As OLED manufacturers explore potential application fields, such as commercial, retail and beauty applications, Philips Lumiblade has moved away from “Earthly” applications to a whole new frontier: outer space.

3M has invested in MSi Lighting of Boca Raton, Florida, a company that 3M has been working with for the past year on a line of LED lights for multiple applications. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

Konica Minolta announced on its Japanese website recently the launch of the world’s most efficient OLED with a luminous efficacy of 131 lm/W, up from previous OLED panels luminous efficacy of 103 lm/W.

British designer Joseph Begley has come up with a cheeky way of lighting up the house with interactive lamps that resemble human buttocks, according to a Designboom report.

The Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court in China has rejected Foshan Lighting’s appeal to transfer the case to Foshan Intermediate Court, according to a report by Chinese-language Securities Times. The Chinese LED manufacturer received a ticket from China Securities Regulatory Commission’s Guangdong branch nearly a year ago on March 7, 2014 over stock frauds.

Jamaica’s Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell revealed in late Feb. 2014, the Jamaican government will be amending regulations to lift tariff for solar equipment and LED lamps, according to an article by Jamaican media The Gleaner.

Four major phenomena occurred simultaneously in the sapphire market leading to global supply shortage for patterned sapphire substrate (PSS), according to Chinese-language Economic Daily News.

New LED technology and products continue to emerge as lighting demands rise and costs drop. The wave of EMCs, with advantages in Cost/ Performance (C/P), and new flip-chip trends anticipated to continue into 2014. LED package manufacturer Everlight began actively developing EMC products in 2013 and plans to expand production capacity in 2014. The company has also jumped onto the flip-chip technology bandwagon and is currently strategizing a flip-chip supply chain.

Aixtron, a worldwide leading provider of deposition equipment to the semiconductor industry, has a number of stock option programs in place that grant employees the right to purchase AIXTRON shares under certain conditions. 

Science fiction movie Gravity, which clinched the award for Best Visual Effects at the 2014 Oscars, created the movie’s lighting effects with a custom made LED light box, according to a report by Digital Trends. 

The emergence of new sapphire substrate applications has brought many opportunities for the Taiwanese sapphire industry, according to the Commercial Times. Supply not meeting demand is becoming increasingly apparent. Patterened sapphire substrate (PSS) manufacturer Ridgetech Mircoelectronics has taken the top position for profit. Legal persons estimate that the company’s EPS last year reached more than  NT $5 (US $0.16). The doubling of production capacity this year has been driving up stock prices early. Emerging stocks increased 7.62 percent last Thursday with closing price at NT $150, making Ridgetech take the top spot in profit, stock price, and production capacity.

Large ceramic wafer manufacturer Tong Hsing Electronics Industries’ annual ceramic substrate for LED revenue grew 10 percent. As LED lighting applications mature, the LED industry is optimistic and is rapidly transforming the industry. New designs, materials, and manufacturing processes are being verified. Among these  flip-chip products were continually launched, driving demand for high heat resistance performance. The market anticipates that Tong Hsing will benefit.

With the rapid increase in LED lighting demands, LED manufacturers are continuing to develop module products with lower cost and simpler designs. Manufacturers have taken advantage of past direct-type backlight designs that use package components with few LEDs and include secondary optic lens, which allows for a wider luminosity angle and reduces the need for light guide plates.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy, Mr. Lennie Lake said the money will be used to purchase 110 LED lights to be installed in the Frigate Bay area from Sugars Complex to Zenway Boulevard as well as the New Road Community Park.

Silicon Base Development has officially changed its name to Taiwan Semiconductor Lighting Co, Ltd. (TSLC), according to a recent announcement. The change will be effective as of March 1, 2014.

Mature LED applications are driving the industry into a new lighting era, and has opened up a new round of patent strategies. Taiwanese LED manufacturers have invested in technology R&D and patent strategies to acquire a niche in upcoming patent competition.

Sony’s latest PS4 controller which comes with a LED bar has irked some consumers, according to a report by Product Review.com.

This week Epistar and Philips catches market attention as the two companies enter a patent cross-license agreement. This is the first time that Philips has signed an agreement with a Taiwanese company. In addition, Samsung and HTC latest smartphones are incorporating dual-flash LEDs. China’s largest AlInGaP maker Changelight has finally made up its mind about entering the InGaN market. For further details please see below:

The Canadian government has recently made amendments to minimum energy efficiency for 40W, 60W, 75W and 100W bulbs, according to a WTO custom and tariff website managed by the Chinese government. The new amendment will also allow the commercialization of a halogen lamp that was previously banned under the 2008 regulations.

Lower prices and government policies have stimulated the initiation of LED general lighting. From 2013 to 2015, the global lighting market will grow at 36 percent, 37 percent and 38 percent respectively. The residential LED lighting market demand will grow 157 percent, 90 percent and 62 percent respectively.

Wearable devices have stolen the show at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, according to Chinese-language United Evening News. Companies including Samsung, LG, Sony, and Huawei Device have all showcased their wearable designs at the show. Increasing investment from manufacturers is leading to a rise in sapphire material applications. Sapphire material prices began to rise at an average of 5-7% during 1Q14, which stimulated listed company Crystalwise Technology and ACME Electronics Corp. rising stock prices on Feb. 25, 2014. This in turn led to LED stocks strong growth.

Package free products have been making waves in the LED industry since 2013. LED manufacturers have been investing in R&D for package free and CSP (chip-scale package) products, including Samsung who recently announced the release of  a new CSP product. The company is launching their completely new 1.3mm x 1.3mm flash LED which uses CSP technology, called FC1313. The CSP FC1313 is small in size, has more design flexibility, and low power consumption. It has become known as the world’s smallest flash LED product.

Last Friday, Refond Optoelectronics (Refond) announced the acquisition of 13.04 percent share of Shenzhen LT Photoelectricity Technology Co. for RMB 30 million (US $4.9 million) through a preferred stock purchase agreement signed with Peng Xiaoling and Wang Weiquan. Refond however has corrected the announcement, reporting that the company purchased 15 percent share.

Unwilling to sit on the sidelines of the promising lighting chip market, China’s largest AlInGaP chip manufacturer Changelight has finally decided to enter InGaN LED epiwafer market.

Epistar announced today that it has reached a patent license agreement with Philips for dies in LED products. Under the license agreement, both companies grant each other a license to use each other’s patents for III-V compound semiconductor light emitting dies, which include InGaN LEDs and AlGaInP LEDs.

LED chip manufacturer Epileds reports fiscal year 2013 results. The company’s consolidated revenue reached NT $1.32 billion (US $43.6 million), slight dip of 2.15 percent from 2012. In 2013, Epileds invested large amounts of R&D resources into new flip-chip developments, which has bolstered high operations fees leading net income to drop YoY 27.82 percent to NT $60.47 million with EPS of NT $0.6.

LED package manufacturer Advanced Optoelectronic Technology (AOT), subsidiary of Foxconn Group, has released their financial report for fiscal 2013, the company’s  Earnings Per Share (EPS) NT $5.29 (US $0.79) last year, according to Commercial Times. This is not only the highest in the company’s history, but also has earned them the top spot in the LED industry.

Management Commentary   "Our arrangement to supply sapphire materials to Apple is progressing well and we started to build out the facility in Arizona and staff the operation during the quarter," said Gutierrez. "We are pleased to have Apple as a sapphire customer and to be in a position to leverage our proprietary know-how to enable the supply of this versatile material. While our primary focus during the balance of the year is to continue to execute on our commitments in Arizona, our aim is to position GT not only as an exceptional sapphire supplier to ...

Dow Corning, a global leader in silicones, silicon-based technology and innovation, announced today that Kaz Maruyama, global industry director for Dow Corning Lighting Solutions, will deliver a presentation at the 15th Edition of Strategies in Light in Santa Clara, Calif. Titled “Materials Solutions for Maximizing LED Package Efficiency,” the presentation will detail how new high-performance optical silicones are increasing the efficiency of LED packaging design.

At the 2014 Taiwan International Lighting Show, U-TEL TECHNOLOGY will launch the new 12W AC12V Dimmable LED AR111 using CREE COB LED  from design to manufacture, all process are developed in Taiwan and uses the same G53 base as traditional halogen AR111. The product is compatible with most electronic transformers in the market and built-in dimming circuit to work with trailing edge dimmer controllers. It is one of the few products that can directly replace traditional 50W halogen AR111 without changing the fixture and with dimming features.