In a development that marks the end of one of the display industry’s most significant legal battles, Samsung Display and China’s BOE Technology have agreed to settle all ongoing lawsuits involving OLED patents and alleged trade-secret theft. The settlement concludes a drawn-out, three-year conflict between the two major display suppliers, both of which play critical roles in Apple’s global production chain.
The dispute began in December 2022, when Samsung Display filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), accusing BOE of infringing its OLED technology patents. Samsung escalated matters in October 2023, alleging that BOE had illegally obtained trade secrets by poaching employees with access to confidential OLED manufacturing processes.
These accusations struck at the heart of Samsung’s OLED dominance a field in which it has invested billions over two decades.
The tensions peaked in March 2025, when the ITC ruled that BOE had infringed three of Samsung’s patents. A separate preliminary ruling in July 2025 concluded that BOE had misappropriated Samsung’s OLED trade secrets.
The ITC even recommended banning BOE from exporting OLED panels to the United States for nearly 15 years a potentially devastating blow for the Chinese manufacturer, which ranks among the world’s largest suppliers of LCD and OLED displays.
Now, both companies appear to have stepped back from further confrontation. Samsung Display confirmed that both sides have agreed to withdraw all pending legal actions and emphasized that “fair technological competition is essential for the advancement of the display industry.”
While Samsung declined to comment on reports that BOE may pay patent royalties as part of the settlement, industry observers believe some form of compensation is likely given the ITC findings.
The settlement not only helps BOE avoid what could have been a severe export ban but also provides Samsung with a strengthened position in enforcing its intellectual property globally. The dispute has also cast renewed attention on concerns about IP theft in the tech sector.
In 2024, a former Samsung Display engineer was sentenced to six years in prison for leaking OLED technology worth $24.5 million to China. More recently, South Korean authorities began investigating two LG Display employees over similar allegations.
As global tech companies increasingly work to diversify their supply chains and reduce reliance on China, this settlement serves as a critical reminder of the high stakes surrounding advanced display technologies. For now, both Samsung Display and BOE appear ready to move forward but the broader conversation around IP protection in the display industry is far from over.
