED sales could fill up this loss.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)