The Japanese government said Thursday it will support Sony Corp., Sharp Corp. and other domestic companies in joint development of super-thin TVs based on organic light-emitting diodes.

The group will aim to develop a 40-inch OLED display sometime after 2015, the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, or NEDO, said in a statement. NEDO is a Japan government agency that promotes research into new technologies.

OLEDs use light-emitting organic compounds similar to those found in fireflies. TVs using OLEDs

don’t require a backlight and can be made thinner than those based on traditional liquid crystal or plasma displays.

The technology is still young, but Japanese manufacturers are eager to get the jump on South Korean TV heavyweights such as Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Display Co.

Last year Sony introduced the first OLED TV for the commercial market — an 11-inch TV with a screen just 3 millimeters (0.12 inches) thick. […]

Orginal post by Top Tech News