E Ink Holdings (aka the ePaper technology company) is collaborating with Sharp Corporation on future displays aimed at the digital signage market.

E Ink has revolutionized various markets — such as e-books, digital notepads and electronic shelf labels — with their proprietary digital paper technology that features the visibility and portability of paper in a digital display format that requires no power to display an image. Since entering the digital signage business in 2005, Sharp has become a market leader with their “Changing city scenery, changing office scenery” theme. They have done this not only through the development of displays but also through offering a one-stop solution for digital displays — from planning, production, consulting and system construction to installation and maintenance — that can fit any given installation location.

Three years ago, the companies began collaborating with the goal of combining their strengths to contribute to the carbon-neutral era by popularizing digital posters. The potential of these digital posters has been confirmed through marketing activities, such as exhibiting prototype displays at exhibitions in Japan and around the globe. As the first step in this collaboration, Sharp will release its 42-inch monochrome “ePoster” digital paper display in the Japanese market in early April 2023. In addition to having a power consumption of 0 W during display, it also uses light reflected from outside sources to display its image, providing optimal visibility even in bright environments. The display is also thin and lightweight. Using their expertise in installing and operating digital signage, along with their extensive service network across Japan, Sharp will offer digital poster options to replace paper posters in locations where digital signage has been previously difficult to install.