The US Department of Energy (DOE) had suspended the PAR 38 portion of the L Prize competition in which companies were working to develop an LED-based solid-state lighting (SSL) replacement for halogen lamps. But in the Lightfair International in May 2011, the DOE planed to reopen the competition with modified competition requirements.

The DOE launched the L Prize program to accelerate the development and adoption of SSL technology. Winners would receive cash awards and a lucrative market for the winning product through sponsors of the L Prize program and federal purchasing programs.

The DOE did not reveal any details into how it would change the PAR 38 program. But the market estimated that the suspension may have little impact on the program.

In the 60W replacement portion of the program, Philips was the only announced entrant. Philips lamp had begun stress testing in November and it had exceeded 3,000 hours followed the DOE and fourteen L Prize partners long-term testing. In the future, Philips lamp would be tested in hotel chandeliers and homes and so on.

Meanwhile, the DOE had formed a Technical Review Committee that would evaluate all of the reports and test results for the Philips lamp and any other entrant, but recently it had not revealed any timeline for publishing results on the Philips entry.