LED heavyweights tie up three-year supply
Durham, NC, chip manufacturer Cree has signed a three-year LED supply deal with Germany-based Osram Opto Semiconductors.
The supply deal covers Cree s entire LED chip product line, including standard, mid-bright and "XBright" LEDs.
Exact details on volumes, pricing and product mix have been agreed for an initial period, and will be reviewed regularly between now and June 2008.
The two companies last signed a supply deal in October 2003 (see related story), and Osram bought at least 500 million LED chips under that agreement.
"Osram fulfilled its previous purchase commitment far earlier than expected and this [new] agreement reflects the way in which the two companies have conducted business over the past several quarters," said Cree CEO Chuck Swoboda.
According to Swoboda, the new deal is structured to allow both parties to react quickly to sudden changes in demand from customers.
Osram OS president Rüdiger Müller attributed his company s success in part to the value of Cree s technology, flexibility and service.