Governments around the world have passed measures to phase out incandescent light bulbs for general lighting.
The aim is to encourage use of more energy-efficient lighting alternatives, such as compact flourescent lamp (CFLs) and LED lamps.
Brazil and Venezuela started to phase them out in 2005, and the European Union, Switzerland and Australia started to phase them out in 2009. Likewise, other nations are planning scheduled phase-outs: Argentina, Russia and Canada in 2012, and Malaysia in 2014.
Although the United States is not phasing out incandescent light bulbs, it has set minimum efficiency standards for lighting which preclude most legacy incandescent designs; these minimum standards phase in between 2012 and 2014.
