In order to improve energy efficiency, the Zimbabwe government has enacted a new law banning all manufacture, trade and use of incandescent bulbs. The ban will come into effect on May 1st. It is estimated to save up to 40 megawatts of electricity.

Lighting Science®, a specialist in next-generation LED lighting solutions and a pioneer in providing retail private label LED solutions, has announced a joint venture with Chinese LED manufacturer and lighting company MLS Co., Ltd.

Starting from 1st May 2016, Energy Efficiency Certificate and Label must be included as requirements for shipments of lighting products to Saudi Arabia under the scope of SASO 2870. Now importers and manufacturers have to comply with this standard and register with SASO. WELLMAX as the strategic partner with the leading testing and certification institute SGS can help you with applying the EEI label, so your business will not be affected by this new regulation.

Regarding the performance of LED industry in Taiwan, due to low season, demand for InGan (blue) LEDs has dropped in the first quarter, while that of AlINGap (red) LEDs is still strong. Thus, institutional investors estimate that business operations of LED manufacturers will significantly improve in the second quarter. For fiscal 2017, the overall industry profitability is expected to increase, and price competition in the blue LED segment will be less intense. 

Light Polymers, a nanochemistry startup with R&D operations in Silicon Valley, Taiwan and Korea, recently announced a Series A investment of $24.3 million led by a consortium of private investors.

Taiwan-based Integrated Service Technology (iST), a joint venture of German inspection company DEKRA, recently opened a new LED lighting lab in Shenzhen, China. The new lab meets the ever-growing demand for product testing and certifications within the local LED industry, providing one-stop services for China-based manufacturers. 

The term organic LED, or OLED, has now become synonymous with consumer electronics and automotive market. The latest range of next-generation devices, such as televisions, monitors, smartphones, notebooks & tablets, and automotive screen displays boast of OLED screens, which are the current rage. The organic light emitting diode technology has gained swift approval from all quarters in the electronics industry, and this has led to an emergent market for OLED market.

Ledvance publishes an international advisor study for the lighting branch with recommendations for action for electrical wholesalers.

Organized by SEMI and Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), LED Taiwan and Taiwan International Lighting Show (TiLS) will be collocated and held on April 12-15, 2017 at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, Hall 1, showcasing a wide range of technology innovations and solutions in six themed pavilions.

On 10 March, over 2,000 guests from design, business, culture, politics and the media from over 40 countries celebrated the winners of the iF DESIGN AWARD 2017 at the BMW Welt in Munich. A total of 5,575 contributions from 59 countries entered the competition, and 75 of them won the coveted iF gold award, including the following three lighting products.

After the detrimental Galaxy Note 7 recall, Samsung is hoping the upcoming flagship Galaxy S8 lineup can revive its smartphone business. Meanwhile, rival Apple is prepared to launch its first OLED iPhone in September. Analysts are now saying the S8 may lose the battle against the next iPhone due to a lack of eye-catching selling points.

After its average selling price (ASP) dropped by 25% in 2016, Phecda Technology, specializing in LED patterned sapphire substrates (PSS) manufacturing, could possibly experience a turnaround this year. On one hand, in terms of revenue, Phecda Technology topped in the industry with the amount of NTD 530 million, rising from NTD 340 million in 2015. On the other, it ended the disappointing profit slump at the end of 1H16 and slowly recuperated in 2H16. The Tier 1 giant’s financial results reflected how down the market was in 2016, according to several juridical persons.

Taiwanese LED manufacturer BRTLED recently announced it has received a four-to-five-year-order from an US commercial airline for SMD LED lighting module, which is expected to be a major growth driver for the company.

In the eternal search for next generation high-efficiency solar cells and LEDs, scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory and their partners are creating innovative 2D layered hybrid perovskites that allow greater freedom in designing and fabricating efficient optoelectronic devices. Industrial and consumer applications could include low cost solar cells, LEDs, laser diodes, detectors, and other nano-optoelectronic devices.

Taiwanese LED chip manufacturer Arima Optoelectronics Corporation (AOC) recently released its pre-audited earnings report of 2016. Due to a 38.17% increase in revenue and growing demand for AlGaInP LED chips, net loss of the year decreased by a whopping 42.48% and loss per share was also down to NTD 0.57 (USD 0.018), the lowest in nearly six years. With a new wave of demand for high-end AlInGaP LEDs (red LEDs) and IR LEDs, AOC is aiming for turning loss into profit in 2017, but it has to “work extremely hard.”

With the merit of energy efficiency, better visibility and low carbon emissions, LED street lights have been embraced by cities around the world, and the shift toward them has accelerated. However, this does not come without a price. More and more instances of light pollution and light nuisance have been reported, causing much criticism from citizens.

A new wave of LED street lights installation has started across India. According to local media, North Delhi Municipal Corporation has decided to replace over two lakh (200,000) traditional streetlights with LED lighting across its six zones. There are around 250,000 streetlights in these areas, including park lights and semi High-mast lighting.

Philips Lighting and Cerezo Osaka, the J1 League soccer club, have signed an agreement in which Philips Lighting becomes the club’s ‘official lighting partner.’ The company plans to provide design, consultancy services and advanced LED lighting technology for the club’s stadium and practice pitches. 

Japanese LED giant Nichia Corporation recently announced that the Düsseldorf Court of Appeal in Germany has confirmed that four white LED products by Taiwanese LED manufacturer Harvatek Corporation infringe Nichia’s YAG Patent EP 0 936 682 (DE 697 02 929).

A research team at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) claims it has successfully developed the most energy-efficient LED filament technology with a luminous efficacy of 129lm/W, which represents 1.5 times the efficacy of traditional LED lamps, surpassing all other general lighting tools available in the market.  

South Korean lighting manufacturer Photonics Trade Group (PTG) has secured a KRW 5 billion (USD 4.32 million) deal with French luxury brand Louis Vuitton to supply indoor LED lighting, according to local media ETnews. 

Apple’s plan to adopt OLED panels for its next iPhone series has apparently led to a fierce competition between OLED makers. According to The Wall Street Journal, sources close to the matter confirmed that Japan’s Sharp will invest around 100 billion yen (USD 878 million) to expand OLED production to compete with its rival Samsung Electronics Co,.

Philips Lighting and Globus, a major grocery retailer in Germany, have measured the positive effects of lighting in a joint research project. In collaboration with German Research Center for Artificial Intellifence DFKI and EIT Digital, a series of experiments were conducted at the Globus supermarket in Saarbrücken to study the impact of different combinations of colored lighting on sales and customer behavior. 

Apple is expected to release three new iPhone models later this year, and one of them will feature an OLED display. A new report from South Korea’s The Bell on Monday further suggests that Apple plans to shift all iPhones to OLED displays by 2019.

During the 2017 Chief Analyst Market Seminar, held by LEDinside and CNLED on February 20th, when asked about the future of automotive LED lighting, C.W. Wang, Deputy Director of Automotive Lighting Department, EVERLIGHT, said, “With the adoption of LED lighting and smart technology, the car of the future is more than just transport. This is the trend in automotive LED lighting.”

Philips Lighting and Tarkett, a global provider of innovative and sustainable flooring, announced the launch of Luminous vinyl flooring. The specially developed vinyl tiles are embedded with cutting-edge LED technology that enables retailers to advertise, interact with customers and guide them through any store or building.

As LED market penetration rate continues to increase, global LED market growth has slowed down in recent years. In China, domestic LED chip manufacturers have exceeded a dominant 70% market share. In addition, global companies have increased their packaging capacity in China. It is expected that Chinese LED packaging manufacturers will continue to expand production capacity in 2017.

The sale of LEDVANCE by OSRAM to the Chinese investment consortium, consisting of the strategic investor IDG Capital, the LED packaging manufacturer MLS CO., LTD. (MLS) and Yiwu State-Owned Assets Operation Center (Yiwu), was successfully completed effective on March 3rd, 2017 and with economic effect as of March 1st, 2017. This follows the parties obtaining all necessary approvals from the relevant authorities.

Mikro Mesa Technology, a Micro LED startup from Taiwan, is reported to set up a Micro LED laboratory in Chongqing City, China. It is a collaboration between Mikro Mesa and Chinese Chongqing HKC Optoelectronics Technology, a local TFT-LCD panels maker.

The darkest form of ultraviolet light, known as UV-C, is unique because of its reputation as a killer – of harmful organisms. With wavelengths of between 200 and 280 nanometers, this particular form of UV light penetrates the membranes of viruses, bacteria, mold and dust mites, attacking their DNA and killing them.