Cree, a market leader in LED lighting, today announced revenue of US $427.7 million for its first quarter of fiscal 2015, ended September 28, 2014. This represents a 9% increase compared to revenue of $391.0 million reported for the first quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP net income for the first quarter was $11.1 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, a decrease of 64% year-over-year compared to GAAP net income of $30.5 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2014. 

Taiwanese LED manufacturer Lextar has approved leading U.S. LED manufacturer Cree’s NT $83 million investment in the company during a recent shareholder meeting, according to several Taiwanese media reports.

Cree a market leader in LED lighting, announced preliminary estimates of financial results for its first fiscal quarter ended September 28, 2014. Revenue for the quarter is expected to be approximately US $428 million, with earnings expected below the company’s previously announced target range of $0.25 to $0.30 per diluted share on a GAAP basis. These preliminary financial results are subject to completion of the company’s customary quarterly closing and review procedures.

Cree introduces the ZR High-Efficacy (HE) LED troffer, an industry-leading commercial specification-grade troffer designed to reduce energy consumption by 70 percent when compared to traditional fluorescent troffers, enabling greater design freedom for customers looking to achieve LEED certification. Cree’s vertical integration and LED lighting system development expertise has outpaced the industry once again by bringing a commercially available 150-lumens-per-watt LED troffer to market. 

Harvatek Corporate announced that U.S. LED manufacturer Cree, has taken legal action against the Taiwanese company to enforce its six patents in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin on September 15th, 2014. Although, Harvatek has not received an official copy of the complaint yet, is is aware of the dispute and preparing reactive measures.

U.S. LED manufacturer Cree’s stocks dropped to US $41.1 recently, after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stocks from buy to neutral, according to a report by China Post. As Cree’s lighting revenue increases, Taiwanese manufacturers believe Cree’s business focus is turning towards downstream.

Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq: CREE) has filed patent infringement lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin to prevent Harvatek Corporation and Kingbright Corporation from infringing Cree’s patented intellectual property. These patents, among other things, protect Cree’s LED component portfolio, including Cree’s white light LEDs.

Cree introduces the XLamp® MH-B LED, a new generation of high-power LEDs that delivers better performance and a more-effective way to achieve low-cost systems than mid-power (MP) LEDs. Using Cree’s high-reliability ceramic package technology, the XLamp MH-B LED is able to operate at higher temperatures than MP LEDs with no reduction in rated lifetime, enabling an impressive 60 percent reduction in heat-sink size and cost. Using up to 26 times fewer LEDs than MP LEDs to achieve the same level of performance.

Epistar and FOREPI stockholders have approved the proposed merger between the two companies today, according to a report by Cynes.com. FOREPI stocks will be swapped at a rate of 3.448 per Epistar share. 

Cree introduces the MR16 Series LED lamp with TrueWhite® Technology, that delivers the soft, diffused light of a traditional 50-watt halogen MR16 lamp, and is designed for global compatibility with virtually all existing sockets. With a suggested retail price of USD 25, Cree MR16 TrueWhite LED lamps consume up to 83 percent less energy and are designed to meet ENERGY STAR® qualification to deliver a rapid payback of less than one year.*

At a press conference held in Taipei today, David Su, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Lextar spoke about how the company sealed the US $83 million investment deal with leading U.S. LED manufacturer Cree.

The new agreement between leading U.S. LED manufacturer Cree and Taiwan electronics firm Lextar, which stipulates Cree will invest $US 83 million in the Taiwanese firm, comes as a surprise, according to LEDinside, a subsidiary of the Taiwan-based market research firm TrendForce. Under the agreement, Cree and Lextar will also cooperate on LED chip supply and royalty-bearing licenses for certain Cree LED chips. 

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall alert for Cree CXB Series LED high-bay indoor light fixtures over reported cases of broken glass lenses. Consumers should stop using this product unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.

Leading U.S. LED manufacturer Cree surprised the LED industry on Aug.26, 2014 with the announcement of an investment partnership totaling US $83 million to purchase 83 million Lextar shares at a price of NT$30 (US $1.00) per share. The company also stated the partnership included long-term LED chip supply agreement and royalty-bearing license agreements for certain Cree LED chips. Why has Cree decided to invest in Lextar now?

Cree, a market leader in LED lighting, and Lextar Electronics Corporation (TAIEX: 3698), today announced that the companies have entered into an agreement whereby Cree will make an investment in Lextar and the companies will enter into a supply agreement for sapphire-based LED chips. As part of the agreement, Cree will invest approximately US $83 million to purchase 83 million Lextar shares at a price of NT$30 (US $1.00) per share. 

As the global LED lighting demand kicks off, patent wars are becoming the inevitable. There are, however, tricks in patent applications. U.S. LED manufacturer Cree for example cast an encompassing network with its proposal of “my patents include all light emitting products.” In comparison, Taiwanese LED manufacturers have been too conservative in their approach, which can easily be avoided.

Cree, a market leader in LED lighting, today announced revenue of US $436 million for its fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, ended June 29, 2014. This represents a 16 percent increase compared to revenue of US $375 million reported for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, and an 8 percent increase compared to the third quarter of fiscal 2014. GAAP net income for the fourth quarter was US $30 million, or US $0.24 per diluted share, an increase of 6 percent year-over-year compared to GAAP net income of US $28 million, or US $0.23 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013.

 Walgreens Co., one of the nation’s leading retailers, selected energy-efficient LED lighting by Cree, Inc.  for its Goodyear, Ariz. location, delivering superior illumination while lowering the total cost of ownership compared to fluorescent lighting alternatives. The 14,820 square-foot store now features Cree® LED troffers, linear luminaires and downlights, saving the retailer thousands in annual energy and maintenance costs.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) recently completed its LED lighting overhaul to the East Span of the iconic San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge. After three years of testing and designing custom fixtures, Musco Lighting provided an energy-efficient LED lighting solution featuring Cree® (Nasdaq: CREE) XLamp® XM-L LEDs to illuminate the picturesque suspension tower and bridge deck.

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced the competitive selection of nine projects for solid-state lighting (SSL), in response to the SSL R&D funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0000973. The one- to two-year projects will focus on the areas of Core Technology Research, which involves the application of fundamental scientific concepts to SSL technology; and Product Development, which involves using the knowledge gained from basic or applied research to develop or improve commercially viable SSL materials, devices, or systems. 

Cree continues to relentlessly expand America’s best-selling LED bulb portfolio with the 3-Way Cree® LED Bulb. Unlike compromised incandescent and prior LED alternatives with light levels that were only useful as two-way bulbs, the 3-Way Cree LED Bulb provides three light levels distinctly visible to the naked eye, delivering the perfect illumination for any application—from task lighting to ambient lighting. The 3-Way Cree LED Bulb emits warm, incandescent-like light while consuming up to 90 percent less energy. 

Cree, Inc. introduces the OSQ™ Area LED luminaire, the first LED area luminaire specifically designed and priced to replace the nearly 54 million* outdated high intensity discharge (HID) area parking lights installed in the United States. Delivering an unprecedented combination of industry-leading performance and low-profile design at nearly half the price of comparable LED luminaires, the Cree® OSQ Area LED luminaire provides up to 70 percent energy savings with a quick payback of two years.**

Cree introduces the new XLamp® XM-L2 EasyWhite® LED, delivering more than 1,100 lumens of color-consistent light from a 5mm x 5mm package and enabling a 38 percent gain in light output and efficacy as a drop-in upgrade to the first-generation XM-L EasyWhite LED. Built on Cree’s EasyWhite technology, which combines the industry’s tightest color binning and intense light output from a single LED, the XM-L2 EasyWhite LED is optimized to replace halogen technology.

Cree, Inc. introduces the XLamp® XP-L LED, the first commercially available single-die LED to achieve breakthrough efficacy of up to 200 lumens per watt (LPW) at 350 mA. Delivering up to 1226 lumens in a 3.45 mm x 3.45 mm package, the game-changing Cree® XLamp XP-L LED enables an immediate performance increase of 50 percent or more as a drop-in upgrade for lighting designs based on Cree’s market-leading XLamp XP-G LEDs. 

Cree intends to begin construction on a new production building for a project that remains unknown. The construction could begin as early as this summer, according to North Carolina newspaper The Herald Sun.

As high data rate applications put more strain on LTE wireless networks, innovative solutions such as small cell base stations (BTS) and carrier aggregation will be needed to bridge the bandwidth gap in high traffic areas. In response to broader bandwidth demand, Cree, Inc. introduces a family of GaN HEMT RF transistors that delivers industry-leading bandwidth and high efficiency performance to support today’s busy LTE networks. 

Commercials are one of the best tools companies use to get their product noticed and their name out there. A good commercial can make a product and brand memorable. Cree is doing just that. The North Carolina based company is already ahead of competitors with their low priced consumer friendly LED bulbs, but have now gone one step further with their humorous advertising campaign. 

Less than one year after the successful launch of the TW (TrueWhite®) Series Cree® LED Bulb in California, Cree, Inc. is expanding the bulb’s availability across The Home Depot® stores nationwide. Delivering an unprecedented Color Rendering Index (CRI) of 93, the TW Series Cree LED Bulb displays colors true and natural, ideal for use in kitchens, bathrooms and closets, where color quality matters most. The 40-watt replacement TW Series Cree LED Bulb retails for $13.97 and the Cree 60-watt replacement bulb retails for $15.97.

Cree introduced a series of LED T8 replacement tubes yesterday in their bid push the lighting market towards 100 percent adoption of LEDs. The LED T8 series is designed to replace linear fluorescent tubes. 

The City of San Luis Obispo continues to move forward with their Climate Action Plan by upgrading their existing high pressure sodium street lights to Cree® LED lighting, achieving exceptional savings in maintenance and energy consumption while also dramatically improving visibility for drivers and pedestrians alike.