Samsung's $13,000 OLED TVs Could be Faulty to the Tune of 70%

has begun selling curved OLED (organic light emitting diode) televisions in South Korea for $13,000.

Those TVs, which retail for more than half the price of a brand-new

Fusion, promise to deliver a more immersive viewing experience. Samsung is expected to ship the new 55-inch TV to other markets next month, but manufacturing issues could hinder the firm's global roll out. At the very least, Samsung's profits are in danger of being greatly diminished. According to

, 70 percent of Samsung's curved TVs have been faulty. This is being blamed on the unit's challenging manufacturing process. To make an OLED TV, Samsung must evenly spread organic light emitting materials across the display. That process is easier said than done, and is likely part of the reason for the TV's inflated cost. While OLED sets were expected to be expensive -- the first was an 11-inch display from

that

-- they might be priced too high to crack the Ultra HD market. This presents another potential problem Samsung may face: differentiating between OLEDs and TV sets that offer true Ultra HD capabilities. Ultra HD TVs (also known as 4K displays) offer a higher resolution (3,840 x 2,160) than their HD predecessors. Samsung has not stated how the resolution in its OLED sets compares to its Ultra HD displays, but it has revealed the prices. The company currently sells an

for $39,999. Sony, on the other hand, sells its 84-inch Ultra HD TV for

. The Japanese tech giant also sells a 65-inch model for $6,999 and a 55-inch version for $4,999. These prices suggest that Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry was correct in his belief that

would have to charge at least $25,000 for a Retina Display TV. "I think if they put a Retina Display [in the TV] and the main screen size is [at least] 50 inches, I think the price point of that device will go for more than $25,000," Chowdhry

in June 2012. "…Over the next five to seven years the price point of those displays should come down. But over the next three years, there's no way a Retina Display at 50 inches can be priced at $2,000." "The price point, if it were launched today, could be closer to $50,000," Chowdhry added.