It’s reported that temples in the Greater Taipei area are going green in accordance with the government's carbon-reduction policy.

It’s reported that the Japanese government is backing Sony, Toshiba, Sharp and some other companies in joint research of new display technology called organic light-emitting diodes, or OLED.An agency set up for encouraging research, The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization, or NEDO, said in a statement Thursday it has chosen the companies with the aim of developing a 40-inch OLED display sometime after 2015.

Recently, Everlight Electronics Co., a Taiwanese supplier of LEDs (light-emitting diodes), has won a big order for LED surgical lights and is scheduled to fill the order starting the second half of this year, according to company sources.

It’s reported that OLED faces a renewed attack from rival technology Field Emission Displays (FED), after Sony spin-off Field Emission Technologies (FET) confirmed it will purchase Pioneer's plasma factory next year.A FET spokesperson said, “We will purchase the factory, but at this point in time, we are still in discussions with Pioneer as to the method of purchase”. He said whether the company would pay cash or use other means was still unclear.

Recently, Luminus Devices, Inc., the developer and manufacturer of PhlatLight (Photonic Lattice) LEDs that are used in display and lighting applications, announced it has received its 21st United States patent for its PhlatLight technology. This rapidly growing patent portfolio highlights Luminus Devices' technology leadership in the LED industry. And with 120 additional patents pending in the United States and foreign countries, Luminus will continue its leadership in solid state lighting innovation.

It’s reported that Juno Lighting Group has partnered with Dialight, an LED lighting specialist, to develop and launch a series of low-profile linear LED lighting systems for Juno's DanaLite brand.

Recently, Taiwan's share of the growing notebook market is expected to continue slowly rising. But systems makers on the island Taiwan face challenges such as the transition to LED backlights and the need to expand their overseas markets.

Recently, Capital Vending, Inc. in Laurel, Md. has developed energy saving LED light strips designed specifically for vending machines. These light strips are designed with a connector that attaches to the existing harness in the machine, eliminating the need for a ballast. On-location installation typically takes just a few minutes. These LED strips are protected in clear acrylic tubing which helps protect the LED’s and allows them to be shipped individually without damage.

Everlight, Taiwan LED packaging company, is going to adjust its shipment proportion going to the handset segment from 40% in 2007 to 33% this year due to weaker demand, according to Everlight chairman Robert Yeh.

With costs for LED backlights using a mix of red, green and blue LEDs remaining high, LED industry players are considering using a combination of blue LEDs with red and green phosphors for TV-use backlights. In 2009, such designs may become popular.

It’s reported that Stan Glasgow (president and COO of Sony Electronics) says that Sony is making progress on moving to larger OLED screen sizes. At the moment, Sony sells an 11-inch OLED TV for $2,500, which means it is hardly a mass market product. He says, the next step, will be a 27-inch version, followed by a 40-inch version. He says they are “awfully close” to selling a 27-inch OLED version commercially.

It’s retorted that Philips is offering around 1000 patents related to LED luminaires, and will charge licensing fees such as 5% of net selling price for color-changing luminaires. On June 30, Philips introduced a patent licensing program for LED-based luminaires used in the general illumination, architectural and theatrical markets. Philips has pulled together a list of about 1000 patents – including those originally filed by Color Kinetics - that it says address the basic control technologies required in a broad range of LED lighting applications.

Recently, GE Lighting Systems has debuted the first two of many upcoming outdoor LED lighting systems: the LED StreetDreams post-top fixture and an outdoor area light.

In 2008, Low-cost notebook (netbooks) are expected to become popular. However, LED players have pointed out that material costs have increased while ASPs continue to fall leading to lower-than-expected gross margins. industry players warn, orders from netbook backlight applications may contribute to LED revenues but not necessarily to profits in the third quarter.

Recently, Malaysia-based SMT LED manufacturerDominant Semiconductors Sdn Bhd is offering a brighter white LED in the DomiLED product range (DDW-PJG).

Today, Power Integrations (Nasdaq:POWI), the leader in high-voltage integrated circuits for energy-efficient power conversion, announced a series of design ideas to help designers of LED driver circuitry benefit from the company’s recently introduced LinkSwitch-II family of AC-DC power conversion ICs. The new design ideas (DI-184, DI-185 and DI-186), demonstrate that LinkSwitch-II ICs are well suited for power supplies and ballasts driving high-brightness LEDs.

It’s reported that Hitachi Ltd. (TSE:6501) and Canon Inc. (TSE:7751) have agreed to jointly develop and manufacture small and midsize organic electroluminescence (EL) displays for digital cameras within two years. The two firms plan to set up in early July to handle the project, they will transfer a total of about 100 engineers to a new organization.

Today, Samsung SDI said that it will be spending over $500 million USD to boost production of next-generation OLED displays to six times its current level by mid-2009. This latest move comes as panel makers try to get bigger shares of the growing market for OLED displays, which offer better contrast ratio, slimmer designs and better energy efficiency than current LCD or plasma displays. However, production costs are still high, too high to make OLED TVs available to the masses.

Recently, GE Lighting Systems, Inc., part of GE Consumer & Industrial, showcased its new LED StreetDreams™ post-top fixtures at the 76th Annual Conference of Mayors in Miami, Florida. From June 20-24, more than 250 mayors from cities all over the United States descended upon Miami, and GE offered them a sneak peek at one of its latest energy-efficient lighting solutions. For the event, GE provided six of its LED StreetDreams™ luminaires. The new lighting system was installed in the median along Pan American Drive leading up to Miami City Hall.

Solid-state lighting, or using LEDs instead of traditional filament incandescent or fluorescent tube designs, promises long bulb lives, energy savings, and monetary savings thanks to the lower power consumption. The light bulb, largely unchanged for decades, is finally on the verge of evolving.

It’s repoted that the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems (IPMS), a leading research institute in the field of organic-based materials and devices, and the Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (FEP), a leader in large-area vacuum deposition on flexible substrates, have joined forces in the development of a technology for an organic devices roll-to-roll production process.

September this year, The Neo-Neo Group will start producing epitaxy wafers, becoming the first Taiwanese LED-lighting maker to be an integrated manufacturer with front-, middle- and back-end productions.

Recently, in order to diversify its business coverage and expand business scale, Formosa Advanced Technologies Company (FATC) announced it will enter into LED chip backend production, with corresponding sales contribution set to double on year.

It’s reported that Everlight has harnessed its expertise in LED manufacturing and combined it with its own leading technology in PCB population, mechanical design, optical design, and thermal management to create a highly efficient and aesthetically pleasing indoor lighting fixture.

It’s reported that advanced high intensity LED technology available from AbacusLED matches the output of incandescent panel lamps, and is specified for the most demanding applications including defence systems.

As a leader in engineered LED solutions, DDP has developed an energy-efficient LED light engine ideal for landscape and path lighting applications. DDP’s efficient 3.8 watt, 100 lumen forward-fit solution delivers 5100K light evenly over a 120 degree area.

June 24, Future Lighting Solutions, a provider of LED lighting components and solution support, announced that it has donated Luxeon Rebel LEDs from Philips Lumileds for use on a solar car being built by students at the University of Minnesota. The car will compete in the 2008 North American Solar Challenge, a 2,400-mile race scheduled for July 13-22.

It's reported that Texas-based United Supermarkets LLC has retrofitted low-temperature and medium-temperature refrigerated display cases in all of its 47 stores with a GE ecomagination product, an LED solution from Lumination, a GE Consumer & Industrial business. In all, United retrofitted more than 3,600 doors in its reach-in door merchandisers by replacing traditional T8 and T12 fluorescent lamps with the GE LED lighting.

It’s reported that Philips has used LED fixtures to light an entire office building in Paris. The office, owned by Generali and located at 100 Champs-Elysées Avenue, Paris, "marks a milestone in lighting history" according to Philips. The company claims that, for the first time, functional office lighting powered entirely by LEDs goes hand in hand with scenic and atmospheric effects that are also based on LEDs.

In China, A government crackdown on white-box handset shipments has affected LED shipments from LED packaging company Harvatek since the beginning of 2008, with the effect becoming increasingly worse, according to industry sources.In the fourth quarter of 2007, revenues from China's white-box market accounted for 27% of Harvatek's revenues. In the first quarter of 2008, that proportion fell to 15% and will drop to 5-10% this quarter, the sources noted. For all of 2007, 25% of Harvatek's revenues came from China's white-box market.