Samsung Display applies for US licence for Huawei exports

Samsung Display has applied for a licence from the US Department of Commerce to allow it to export technology to Huawei, people familiar with the matter told ZDNet.

Meanwhile, compatriot LG Display has not done so and will likely not apply for the licence in the short term, the sources said.

Samsung put in the official request on Wednesday. 

The company supplies OLED panels to Huawei, which are used in the Chinese tech giant's flagship smartphones. For Samsung Display, Huawei is its third most important customer after Apple and Samsung Electronics.

LG Display also supplies OLED panels for Huawei's smartphones and OLED TVs, but the volume it supplies is smaller when compared to Samsung.

The move comes as US sanctions against Huawei -- which prevents the Chinese company from acquiring components made with US technology -- are set to come into effect on September 15. These sanctions, originally announced in May, were then expanded in August to also include foreign-made chips that use US technology.

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which both supply Huawei with memory chips, are expected to halt their dealings with the Chinese company due to the August announcement affecting their products.

The display driver integrated circuits used in the OLED panels made by Samsung Display and LG Display both use US technology, the sources said.

Samsung Display and LG Display declined to comment on the matter.

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