DigiLens, a U.S.-based HUD device developer, announced that it has received an investment from AR software company Niantic and Diamond Edge Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation (MCHC) in its Series C funding round. With the investment, DigiLens will continue its development in holographic AR displays for automobile, consumer and other applications. With its technology in holographic waveguide displays, DigiLens provides proprietary nanomaterials and core technologies for AR displays. The company aims to create...

Taiwanese LED packager Edison Opto has shifted its business focus from LED lighting to LED automotive lighting modules due to the decreasing profit of its conventional lighting business. The portfolio adjustment has come into effect with the company reporting the highest profit margin in the past five year despite its lukewarm revenue performance. (Image: Edison Opto) Edison Opto posted a revenue of NT$ 639 million (US$ 20.71 million) for 3Q18 with on quarter decrease of 14% and on year decrease of 7.4%. However, the quarterly profit margin came to the highest p...

Kulicke and Soffa (K&S) has announced its financial results of the fourth quarter and its fiscal 2018 ended September 29, 2018. The Company’s revenue for the fourth quarter was US$184.8 million and the full year revenue was US$889.1 million. Dr. Fusen Chen, Kulicke & Soffa's President and CEO, stated, “Over the past two years, our organizational redesign and development efforts have diversified our business and provided access to several new and promising growth opportunities. Throughout fiscal year 2018, these fundamental improvements resul...

SemiLEDs Corporation, a developer and manufacturer of LED chips and LED components, has posted its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of fiscal year 2018, ended August 31, 2018. (Image: SemiLEDs) Revenues for the fourth quarter and for the third quarter of fiscal 2018 were both approximately US$2.0 million. GAAP net loss attributable to SemiLEDs stockholders for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 was US$1.1 million, compared to a loss of $326 thousand in the third quarter of 2018, or a net loss of US$0.32 per diluted share, compared to...

Orion Energy Systems reported results for the second quarter of its fiscal 2019 ended September 30, 2018. The company posted a revenue of US$ 13.2 million for 2Q19, down14.3% YoY and 4% QoQ due to lower sales through the distribution channel and delays of certain projects. Gross margin declined to 19.3% in 2Q19, compared to 23.5% in 2Q18. According to Orion, the business in the U.S. is progressing significantly with its automotive, retail and public sector customers. With its capability to provide tailored LED lighting solutions, the growth momentum of Orion com...

As the peak season has passed, Taiwanese Panel producer AUO has reported a revenue drop for October. Meanwhile there are rumors saying that the Foxconn Group plans to divide and restructure its panel business. AU Optronics (AUO) posted its consolidated revenue of NT$ 26.49 billion (US$ 861.59 million) for October which dropped by 3.4% MoM and 3.4% YoY. For the third quarter of 2018, the revenue was NT$81.04 billion (US$ 2.64 billion), up by 8% QoQ. According to AUO, the amount of shipment for large size panels including TVs, monitors and notebook...

Osram has announced the financial results of fiscal 2018 and the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 and addressed that it will focus on digitalization and high-growth markets.

General Electric (GE) has begun organization restructure and unveiled the intention to sell its lighting business since a year ago. In July 2018, the company has scheduled the selling plan to be in the end of the year. Finally, GE announced on November 6th that it has signed a proposed agreement to sell its Current, powered by GE business to American Industrial Partner (AIP)

The fourth quarter is usually the low season in the LED industry. As business growth slows down, LED producer Epistar has announced plans to restructure the company to efficiently manage resources for reducing operation cost. Meanwhile, Lextar has speeded up the process of product development for new applications. Epistar has announced the merger of four of its subsidiaries including Epistar JV Holding (BVI), UEC Investment, HUGA Holding (BVI) and Bee Rich Corporation. The goal of the merge is to productively distribute the resources of the company and r...

LG and Samsung have been competing in the field of display, showcasing their novel display technology in international fairs one after another. Samsung revealed “the Wall,” the 146-inch Micro LED modular TV at the CES event in the beginning of the year and by the end of August, LG introduced its 173-inch Micro LED TV at the IFA. Aside from Micro LED, the two companies also fought against each other in the high-end TV market by releasing large sized OLED TVs. The two Korean electronics giants have both revealed their financial results fo...

Signify has reported its results for the third quarter of 2018. The sales for 3Q18 came to EUR 1.6 billion (US$ 1.82 billion), with an on-year drop of 5.3 percent. The sales of LED-based products represented 70% of total sales and grew by 0.1% compared to 3Q17. Its net income was EUR 93 million (US$ 105.85 million), which dropped by 15.1% YoY.

Taiwanese panel producer Innolux has announced the restructuring of the company’s organization. Robert Shiao, the prior president of the company, has become Vice Chairman. James Yang was promoted as President from Vice President and will oversee the business unit, operation unit and manufacturer unit of Innolux. According to Jim Hung, Chairman of Innolux, the new management team would strengthen the flexibility and competitiveness of the company.

With the orders of backlight products and fine pitch displays, Epistar has reached the highest monthly revenue of NT$ 1.93 billion (US$ 62.38 million) of the year in September with an increase of 1.36% MoM and a decrease of 22% YoY. 

Lextar has reported revenue drop in September due to its continuous product adjustments. The company registered a revenue of NT$ 98 million (US$ 3.17 million) for September with a decrease of 6.7% YoY. 

Automotive LED lighting module producer Laster Tech has reported continuous shipment of its automotive lighting modules even during the off-peak season for automakers. The company has registered a revenue of NT$ 359 million (US$ 11.64 million) for August with an increase of 17.15% YoY and 0.13% MoM. 

LED packaging company Everlight has announced revenue of NT$2.21 billion (US$ 71.69 million) for August, up by 9.26% MoM and down by 5.83% YoY. 

The market scale of LED lighting has continued to grow with the driving forces from the emerging market and the transition of traditional lighting to LED lighting. The expanding market has attracted many companies to join, leading to escalating competition and sliding profit. Many LED companies have thus decided to quit their lighting business or to reorganize their strategies. 

Taiwan-based LED auto lamp modules and components manufacturer EOI (Excellence Optoelectronics Inc) has reported high profit margin for 1H18 which was pushed by the strong demands of LED automotive lamps in the North American market.

Innolux, the Taiwanese panel maker, has announced a revenue for July of NT$ 25.2 billion (US$ 819.58 million) with an increase of 1.6% MoM and a decrease of 0.8% YoY. 

In the beginning of 3Q18, Epistar’s revenue report did not match its expectation. The company registered a revenue of NT$ 1.81 billion (US$ 58.87 million) for July, down by 0.1% MoM and 19.36% YoY.

Lextar reported its financial report for the second quarter of 2018 with a consolidated revenue of NT$ 2.98 billion (US$ 97.24 million), up by 12.6% QoQ. The net profit came to NT$ 50 million (US$ 1.63 million). For the first half of the year, the revenue was NT$ 5.63 billion (US$ 183.71 million) with a decrease of 8.8 YoY, while the net profit dropped by 75.5% to NT$ 12 million (US$ 391,572). 

LED IC driver manufacturer Macroblock registered a revenue of NT$ 245 million (US$ 7.99 million) for July, down by 9.97% MoM, which was not in line with the expectation of the peak quarter. Macroblock indicated that the trade war between the U.S. and China has impacts on the company’s orders.

Automotive LED module producer Laster Tech has registered a revenue of NT$ 358 million (US$ 11.68 million), up by 45.82% YoY, hitting record high levels. 

Canadian automotive components supplier Magna has reported its net income of the second quarter with a growth of 13% YoY to US$636 million. Despite the growth, the company has adjusted its outlook for 2018 in response to tariffs. 

During the second quarter of this year, many panel producers reported profit drop due to oversupply. However, as the third quarter began, AUO has announced its increased revenue for July with panel price bouncing back and rising shipments. 

LED vertical integration manufacturer Lextar Electronics registered a revenue of NT$ 950 million (US$ 31 million) for July, up by 4.3% MoM and down by 15% YoY. The company said it has adjusted its product portfolio by radically reducing the share of general lighting products and targeting customized LED lighting modules and high power LED for special applications.

Lighting companies have released updates about their financial results and reported their outlook for the second half of 2018.

In the past few weeks, the LED industry has been active with several worldwide leading brands reporting their financial results of the second quarter and the first half of 2018 as well as big names announcing news of company reconstruction. LEDinside highlights the news for our readers to quickly follow up the industry updates. 

Unity Opto, a Taiwan-based LED packaging company, has announced the issuance of up to 120 million shares for private placement as approved by its shareholders to introduce strategic partners. The Taiwanese OEM Wistron, reported its investment in Unity Opto through its subsidiary, ArFlex.

Panel makers in Asia have been struggling with the oversupply of LCD products and have reported profit drop in the second quarter of 2018 compared to last quarter and last year.