Waning growth in the sapphire substrate market is beginning to impact certain sapphire manufacturers. LEDinside latest reports show declined LED lighting demands triggered a 30% decline in the sapphire industry, leading to Tera Xtal Technology’s decision to cut 180 jobs.

Next generation OLED TV sales have soared 317% during the first half of 2015, according to a report from Business Korea.

Stranded on the barren red planet Mars with few supplies available, astronaut Mark Watney played by Hollywood actor Matt Damon in The Martian is fighting for survival on the harsh planet.

The LED market has shown mixed results in different global regions recently. Stagnant LED shipment growth, and plunging sapphire substrate prices have brought related manufacturers operations under the market lime light.

This LED badge launched at Burning Man this year has an OLED touch screen was designed by applying reproductive science and genetics. The personified light badges “inherit” a particular lighting sequence that can be passed on to another light badge through intercourse, which takes form through blinking lights. However, all sex between the lighting badges is consensual and require the approval of the female badges (yes the badges have different genders). Badges can also engage in homosexual relations. Instead of a walkie talkie users can use the light badge to link up with friends and choose their mate. For further info on the design concept and technology involved please see below.

Chinese manufacturers exported LED lighting goods to India for the first eight months of 2015 reached US $355 million, according to a DIGITIMES report.

Renewable Energy and Power, a diversified corporation with markets in energy-saving technologies of both LED lighting and solar cells, is pleased to announce that the Company has successfully completed the trial testing period of the initial order for LED lighting in a health-care/assisted-living facility of a major health-care organization. Nationwide, the organization operates more than five hundred skilled nursing centers and assisted senior living communities.

TOGGLED®, developer and producer of next-generation solid-state lighting technology and named in the Top 25 Most Innovative Companies in South East Michigan by Crain's Detroit, reported today the addition of Halco Lighting Technologies® to its rapidly expanding Licensing Program.

Leviton recently announced the expansion of its portfolio of LED lighting fixtures with a new line of industrial grade fixtures designed specifically for use in general industrial and hazardous classified locations. These products are designed to provide lighting for areas where water, vibration, maintenance or temperature can negatively affect conventional lighting fixtures. The product category includes a comprehensive collection of area floodlights, linear fixtures and spotlights.

On the evening of October 1st, The Night of Heritage Light will illuminate several UNESCO World Heritage Sites within the UK and Ireland, in acknowledgement of the UNESCO International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies 2015 (IYL 2015). With this event, the Society of Light and Lighting will celebrate the skills of its members and promote UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Leading Taiwanese LED manufacturer Epistar has acquired nearly 10% stake in Malaysian LED manufacturer Dominant OptoTechnologies, according to a latest report from Chinese-language media UDN.

Was the company revenue performances only bad for the first half of 2015? Or has it been the case for three consecutive quarters? Only LED manufacturers know how they fared this year.“The (Chinese) LED industry is in deep waters, and only a few manufacturers will survive in the next few years,” said several industry insiders during recent interviews with LEDinside’s editorial team in China.

As the Inventor and Manufacturer of the world’s most advanced LED Light Engines, Global Tech LED announced today it has filed a lawsuit against Hilumz USA and other entities for infringement of one its patents entitled “LED Light Bulb” (U.S. Patent No. 8,979,304). Global Tech LED has also initiated a lawsuit against those owners and operators of www.myledlightingguide.com and www.everywattmatters.com. Global Tech LED will continue to enforce its rights and is standing in open arms to any distributors caught in the middle who are interested in purchasing a product that is not infringing.

Cities and their emergency responders will soon have a new way to deploy gunshot detection technology and be able to respond to incidents and react faster to protect their residents. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) between GE Lighting and SST, Inc., developer of the ShotSpotter™ crime detection and location suite, lays ground to embedding sophisticated ShotSpotter technology into GE’s intelligent LED street lights.

Illumitex, green tech developer and manufacturer of LED grow light technology, announced initial steps in what is expected to be a long-term partnership with Singapore’s largest vertical farm, Sustenir Agriculture. Sustenir is an innovative indoor farming endeavor that brings much-needed local, fresh produce to the island country in Southeast Asia.

DuPont Displays (DuPont) announced the opening of a state-of-the-art, scale-up manufacturing facility designed to deliver production scale quantities of advanced materials that enable large-format, solution-based printed Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) displays. These materials are designed to help manufacturers develop OLED displays that are brighter, more vivid, longer lasting and significantly less expensive than the OLED TVs on the market today. The facility is located at the DuPont Stine-Haskell Research Center (Stine-Haskell) in Newark, Del., near DuPont’s global headquarters in Wilmington.

The Global Lighting Association (GLA) cautions against the establishment of regulatory or other minimum performance requirements for a colour rendering index (Ra) of greater than 80 for indoor lighting applications. For Europe, the GLA supports retention of legal minimum requirements on colour rendering (Ra) at the current level as defined in the EU Eco-design Regulations (EC 244/2009, EC 245/2009, EC 1194/2012). In the United States, the GLA supports the Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star Program’s current minimum requirement of 80 CRI.

HC Semitek board approved the acquisition of Chinese sapphire substrate manufacturer Crystaland during a recent shareholder meeting.

Samsung Electronics, the world’s leading producer of semiconductor and display solutions, formally opened the doors to its new Device Solutions America headquarters here, setting the stage for a new wave of innovation across the digital landscape.

Everlight Chairman Robert Yeh recently refuted market rumors in Taiwan claiming the company’s decision to use Chinese manufacturers LED chips in its products has impacted Epistar’s revenue performance, according to a UDN report.

Plessey announced today that it is to carry out a major expansion of the company’s LED manufacturing facility in Plymouth, England, after securing a GBP 30 million ($50 million) loan from Deutsche Bank AG to finance the expansion.

The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a strong advocate for the country’s LED lighting conversion to battle the power starved country’s use of electricity and conserve natural resources, reported local Indian newspaper Nagpur Today.

At the ASIS International Conference (ASIS 2015), Genetec™, a leading manufacturer of open-platform, unified IP security solutions, andSensity®Systems Inc., the pioneer of light sensory networks (LSNs), announced a strategic alliance to develop security-focused solutions and applications for municipalities, retail and more, built on Sensity’s NetSense™ platform. As part of the agreement, Sensity has completed interoperability certification for its Video Node with the Genetec Omnicast™ video management system (VMS) and announces that Genetec has joined the NetSense Partner Program to offer additional security applications in the future for light sensory networks worldwide.

In 2015, Pegasus Capital Advisors committed to catalyzing healthier working conditions and improved air quality in New York City’s nail salons. An issue largely overlooked, nail polish contains many volatile organic compounds which permeate the air and are health hazards for workers and customers alike. Pegasus and its partner, Lighting Science Group (LSG), have developed the Genesis Light, a desktop light that monitors and reports on air quality wirelessly using a sensor chip embedded in the lamp. It uses easy to read emoticons on the units, as well as transmits data that will be accessible online. Empowering salon workers and customers, Pegasus, LSG, and partner the NYC Public Advocate will deploy 50 free Genesis Lights to nail salons that they identify in hopes that the pilot program will inspire customers and regulators to make informed decisions that will ultimately incentivize a continuing domino effect in nail salons to better manage their air quality.

MLS INDIA, The LED package major has secured supplying LED chips worth one million USD to one of the most trusted brand in India. The products made of using MLS LEDs will be illuminating Indian homes very soon.

Tridonic Jennersdorf GmbH, a subsidiary of Tridonic GmbH & Co KG, Dornbirn and therefore part of the Zumtobel Group, has signed a licence agreement with Medion AG, Germany covering the use of silicate-based white LEDs.

Luxtera, the global leader in Silicon Photonics solutions, today announces the hiring of Brad Byk as Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Kelly Perez as Vice President of Finance. Luxtera will leverage their considerable experience and knowledge as the company accelerates its global commercial expansion.

Chinese LED manufacturer Kingsun Opto has acquired a 6% stake in Lumileds, potentially becoming one of the three largest stakeholders of the former Philips LED component and automotive lighting business.

Today, The Climate Group, which is hosting its annual Climate Week NYC, called on every single city and utility around the world to schedule the switch of their street lighting to LED by 2025 and launched its new major global campaign LED = Lower Emissions Delivered, to encourage local governments, cities and utilities to embrace the carbon and cost benefits of switching to LED.

gridComm, a provider of power line communication (PLC) solutions that enable the transformation of traditional power grid into a smart grid, announced it has signed a partnership agreement with a leading LED manufacturer in Indonesia, PT Siklon Energy Nusantara, to jointly provide a cloud-based Street Light Management Solution to the Indonesian market. Given Siklon's leadership and expertise in LED lighting and advanced production facilities, the partnership enables the delivery of a complete Intelligent Street Light Solution tailored for Indonesia.