Amsterdam, The Netherlands – Royal Philips, the global leader in lighting, today celebrates another milestone in connecting people with the things they love through light. Philips and Syfy announce a new app for Philips Hue which will make television history by syncing a TV movie with lighting to create an immersive home entertainment experience.

From today, fans in the United States who pair the Syfy Sync app with their Philips Hue bulbs or lamps will be able to enjoy Sharknado and Sharknado 2 on TV with added, immersive light effects from a specially designed “light track” – a visual soundtrack.  Hue will add a heightened layer to the movie-watching experience, enveloping viewers in the onscreen action through ambient lighting effects such as  changing colors and flashing ‘lightning’ as the storm approaches, or gory red when the sharks attack.

“With Philips Hue, we are leading the way in digitizing lighting and making it more intuitive, more exciting and smarter, allowing people to enjoy light in new ways,” says Jeroen de Waal, General Manager Philips Connected Lighting. Philips believes that by 2020, the majority of households will have connected lighting in some form which brings limitless possibilities and benefits, for example with Hue:

• Letting light add a new dimension to home entertainment making it more immersive whether it’s TV, movies, gaming or music
• Connecting light to the heating system, blinds and other devices
• Creating personalized light scenes with up to 16 million colors or tones of white light to enhance any mood, moment or occasion or enhance your living space

Already apps such as Ambilight + Hue and Hue Soccer Cup have allowed people to create more immersive viewing experiences at home, for example with lights flashing when a goal is scored and illuminating the room in your team’s colors. Syfy Sync is further proof of Hue’s potential to bring people right to the heart of the action when enjoying their favorite movies or shows.

Thanks to Philips Hue’s open API and platform, anyone can download the software developer’s kit and get creative with light. To date, over 180 apps for iOS and Android have been published by developers eager to explore an exciting new frontier in apps, allowing people to experience and enjoy light in new ways. Themes such as music, ambience creation and entertainment are proving popular, as well as light apps for hobbies such as astronomy, photography and DJ-ing.

Lighting is an integral part of home automation systems and the ‘Internet of Things’. Aside from Hue’s open platform proving a hit with developers, Philips is pioneering the automated home through connected light by partnering with like-minded companies innovating the ‘Internet of Things’ such as Apple for its new HomeKit platform. Such partnerships will enable Philips Hue lights to communicate with appliances, heating, blinds and more, making people’s lives at home even more simple and convenient.

Philips Hue’s expanding family of products includes A19 bulbs, GU10 and BR30 spotlights, plus a range of standalone designer LED lamps and Light Strips. Most recently, Philips has also launched Philips Hue tap, the world’s first kinetic-powered, web-enabled light switch, allowing for fast and convenient pre-set control to complement the Hue app. Further products, apps and partnerships will continue to be announced over the coming months, giving people even more choice as to how they wish to bring the power, fun and future of connected lighting into their homes.