Qualcomm has won a first deal for its new Mirasol display technology by supplying the South Korean Kyobo Book Center's new e-reader.

Qualcomm, the world's largest wireless chip maker, has said the new technology would be key to reducing battery drain in smartphones, which have increasingly high power requirements as consumers use them for Web surfing or watching videos.

Qualcomm and Kyobo said on Tuesday the Kyobo e-Reader, featuring a 5.7 inches Mirasol display, allows for weeks of reading without charging under typical usage.

This is a very important validation point for Qualcomm. It shows that there are volume categories that Mirasol can address, said CCS Insight analyst John Jackson.

Qualcomm said earlier this month its Mirasol division -- its entry to the display industry -- would incur an operating loss of more than $300 million for its fiscal year 2012 as it ramps up production.

Williams Financial analyst Cody Acree said that it was good news that the company was able to announce a customer and that the product should see a lot of demand as consumers turn increasingly to devices like tablet computers and e-readers.

It's obviously a high growth market and it's a very large market. The only question is that it's a fairly fluid market, he said. There are a lot of R&D efforts in display. There are very good efforts out there today.

Qualcomm's display technology rivals include Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Corning Corp.

(Reporting By Tarmo Virki and Sinead Carew; Editing by David Cowell)

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