iPhone 8 Rumors Already Starting

It hasn't been a full month since Apple Inc. AAPL started selling its new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, yet iPhone 8 speculations and rumors are now making their rounds.

According to a Bloomberg report, Apple is in talks with Sharp, who may be tasked with displaying organic LED displays for future iPhone devices. Coincident or not, Sharp separately announced on Friday it will invest 57.4 billion yen, or more than half a billion dollars in production facilities for the development of OLED.

Sharp told Bloomberg its announcement is part of a 200 billion yen investment it has already committed towards OLED technology. However, the company hinted that Friday's investment will be allocated towards OLED displays for smartphone customers - who were not named.

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Amir Anvarzadeh, head of Japanese equity sales at BGC Partners, told Bloomberg that Apple has "unofficially or as a nod" encouraged Sharp to spearhead an investment in OLED facilities. Apple accounts for around 27 percent of Sharp's total revenue.

"Apple's general strategy is to increase the competition on the supply side, and dilute the risk exposure to one company," Anvarzadeh also said.

Sharp's Tokyo-listed stock gained more than 2 percent after announcing its investment but closed its trading session flat at 135.00 yen. The stock has gained 8 percent since the start of 2016, but is still lower by more than 7 percent over the past year.