Packaged LED lighting revenues reached US$6.6 billion in 2014, with roughly 70% revenue generated from mid- to low-power LEDs, according to IHS.
The chip-on-board (COB) share was only 8%, despite the fact that only a small number of companies began promoting COB products just a few years ago. Citizen was the largest provider in 2014, with approximately 20% market share; followed by Cree, with 15%. The COB market is forecast to increase at a CAGR of 20%, from 2014-2020, as they are used to replace high-power LEDs in outdoor lighting applications. The high-end commercial market also shows potential for COB.
The high power LED market is still dominated by several international companies, including Cree, Lumileds, and Osram. In fact, the top three suppliers combined comprised 65% of the LED market in 2014.
Nichia led in the mid- to low-power LED market, followed by Seoul Semiconductor and Samsung. The mid- to low-power LED market is much more fragmented, due to the number of China companies competing in this market. The largest China packaged LED company, MLS, boasted 5% share of the market in 2014, following Samsung. Mid-power LEDs are more cost effective for indoor lighting and, with technology improvements, this category might also compete with high power LEDs in the future, said IHS.
