According to a recent story in Reuters, the University of California is suing five major retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, Target Corp, Ikea AB, and Bed Bath & Beyond Inc, over infringement among foreign suppliers for patents related to filament (“vintage” style) LED lamps. The University claims the retailers should enter license agreements and requested the Federal Trade Commission look into the retailers’ failure to require foreign suppliers to honor the patents.

The OSRAM acquisition just got a whole lot more interesting. On August 11, AMS AG, an Austrian company specializing in sensors for iPhones, submitted a fully financed proposal to OSRAM Licht AG for an all-cash takeover offer for 100% of the share capital of OSRAM at a price of €38.50 per share, 10% above the July offer made by Bain Capital and The Carlyle Group. This is an offer totaling about $4.1 billion.

In the latest salvo in the U.S.-China trade war, the Trump Administration announced a 10% tariff on the remaining $300 billion in Chinese imports not already taxed, starting September 1. This will include lamps and ballasts.

As previously reported in LightNOW, China has signaled that it may use its near monopoly on rare earths–used in a wide variety of products including fluorescent lamps and LED lighting–as a weapon in its trade war with the United States. David Shiller, President of Lighting Solution Development, argues that while this may be disruptive, there may be a bright side.

A bidding consortium composed of Bain Capital and The Carlyle Group has presented to the boards of OSRAM Licht AG a legally binding transaction offer for the public takeover of all the shares of the company.

Signify recently announced it has launched a new range of LiFi systems, branded Trulifi, which leverages existing and future professional luminaires. Instead of using radio signals (such as WiFi, 4G/5G, Bluetooth, etc.), Trulifi uses light waves to enable reliable and secure two-way wireless communications at speeds far above most conventional workplace wireless technologies.

Acuity Brands, Inc. recently announced it has acquired WhiteOptics, LLC, a New Castle, DE-based manufacturer of advanced optical components used to reflect, diffuse, and control light for LED lighting used in commercial and institutional applications.

The City of Detroit has filed a lawsuit against California-based LED lighting manufacturer Leotek Electronics USA, claiming more than 20,000 of the 25,000+ streetlights purchased and installed less than five years ago are failing, with the manufacturer refusing to honor its 10-year warranty.

H.E. Williams, Inc. has announced the acquisition of Platformatics, Inc., a provider of network-based systems for the smart building Internet of Things (IoT) industry.