Japan Display aims to double its automotive sales over the next five years as it looks to reduce its dependence on Apple and other smartphone manufacturers, according to reports in Japan citing company officials.

The company was established in 2012 as a result of the merger between the display businesses of Hitachi, Toshiba and Sony, with state backed Innovation Network of Japan its largest investor.

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Holger Gerkens, who was appointed head of automotive sisplays in April, said his division was targeting year on year growth of close to 10% over the next five years – outperforming a market that is expected to grow by just 7%-8% per year.

Automotive demand for electronic displays is growing as the fitment rate of navigation aids and infotainment features rises. Electronics also are increasingly displacing traditional analogue features such as speedometers in vehicle cockpits.

In the last financial year ending on 31 March, automotive sales accounted for just 15% of Japan Display's total revenues, or just over JPY100bn, while Apple accounted for almost half.

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The company reported a net loss of JPY247bn (US$2.2bn) for the year which it blamed on rising competition and a slowdown in smartphone screen sales. 

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Research by automotive consulting company IHS suggested Japan Display has a 19% share of the global market for automotive electronic displays, according to the reports, followed by South Korea's LG Display with just over 14%.

Gerkens also said the company's expertise in advanced technologies such as thin film transistors and touch screens will help maintain its global competitiveness in the fast moving smartphone market but he added that, in the automotive displays business, changes happen at a much slower pace.