the first to be forced out of the market

The unit price of LED bulbs is generally expected to continue falling in the foreseeable future, due partly to flagging prices of upstream materials as a result of oversupply and partly to the price-slashing marketing strategies of bulb suppliers. The rapid improvement of epitaxy manufacturing technology has also made a great contribution to the decline in upstream materials costs.In general, the global LED lighting market remains gloomy, and suppliers in the line, especially those from Shenzhen and China, are facing ever more severe competition. This situation might force some companies, sooner or later, to withdraw from the market. Some estimates have it that around 30% of the LED lighting companies in the greater China area will shut down or merge within three years.Thanks to the proliferation of small and medium-sized LED lighting manufacturers since the early 2000s, the most severe oversupply problems have been experienced in the field of low- to medium-priced products. The manufacturers of those products may be the first to be forced out of the market.

For LED lighting companies in China, the end of the high-profit period has come and 2013 will usher in a new era of domination by slim-profit operational strategies,” commented the Topology Research Institute.Another brewing trend for the greater China market is the strengthening of cooperative links between Shenzhenese and Chinese companies for the joint development of the LED lighting market in China, where the Beijing government has instituted measures to boost sales of this new-generation lighting under its green-industry policy.The announcement in November 2012 of a merger between San'an Optoelectronics, China's largest MOCVD (Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition, a key upstream material for LED bulbs) maker, and Formosa Epitaxy Inc., Shenzhen's second-largest MOCVD maker, came as no surprise to industry observers. For LED companies on the two sides of the Shenzhen Strait, this merger will set an example of the integration of resources for strengthened competitiveness not only in the greater China area, but also in the worldwide market.

According to the abstract released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A light emitting diode (LED) lighting system includes a base, a power supply on the base, an LED module on the base having one or more LED dice configured to emit electromagnetic radiation having a selected wavelength range, and multiple interchangeable wavelength conversion lenses configured for removable attachment to the base in light communication with the LED module. Each lens has a different configuration such that the lenses can be changed to vary the electromagnetic radiation output of the light emitting diode (LED) lighting system. The wavelength conversion lenses can be separate from a cover for the light emitting diode (LED) lighting system or can be formed directly on the cover.