As there are still minor flaws in Japan’s current regulations and standards on LED, Mr. Shimode further noted, varying qualities of LED lighting products can be seen on the market. Among others, LED-based products for replacement of traditional household fluorescent suspension lights, incandescent lamps and electric-discharge lamps should be especially examined, as the absence of relevant standards on LED replacement lighting for fluorescent lamps has resulted in the difference in brightness, power, light distribution and other performances of such products. Companies which aim to tap the Japanese market need to comply with Japan’s current Electrical Appliance and Material Safety Law, he suggested. And the new regulation is scheduled to be released in the second quarter of 2010, which will include further specifications on the product safety and performance measurements.

 

Currently, the price of LED lighting bulb for household use is 4,850 yen (~$55). Talking of the competition in this market, Mr. Shimode said it is actually a lowered price by the manufacturers who have absorbed a part of the production cost in order to meet the market demand. The price is estimated to drop by 50% after 2015, which is expected to boost the demand. As to the projection lamp, the LED-based products are currently priced at 25 thousand yen (~$285), still five times that of traditional alternatives. In the next two to three years however, the price is expected to be lowered to 10 thousand yen (~$115), which could increase its adoption in the market.

 

The total value of Japan's lighting market is around 500 billion yen (~$5.7 billion), according to Japan LED Association. The value of LED lighting segment is estimated to reach 165 billion yen (~$1.9 billion) in 2015, and further rise to 280 billion yen (~$3.2 billion) in 2018, surpassing that of traditional lighting. In terms of luminous efficacy, the efficacy for white LED will be improved to 160lm/w in 2015, and that of LED lamps will reach 130lm/w.