Plastic Logic

Plastic Logic
Name	Plastic Logic
Type	Private
Industry	Electronics
Founded	2000
Founders	Richard Friend; Henning Sirringhaus; David Mowbray
Headquarters	Cambridge, United Kingdom; Palo Alto, California, United States
Key people	Indro Mukerjee; Dr. Ulf Hansson; Richard Friend
Products	Flexible displays; electronic readers; microelectronic components

Plastic Logic is a developer of flexible electronic display technology based on organic thin-film transistor arrays and electrophoretic imaging. The company has roots in academic research from the University of Cambridge and collaborations with institutions such as the University of Oxford, and it has engaged with corporations including Intel, Samsung, and Qualcomm for technology transfer and commercialization. Plastic Logic pursued commercialization through offices in Cambridge and Palo Alto, interacting with investors like AME Cloud Ventures and strategic partners including News Corporation and Toshiba.

History

Plastic Logic emerged from research groups at the University of Cambridge and the Cavendish Laboratory associated with physicists and materials scientists involved with the Cavendish Laboratory, the Cambridge University Engineering Department, and the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research. Founders with links to the University of Cambridge and the University of Cambridge Department of Physics transitioned prototypes to industry during the early 2000s, attracting venture capital from firms similar to Apricot Capital and venture arms of corporations such as Hewlett-Packard and News Corporation. The company announced products and partnerships at trade events like the Consumer Electronics Show and Interpack, and navigated corporate developments in the context of mergers and acquisitions involving companies such as Sony and Toshiba. Leadership changes involved executives who had worked at IBM, Nokia, and Microsoft, while spinouts and collaborations connected Plastic Logic to research centers like the Cambridge Display Technology group and national laboratories including the National Physical Laboratory.

Technology and Manufacturing

The core technology combined organic semiconductors studied at institutions like the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London with printing and deposition techniques developed in collaboration with engineering groups at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University. Manufacturing approaches referenced thin-film transistor processes comparable to developments at Intel and ARM, while substrate handling borrowed methods from the flexible electronics work at DuPont and 3M. Roll-to-roll processing concepts were informed by implementations at companies such as Xerox PARC and BASF, and lithographic patterning techniques echoed practices from ASML and Nikon. Equipment suppliers and foundries in the supply chain included manufacturers akin to Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, and KLA-Tencor, and packaging strategies used materials from companies such as Corning and Toppan Printing.

Products and Applications

Product demonstrations targeted segments including e-readers, industrial displays, wearable devices, and point-of-sale systems, aiming at markets served by companies like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Samsung Electronics, and Sony. Use cases extended to logistics and enterprise deployments similar to implementations by Siemens, Honeywell, and Zebra Technologies, and to automotive interfaces as seen in projects by Ford, BMW, and Toyota. Solutions were pitched to publishers and media groups including The New York Times, News Corp, and Pearson for digital newspaper and textbook replacements, and to healthcare providers analogous to partnerships with GE Healthcare and Philips for clinical displays. Prototype devices were showcased alongside products from Apple, Microsoft, and Google at industry events.

Corporate Structure and Funding

Corporate governance included boards and advisory panels with executives and investors who had prior roles at firms like Kleiner Perkins, Sequoia Capital, and Accel Partners, and with legal counsel experienced in transactions for companies such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Funding rounds involved participation from corporate venture arms and private equity similar to Temasek, SoftBank, and Mubadala, and grants or support linked to innovation agencies comparable to Innovate UK and the European Investment Bank. Strategic alliances with electronics firms paralleled relationships observed between Toshiba and NEC, while licensing negotiations reflected practices used by Qualcomm and ARM Holdings.

Commercialization and Market Impact

Commercial efforts confronted competition from e-ink display suppliers such as E Ink Corporation and semiconductor incumbents including Intel and Samsung, and from portable device manufacturers like Apple and Amazon. Market adoption patterns were shaped by consumer electronics trends highlighted at the Mobile World Congress and IFA trade shows, and by distribution channels used by retailers such as Best Buy and Fnac. The company’s trajectory influenced academic-industry technology transfer debates at venues like the Royal Society and OECD forums, and prompted comparative analysis in publications including Nature, IEEE journals, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Research and Development

R&D programs built on foundational work by researchers affiliated with institutions such as the University of Cambridge, the Max Planck Society, and the Cavendish Laboratory, and involved collaborations with corporate labs similar to Bell Labs and Hitachi Research. Research topics included organic chemistry contributions from groups at Imperial College London, charge transport studies connected to the British Heart Foundation-funded work, and device physics resonant with seminars at the American Physical Society and Materials Research Society. Partnerships for prototyping and evaluation involved testing facilities akin to those at Sandia National Laboratories and NIST, with peer-reviewed outputs published in journals comparable to Advanced Materials and Applied Physics Letters.

Intellectual Property and Legal Issues

The company’s IP portfolio encompassed patents in organic thin-film transistors, flexible substrates, and electrophoretic imaging, with filings influenced by prosecution practices at law firms representing clients like IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and Philips. Legal matters touched on licensing negotiations similar to disputes involving Nokia and Ericsson, and commercial agreements echoing precedent from patent litigation handled by courts such as the United States District Court for the Northern District of California and the High Court of Justice in London. Cross-licensing and technology transfer arrangements paralleled transactions executed by companies including ARM Holdings and Imec.

Category:Electronics companies of the United Kingdom Category:Technology companies established in 2000