Royal Philips Electronics Acquires Color Kinetics

LED product lines will be co-branded Philips/Color Kinetics.

Mairi Beautyman -- Interior Design, 6/21/2007

Electronics manufacturer Royal Philips Electronics, headquartered in the Netherlands, has entered into an agreement to purchase LED lighting systems and technologies manufacturer Color Kinetics. Expected to close in the third quarter of 2007, the $791 million deal includes $34 per share in cash for all shares and options.

Color Kinetics has a lengthy history that includes 15,000 installations and the development of critical control and power technologies. Currently, the firm has 71 issued patents under its belt. With the acquisition, Philips aims to “make its technology the de facto platform for intelligent LED lighting worldwide,” according to company officials.

The merged company will operate under the name Philips Solid-State Lighting Solutions and be headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts. LED product lines will be co-branded Philips/Color Kinetics and marketed in the U.S. and Canada by Color Kinetics' sales force.

"We have long said that LEDs are the future of illumination—not a passing novelty—and we've supported that view with unwavering focus on the research and development of new technologies, sales channels, partnerships and industry initiatives to make it a reality,” says Bill Sims, President and CEO, Color Kinetics. “Today we announce our biggest and most significant step towards putting our core technology and IP at the heart of every future application of intelligent LED lighting.”