As previously communicated, Philips continues to simultaneously prepare for an initial public offering (IPO) or a private sale of Philips Lighting. With equity markets’ sentiment improving compared to the first couple of months of the year, an IPO increasingly appears a more likely outcome, subject to further market developments and other relevant circumstances.

Biological implants that communicate with the brain to control paralyzed limbs or provide vision to the blind are one step closer to reality thanks to research by Brian Collins, an assistant professor of physics at Washington State University.

Korean researchers from Department of Bio and Brain Engineering and KAIST Institute for Optical Science and Technology have been able to boost OLED efficiency significantly by imitating nanostructures found in fireflies, according to a latest paper published in Nano Letters.

University of Tokyo researchers have developed an ultrathin, ultraflexible, protective layer and demonstrated its use by creating an air-stable, OLED display. This technology will enable creation of electronic skin (e-skin) displays of blood oxygen level, e-skin heart rate sensors for athletes and many other applications.

Highlights this week: Apple has dropped Osram Licht from its list of top 200 suppliers and added Royal Philips to its supply chain, ahead of the release of the iPhone 7.

Kyulux, an advanced materials startup that is commercializing the next generation of OLED display and lighting technology known as TADF (Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence), announced today that Samsung Venture Investment Corporation took the lead in a $13.5 million (¥1.5 Billion Japanese Yen) Series A round of venture funding.  Participating in the round were global OLED panel manufacturers including Samsung Display, LG Display, Japan Display and JOLED, top tier Japanese venture capital funds, and a Japanese Government affiliated venture fund. Kyushu University also announced the transfer of a large portfolio of TADF related patents and equity participation by the university in the financing. 

A report from IHS recently claimed AMOLED panel production costs for smartphone displays was nearing LCD displays or translated into LED industry language ready to take out LED backlight, reportedPhonearena.com and Korean media ETnews.

Lighting innovations from Osram lead the way into the future. Intelligent street lights that find and assign parking places, infrared lighting solutions that unlock smartphones via iris scan or transmitting units integrated into luminaires that  navigate people through buildings are just a few of the new solutions that Osram will present at this year's Light + Building show starting on March 13 in Frankfurt. A focus at the booth will be on intelligent and efficient lighting solutions for cities and buildings, but also present pioneering innovations in other areas. "Our products have set major trends in the lighting market for more than 100 years - and they will also do so at Light + Building 2016", said Olaf Berlien, Chief Executive Officer of OSRAM Licht AG.

LG Display announced today that it is showcasing its latest advanced OLED light products and solutions at Light+Building 2016, one of the leading global trade fairs for lighting and building services technology, in Frankfurt, Germany, from March 13thto 18th. 

Universal Display Corporation , enabling energy-efficient displays and lighting with its UniversalPHOLED® technology and materials, announced a collaboration and evaluation agreement with OSRAM, one of the world's leading lighting manufacturers. Under the agreement, OSRAM will begin sampling Universal Display’s proprietary PHOLED™ phosphorescent OLED materials for solid-state lighting applications.

Technavio analysts forecast the global automotive organic light-emitting diode (OLED) marketto post a CAGR of more than 14% by 2019, according to their latest report.

Osram is putting the focus on sustainable growth and wants to take even greater advantage of the potential offered by semiconductor-based lighting technologies. Prior to that, another important strategic step, the carve-out process of the general lighting lamps business, got under way. Given Osram’s strong financial standing, the company is proposing a dividend of €0.90 per share at Tuesday’s AGM. In parallel, Osram has in the meantime also started a share buyback program of up to €500 million.

LG Display, the world’s leading innovator of display technologies and an OLED lighting panel manufacturer, announced that it will supply OLED panels to ilroom, a specialized home furniture brand of the Fursys Group, a leading office furniture company in Korea.

At an analyst day, Osram unveiled further details of its three-pillar strategy presented in November last year and of the innovation and growth initiative. In all its three pillars, the lighting company wants to benefit even more from the potential of semiconductor-based technologies and will make appropriate investments in the coming years. In the Specialty Lighting (SP) business, Osram is increasing the focus of its automotive business on LED-based products and the system business as well as investments in new technologies such as laser and OLED. In the Lighting Solutions & Systems (LSS) segment, Osram will expand its product portfolio for Smart Cities and Smart Buildings applications in the years to come, thus taking account of rising urbanization. In the LED components business (Opto Semiconductors, OS), Osram aims to become the cost leader thanks to its lead in technology, economies of scale, and factor cost benefits from the planned 6-inch LED chip plant in Kulim, Malaysia. The plant will be the largest of its kind. “We are well on our way to becoming a high-tech company. With our innovation and growth initiative we are shifting the focus to sustainable growth,” said Olaf Berlien, Chief Executive Officer of OSRAM Licht AG.

Taiwanese OLED manufacturer Wisechip and a research team from National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) intend to commercialize long-life economic OLED candle light by 2017, reported Taiwanese media Great News.

ITRI received four 2015 R&D 100 Awards this year in Las Vegas November 13. ITRI’s technologies were selected as winners for the most innovative products in the IT/Electrical and Mechanical Devices/Materials categories. The research organization was awarded for its OLED and LED technology: 

Pixelligent, the leader in high-index materials, announced today the development of a new OLED light extraction technology that dramatically increases light output in their customer's OLED Lighting devices. Pixelligent founder and chief technology officer, Dr. Gregory Cooper, presented the new technology at the 17th Annual OLEDs World Summit.

BLACKBODY and LG Chem have collaborated for the special event of Design Junction, part of the London Design Festival, in a major art installation around LG Chem`s square OLED light panels called DISPERTION by Thierry Gaugain.

LG Display announced Monday it will be channeling future resources to the development of OLED TVs to stay ahead of Chinese competitors that are catching up rapidly in the LCD sector, reported Associated Press.

A year on from the launch of the BMW M4 Coupe, BMW M Division is presenting an initial preview of a high-performance model for use on the road and, above all, on the race track: the BMW Concept M4 GTS.

Jay Kim, Head of Marketing and Business Development Head of Marketing and Business Development at Business Center OLED, Philips’ OLED lighting division shares in this blog entry how OLEDs are making their ways into outer space and everyday lighting applications. 

China’s biggest display manufacturer, BOE, has proposed establishing an OLED joint venture business with LG Display and Samsung Display, reported The Korea Times.

LG Display will be investing 900 billion won (US$802.75 million) to build a new production line for small and medium OLED displays, reported Korean newspaper DongA Ilbo.

Major advances in the field of organic electronics are currently revolutionising previously silicon-dominated semiconductor technology. Customised organic molecules enable the production of lightweight, mechanically flexible electronic components that are perfectly adapted to individual applications. Chemists at the Goethe University have now developed a new class of organic luminescent materials through the targeted introduction of boron atoms into the molecular structures. The compounds described in the professional journal "Angewandte Chemie" (Applied Chemistry) feature an intensive blue fluorescence and are therefore of interest for use in OLEDs.

The project Interlace by Rahul Gujarathi is an elegant composition, said jury member, Randy Burkett. “It’s two technologies woven together to serve the user and occupant. A near endless number of manifestations seem possible with the creative application of this approach in building design. Definining a timeless and traditional boundry this is innately linked to light and the environment, in an exciting and artistic manner. Connection, protection, interaction – all present at this border. This project, more than most, looks forward at the ultimate integration of technology and human needs.”

Acuity Brands unveiled this week at LIGHTFAIR® International luminaires using its Duet SSL(TM) Technology, a new design concept that optimizes the performance of OLED and LED light sources in a single luminaire. The interplay of the two solid-state technologies effectively combines the focused and directed light benefits of LEDs with the soft, uniform glow of OLEDs, offering specifiers new and more dynamic ways for lighting a space.

Europe and Asia have been driving advanced automotive LED lighting developments, while the technology has been slow to pick up in the U.S., due to more stringent legal requirements, reported New York Times.

LG Chem has announced its participation in Euroluce 2015 from April 14th to April 19th. LG Chem will exhibit an updated OLED light panel line-up along with various types of applications and solutions. LG Chem will also showcase its partners’ products using LG Chem OLED light panels, including Acuity Brands, TW2M and more.

Scientists at the MPI-P Mainz, BASF Ludwigshafen, the University of Ulm, and Innovation Lab Heidelberg have developed a simulation toolkit for evaluating properties of organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) based solely on their chemical composition. The package is integrated in the free software VOTCA and helps to pre-select suitable organic molecules for lighting and display applications.

Rival Korean consumer electronics manufacturers LG and Samsung have finally agreed to bury the legal hatchet, reported BBC and PC Magazine.