Samsung, Sony deny report on LCD investment

SEOUL/TOKYO: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and its flat-screen partner Sony Corp on Wednesday denied a newspaper report they had agreed to make another joint investment, worth $3 billion, in their LCD-producing capacity.

South Korea's Donga Ilbo reported on Wednesday, without citing sources, that Samsung and Sony would make the investment in their liquid crystal display (LCD) joint venture, S-LCD, to build a next-generation production line.

"The report is groundless," said James Chung, a Samsung spokesman. A Sony spokeswoman said the report was not true, without elaborating.

Samsung, the world's biggest maker of LCD screens and TVs, has been collaborating with Sony in panel making despite their rivalry in the television business. Sony is the No.2 LCD TV maker behind Samsung.

In S-LCD's latest investment, the joint venture spent about 1.8 trillion won ($1.60 billion) to build a new LCD production line, which started operations last year.

Samsung shares were down 0.7 per cent as of 0216 GMT, compared with a 1.1 percent fall in the wider market. Sony gained 1.7 per cent, outperforming the Tokyo stock market's electrical machinery index, which lost 0.8 per cent.