TOKYO - Sharp Corp. said Tuesday it has agreed with Qualcomm Inc. to jointly develop next-generation display panels, with the U.S. telecommunication product maker investing up to 9.9 billion yen in Sharp through third-party allotments of new shares.

The energy-efficient display for smartphones and tablet computers will be developed by integrating Sharp's technology for advanced "Igzo" power-saving liquid crystal displays and technology called the micro electro-mechanical system, which is owned by Prixtronix Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm.