Some time ago, there were reports on the Internet that Apple Inc. had filed a patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for developing a smartphone having a curved display. While this gave rise to speculations that the Cupertino tech titan was preparing to make curved display devices similar to the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, now a new report suggests that instead the company may be covertly working on a project involving flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panels.

IB Times quotes a report in Business Korea that claimed Apple will decide on flexible displays on its future iPhones. Speculations are rife that the South Korean tech manufacturer LG Electronics is endeavoring to persuade Apple to go for flexible displays. It is already established that LG Electronics possesses the capability to mass produce flexible OLED displays.

Mooreover, both these tech companies also own avant-garde research units, which may facilitate the process, provided the Cupertino-based tech titan really opts for flexible displays for its future smartphones.

Meanwhile, LG Electronics has taken a decision to transform one of the company's LCD lines factory located in its Gumi, South Korea, into an OLED line with a view to perk up the annual mass production capacity. It is reported that this line will be ready for mass production of OLED panels in 2017. This means that it is not possible for Apple to incorporate the new feature in its upcoming iPhone 7 or iPhone 6S variants, which are scheduled for 2015 launch.

According to the report, LG Electronics is already devices with flexible display, such as the G Flex 2. Actually, Apple is also said to be using the OLED panels supplied by LG for the Apple Watch. Business Korea claimed that a credible source told them that "it is very likely that the first flexible iPhone may be introduced in 2018, as Apple's top-tier display suppliers are working on it."