Transmitting data via light is hardly anything new, but what about sending and receiving information via visible light? Tokyo-based start-up Outstanding Technology is currently working on a system that uses visible LED light for the transmission of data and audio signals.

And because LED lighting may replace both incandescent and fluorescent lighting one day, the company expects “lighting infrastructure to become communication infrastructure” in the near future.

Outstanding Technology’s system makes it possible to set up a PC that accesses the web via LEDs and light receivers alone (see the video embedded below for a demo), for example. The company says in tests, it succeeded in voice transmission over a distance of 13km. Apparently, data transmission speed can reach up to 160Mbps.

Another selling point of the system is that it works with indirect, reflected or scattered light (picked up from a wall, for example) as well. Outstanding Technology is currently trying to monetize its system while trying to make it work underwater, too.

Here’s the video, in which CEO Murayama provides more insight: