White LED development (4) will eliminate the threat in the bud

In the field of GaN-based LEDs such as blue and white LEDs , Japanese domestic manufacturers are still in a dominant position. The reason is that the scale of mass production ranks first in the world. Although the overall mass production of GaN-based LED chips of Taiwanese manufacturers exceeded the overall size of Japanese domestic manufacturers at the end of 2004, "there are still very few products that can compete directly with Japan" ( Toyota Synthetic ).

The reason why Japanese companies rarely deal directly with Taiwanese manufacturers is because the quality of LEDs produced in Taiwan is still very low. "Taiwan manufacturers' blue LEDs are roughly divided into three types. They are A-grade products whose quality is not enough for low-priced products in our company's products, and B-class products with lower quality than A-class products but with certain requirements. And Class C products that can only emit blue light. Class A products can compete with Japanese products, but only account for 10% to 15% of the total" ( Nichia Chemical Industry).

Although there are not many products that can compete with Japan in the production of LEDs in Taiwan, Japanese domestic manufacturers and European and American manufacturers still agree that "Taiwan manufacturers will pose a threat." The reason is that the production capacity of Taiwanese manufacturers is growing at twice the rate, the number of Class A products is increasing, and the performance is also increasing. The influence of Taiwanese manufacturers on the market has also gradually expanded. It is estimated that the total monthly production capacity of Taiwanese manufacturers' blue LED chips will reach 1 billion at the end of 2004, and the A-grade products will exceed 100 million. This figure is close to the capacity of other GaN-based LED manufacturers outside the Nichia chemical industry. The price is also 1/3 to 2/3 cheaper than Japanese, American and European LED manufacturers.

Nichia Chemical takes the lead in taking counter measures against Taiwanese manufacturers

For Taiwanese manufacturers whose influence in the LED market is increasing, Japanese domestic manufacturers intend to compete by exercising patent rights and improving product strength. There are roughly two strategies for its strategy. One is to increase the number of products that compete with Taiwanese products while exercising patent rights against Taiwanese manufacturers to quickly suppress Taiwanese manufacturers. Another strategy is to increase the number of products that do not compete with Taiwanese manufacturers by exploiting new uses that require high-brightness LEDs in order to exercise patent rights when Taiwanese manufacturers are involved in products for these uses.

The Nichia Chemical Industry intends to use the former as its core strategy to launch a positive attack on Taiwanese companies with patents, mass production and price weapons. “When a patent is infringed, the lawsuit is filed, and when the opponent launches an attack with a monthly capacity of 1 billion, the capacity is also increased to 1 billion to compete” (the company).

Nichia Chemical Industry believes that there is a sharply growing market in the areas where Taiwanese manufacturers excel. The next new market for liquid crystal displays and automotive products will not be formed until two to three years later. During this transition period, the market for mobile phone keypads with advantages such as LEDs from Taiwanese manufacturers will expand. "Our company's share of the keypad market is zero" (Nichia Chemical Industry), so if you do not attack the base of Taiwanese manufacturers, you will miss an important market that is expected to grow. According to the company, when adopting the second strategy, product development aimed at new markets needs to break through many technical obstacles. It takes a long time. If the proportion of such product development is too large, it will be at a disadvantage when compared with Taiwanese manufacturers. status. While exploring new uses, it is necessary to form a siege of Taiwanese manufacturers through the exercise of patent rights and mass production.

For the Nichia chemical industry, it is also a threat for Taiwanese manufacturers to have an advantage in the Chinese mainland market strategy. The mainland market is expected to grow rapidly due to the demand for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. The major LED manufacturers in Japan, the United States and Europe have not obtained patents for GaN-based LED technology in China. Even if GaN-type LEDs infringing patent rights appear on the mainland market, if there is no patent on the mainland, no lawsuit can be filed.

In the case of manufacturing such LEDs in Taiwan, Japanese, American and European manufacturers have filed patent infringement lawsuits in Taiwan because they obtained patents in Taiwan. But like PCs and mobile phones, if Taiwanese manufacturers move their production bases of GaN-based LEDs to the mainland, the road to legal means will be blocked. "Targeting the special needs of the Beijing Olympic Games is expected to come out of the negotiations results around 2006. Prior to this, it was intended to suppress Taiwanese manufacturers and establish a sales network in the mainland" (Nichia Chemical Industry).

Taiwanese manufacturers' GaN-based LED production capacity has doubled at an annual rate, and the product price is 1/3 to 2/3 lower than that of Japan, the United States and Europe. The product parameters such as brightness can be compared with the low-priced products of cutting-edge manufacturers. In order to prevent Taiwanese manufacturers from sweeping the market, Nichia Chemical Industry began to formally compete to exercise patent rights. Other Japanese manufacturers have also indicated that they will exercise patent rights. At the same time, it also strengthened production equipment and accelerated product development.