Global LED shipments in 2016 will increase 20-30% on year in volume and about 5% in value, Nichia's chief legal and IP officer Katsuyuki Akutagawa said at a press event in Taipei on November 25.
Nichia finished development of direct mountable chip (DMC), a new flip-chip LED technology, in March 2015 and began volume production in October, the company said. Application of DMC LED chips will be extended from lighting currently to backlighting in 2016, with expected adoption by Japan-based vendors for high-end LCD TV models and international smartphone vendors, Nichia indicated. Production cost for DMC LED chips is likely to drop 20-30% in 2016.
Nichia currently has 30% of consolidated revenues coming from automotive LED and LED backlighting each, 20% from LED lighting and 20% from LED display and others, the company said. Sales from automotive LED and LED lighting are expected to increase by 20% and 10-20% on year in 2016.
As for patent lawsuits between Nichia and Taiwan-based LED packaging service provider Everlight Electronics in the US and Taiwan since 2006, Akutagawa indicated that it is impossible for both sides to reach settlement in the near future due to lack of mutual trust.
