NOVATO, Ca., July 21, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- SpatiaLight, Inc. (Nasdaq:HDTV), a manufacturer of state-of-the-art liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) microdisplay products, announced today that it has entered into a two-year LCoS Supply Agreement with LG Electronics Inc. (LGE), a worldwide leader in electronics manufacturing based in Korea, providing for SpatiaLight to sell sets of its imagEngine(tm) LCoS microdisplays to LGE. The LCoS Supply Agreement is the result of SpatiaLight and LGE working together pursuant to a joint development agreement entered into in May 2003. During the course of that work, LGE performed extensive testing on prototype sets of 1920 pixel by 1080 pixel resolution LCoS microdisplay devices delivered by SpatiaLight to LGE.
The Agreement
Under the terms of the LCoS Supply Agreement, LGE has committed to purchase from SpatiaLight a minimum of 21,000 sets of three 1920 pixel by 1080 pixel resolution LCoS microdisplay devices (LCoS Sets) over an initial six-month ramp-up delivery period commencing in January 2005. The Agreement forecasts that LGE will commence mass production-scale purchases of LCoS Sets from SpatiaLight in the second half of 2005. The rights and obligations of SpatiaLight and LGE under the Agreement are subject to a limited quantity of trial LCoS Sets, a portion of which have already been delivered to LGE, meeting certain final technical specifications set forth in the Agreement. SpatiaLight and LGE have agreed to work together to the extent necessary to ensure that these trial LCoS Sets meet the final specifications.
The Agreement provides that SpatiaLight will be the exclusive supplier of three-chip 1080p High Definition LCoS microdisplay products to LGE in 2005 and potentially in 2006 as well. LGE will have the exclusive right in Korea to purchase 1080p High Definition LCoS microdisplay products from SpatiaLight in the first half of 2005 and potentially in the second half of 2005 and 2006 as well.
The Collaboration
SpatiaLight has worked closely with LGE over the past year and made specially tailored modifications to its new generation of 1920 pixel by 1080 pixel resolution SpatiaLight imagEngine(tm) microdisplays for LGE's development of a new line of state-of-the-art 1080p High Definition LCoS based products. LGE intends to sell High Definition LCoS based products to the worldwide consumer market commencing in early 2005.
Comments
Mr. Eunho Yoo, Chief Engineer and Director of LGE commented, "We believe that SpatiaLight's cutting edge LCoS technology is the ideal solution for our new line of LCoS based High Definition products. We are committed to the goal of manufacturing and selling the best LCoS based products available to the consumer market and we are confident that our relationship with SpatiaLight places LGE in a strong position to achieve this objective. We are engaging in an ambitious LCoS based High Definition product development and we have concluded that SpatiaLight's microdisplay products can make our High Definition LCoS based products a success with consumers around the globe."
Mr. Heung-Soo Shin, General Manager of LGE, stated, "SpatiaLight's LCoS chips have yielded exceptional performance results over the past year in extensive testing that we have conducted pursuant to the joint development agreement. Our engineering staff is thoroughly impressed with the quality of SpatiaLight's LCoS microdisplays produced by Dr. Michael Jin of SpatiaLight and his entire technology team. We look forward to continuing to work with SpatiaLight in this exciting endeavor."
Dr. David Hakala, Chief Operating Officer of SpatiaLight, commented, "We thank Mr. Yoo and Mr. Shin for their kind words. LGE is a heralded worldwide leader in consumer electronics and we consider it an honor and a privilege to enter into this Agreement with them. I have believed for several years that LCoS technology would become a substantial factor in the High Definition video product market, and with this Agreement in place, LGE stands on the doorstep of becoming the first electronics manufacturer to deliver this next generation technology to consumers all around the world. This is an extremely exciting time for our Company and we look forward to continuing to work with all of the fine people of LGE in making this Agreement a mutual success."
Establishment of SpatiaLight Korea, Inc.
SpatiaLight has formed SpatiaLight Korea, Inc. (SLK), a Korean corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of SpatiaLight, Inc., for the purpose of establishing a large-scale manufacturing facility in Korea and for facilitating business relationships in Korea and throughout all of Asia. SLK will enter into a long-term lease for 540,000 square feet of land in Jinsa, Gyeongnam province, in the Republic of Korea, on which SLK will immediately commence operations to construct its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with the capacity to meet mass production-scale demand from SpatiaLight's customers and potential customers.
About SpatiaLight, Inc.
SpatiaLight, Inc., founded in 1989, manufactures high-resolution LCoS microdisplays for use in High Definition televisions and rear projection monitors. The Company's proprietary SpatiaLight imagEngine(tm) LCoS microdisplays represent a solution for OEMs of large-screen rear projection monitors, home theater projection systems, video projectors, and other display applications. Utilizing more than 6.2 million pixels, SpatiaLight's LCoS Sets are designed to be incorporated into High Definition televisions and rear projection monitors. A SpatiaLight display unit, another Company product, is comprised of three SpatiaLight imagEngine(tm) microdisplays fitted onto a light engine designed by SpatiaLight and Fuji Photo Optical Co., Ltd. and manufactured by Fuji. SpatiaLight is committed to developing microdisplay technologies that will become the standard for the next generation of rear projection display devices and to providing OEMs with the most cost effective, high resolution microdisplays in the industry. For more information about SpatiaLight, please see the Company web site: www.spatialight.com.
About LG Electronics Inc.
LG Electronics, Inc. (Korea Stock Exchange: 6657.KS) was established in 1958 as the pioneer in the Korean consumer electronics market. The company is a major global force in electronics and information and communications products with more than 64,000 employees working in 76 overseas subsidiaries and marketing units around the world. With annual total revenues of more than US $16.9 billion (non-consolidated), LG Electronics comprises three main business companies: Digital Display & Media, Digital Appliance and Telecommunication Equipment & Handset. LG Electronics' goal is to enable the intelligent networking of digital products that will make consumers' lives better than ever. For more information, please visit www.lge.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release includes forward-looking statements that reflect SpatiaLight's current expectations about its future results, performance, prospects and opportunities. SpatiaLight has tried to identify these forward-looking statements by using words and phrases such as "may," "will," "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "plan," "should," "typical," "preliminary," "we are confident" or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to SpatiaLight and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause SpatiaLight's actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities in the remainder of 2004 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties are outlined in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent report on Form 10-K.