OLED lighting: the differentiation challenge

OLED displays are fast growing commercially and taking market share away from LCD displays. In contrast, OLED lighting is not doing nearly as well. It trails inorganic LEDs in almost every market segment, and therefore has to play catch up. OLEDs are likely to lose this battle in the medium term given that OLEDs are both under-performing and over-priced. The end game however is promising since customers will buy OLEDs if the cost and performance gap substantially narrows in the long term. Lighting companies therefore have little choice but to hedge their bets and stay the course for the long run, or else risk losing out in the decades to come. In the meantime however, the big questions are how to differentiate and how to create stepping stones which generate limited cash flows and accumulate production/marketing experience.