Chinese sapphire manufacturer Roshow Technology reported plummeting net profits in 2014, according to a company announcement on Jan. 29, 2015.

Recent patent litigations launched by major LED companies aim straight at latecomers in Chinese and Taiwanese LED industry, who have insufficient patent portfolio. The LED market will be restructured to focus on major LED companies with extensive patent portfolio and technological strengths.

Nobel laureate Charles Townes, who was awarded the prestigious science award in 1964 for the invention of lasers has died at the age of 99, according to The Guardian report.

Engineers have shone new light on an emerging family of solar-absorbing materials that could clear the way for cheaper and more efficient solar panels and LEDs.

Global LED manufacturer Lighting Science Group Corporation announced today that Daniel Horan has been appointed Executive Vice President of Sales. Horan brings a strong track record of proven sales and strategies to guide the company’s expansion of global retail and on-line sales capabilities. He will be playing a key role in bringing Lighting Science’s innovative LED product assortment - ranging from biologically correct lighting for home and work to retail and commercial applications - into the hands of the global consumer through these critical channels.

With its SPL BF98-40-5 laser bar Osram Opto Semiconductors has succeeded in combining power and beam quality like never before. Thanks to its high brilliance, the laser diode considerably reduces the complexity of coupling light into fibers. Diode or fiber laser systems for material processing can be made simpler and therefore more cost-effective. Even at its maximum output of more than 60 watts the component has an impressively long life.

Featuring competition in 36 different sporting events, the 22nd Central American and Caribbean Games were recently held at the Estadio Luis “Pirata” Fuente in Veracruz, Mexico. As with any international sporting event, the opening and closing ceremonies of the games were expected to be the engaging and entertaining bookends of the production. To oversee the lighting design for the opening and closing ceremonies, lighting designer David Grill was brought on board and he brought with him a high-powered rig filled with 126 VL4000 Spot, 150 VL3500 Wash, and 50 VL3500 Wash FX luminaires from Philips Vari-Lite, supplied by Solotech.

Sensus VantagePoint™, the latest advancement in intelligent lighting control, enables public service providers—including cities, municipalities and utilities—to remotely monitor and control street and area lights. VantagePoint includes a lighting control module and lighting control software that leverage the Sensus FlexNet™ communication network.

New HMAO™ LED II High Mast Series luminaires from Holophane allow lighting system owners and designers to upgrade existing and new construction high mast systems to LED. The new LED high mast system provides excellent visibility from a white LED light source while reducing energy and maintenance costs by up to 75 percent over incumbent HID light systems.

U.S. LED manufacturer Cree utilized its monopoly in high power LED chip technology to develop ceramic package LEDs, just shortly after China’s LED package industry ventured into the display backlight market in 2008. Cree went on to dominate the outdoor lighting market and other high end applications, while setting new luminous efficacy records.

Dutch lighting conglomerate Philips has announced plans of spinning off its OLED business, according to a report by OLED-info.

Latest research from Netherlands Health Council indicate there are certain health risks associated to blue lights emitted by LEDs, and further investigations are required, reported NL Times.

Urban Barns Foods ("Urban Barns"), an innovative food producer dedicated to growing consistent, healthy and fresh vegetables year round using its proprietary Cubic Farming™ method, is pleased to provides its shareholders with an update on its research and development (R&D) activities at McGill University.

Iluminage Beauty, a company that manufactures LED light therapy devices for beauty and cosmetic applications, today announced the appointment of George Cleary as the company's new Chief Executive Officer.

Agostino Renna, President and CEO of GE Lighting for Europe, The Middle East and Africa, shares in this blog entry how LED streetlights can offer so much more than just light.

Phoseon Technology, the leader in UV LED curing solutions, today announced the launch of the FireJet™ FJ800 area curing solution for electronics manufacturing. The new air-cooled solution is optimized for production lines with large area applications such as micro speakers, camera modules and flat panel displays. Starting from a base curing area of 100mm x 100mm, these modular products can scale in all directions and provide contiguous, uniform UV output. The FJ800 light sources are available in 365nm and 395nm wavelengths and come with a separate controller that uses a simple, intuitive graphical interface.

GlacialTech, the diversified lighting and thermal solution provider, announces a new series of 100W-200W stamped heatsinks for flood lights and other high wattage LED lighting applications. Three wattage ratings are offered - 100W, 150W and 200W and heat pipes are available to help dissipate heat from high power CoB LEDs.

Chinese LED manufacturer Nationstar Chairman of the Supervisory Juyi Tsai has further sold his shares in the company.

Taiwan’s LED component industry market value is expected to grow 14% in 2015, according to estimates by Taiwan’s Photonics Industry and Technology Development Association (PIDA).

German specialist for light measurement solutions Instrument Systems presents the LumiCam 1300 Advanced. This new imaging photometer and colorimeter has been designed for the highest accuracy when analyzing the characteristics of displays and electronic panel graphics. 

As an emerging industry, the LED market has received a lot of attention from investors, especially listed LED companies, according to a hc360.com report. The following wealth listing, is based on listed LED manufacturers market value, share value, and founder company shares.

Group Financials have been restated as of the fourth quarter of 2014 and for prior periods to show the results of the combined businesses of Lumileds and Automotive as discontinued operations in connection with the process of attracting third-party investors.

LG Chem announced today that it achieved two important milestones in the development of OLED lighting products with the start of manufacturing of the 320 x 320 mm OLED light panel, the world’s largest available in the market, and the completion of the research and development phase for a new plastic-based OLED light panel.

ALKILU Enterprises, an emerging leader in affordable OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diodes) Lighting products for consumers, today announced that is has signed a formal partnership with Visionox, a high-tech enterprise specializing in the mass development and manufacturing of OLED technology in China with integration of R&D, as well as marketing and sales. The announcement coincides with ALKILU’s attendance and sponsorship of the OLED’s World Summit 2014 in Berkeley, California, U.S.

The Super Bowl XLIX to kick off at University of Phonex Stadium this Sunday will be putting on a show in a different light, according to a News and Observer report.

Students taking classes on the Medical Education and Training Campus (METC) now enjoy a new three-story, LEED-certified building that houses the Fort Sam Houston BRAC Student Activity Center. Nicknamed “The Club,” it’s a place where trainees can relax and take a break from their training and studies. The space also reflects the building’s overall architectural vision: an artful blend of tradition with technology. Creative use of iLight Plexineon Blue and Plexineon Orange fixtures extends that intent.

ADATA® Technology, a leading manufacturer of high-performance DRAM modules, NAND Flash products and LED lighting products, today launches its AURA RGB interior lighting bulb. The AURA RGB bulb displays over 16 million different colors and up to 64 bulbs can be configured via Bluetooth 4.0 Mesh technology using ADATA’s free downloadable app. ADATA’s AURA RGB bulb is a perfect match for homeowners and small business owners seeking to choose from literally millions of colors while being able to adjust warmth and brightness for bulbs spanning a distance of nearly 2000 meters!

Aurora Opto, a sapphire manufacturer based in Harbin in Northern China, recently released its financial reports, and estimated earnings for 2015.

Growing downstream demands contributed to the rebounding LED industry market, according to a Sina.com report. Twelve out of 15 listed Chinese LED manufacturers reported high growths in 2014, while only three companies reported sliding revenues.

NVC Lighting, which has suspended trade on the Chinese bourse, recently appointed Wang Donglei as the company’s official CEO, according to a report by Chinese media Tencent.