Corporate | 4 October 2005 07:30

Singulus Technologies Delivers its First Production Machines for Blu-ray Disc

Corporate-news transmitted by DGAP. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. —————————————————————————— SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES Delivers its First Production Machines for Blu-ray Disc Kahl am Main, October 4, 2005 – SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES (SINGULUS), the global market leader for optical disc, is currently delivering its first Blu-ray production systems to major international customers. This makes SINGULUS the first European line manufacturer to place Blu-ray replication lines in test production. An alliance was formed with SONY in Nov. 2004 for the development of these inline systems for the Blu-ray single layer format. The SINGULUS BLU-LINE was presented to the Hollywood majors by SINGULUS and SONY since April 2005, after successful testing in Kahl. Following the launch of the first HD DVD SPACELINE II production lines in the summer of 2005, SINGULUS has once again positioned itself early on as the premier supplier for 3rd generation format equipment, regardless of which format will finally win out with consumers. This excellent position all but assures SINGULUS’ continued market leadership for the new generation of optical discs. Background: Blu-ray Disc / HD DVD and HDTV The seasoned PAL-television in Germany with its 576 visible lines will be discarded in the near future and replaced by the new high definition television (HDTV). With a higher resolution the pictures can then be presented in an impressive quality. The television sets have to meet certain requirements to offer the viewers the complete HDTV-experience. One of the requirements is that the sets can at least display 720 lines. For an optimum HD display a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels is required. In order to record high definition movies, five times the storage capacity of a DVD is necessary. There are two formats fighting to become the next standard for optical discs: Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD. Both are able to record HDTV- programs: Blu-ray Disc with 25 or 50 gigabyte and HD DVD with 15 or 30 gigabyte of storage capacity. On a disc with 25 gigabyte a two-hour movie in high definition quality can be stored. In contrast to a DVD, which uses a red laser, a blue laser is employed for both new formats. The shorter wavelength of the blue laser enables writing significantly smaller signal markings on an optical data medium. Meanwhile, both formats are scheduled to be launched in 2006. SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES AG, Hanauer Landstrasse 103, D-63796 Kahl/Main, ISIN: DE0007238909, WKN: 723890 For further information please contact us at MEDIA-TECH Showcase & Conference: Maren Schuster, Investor Relations,Tel.: + 49 (0) 160 960 90 279 Bernhard Krause, Corporate Communications, Tel.: + 49 (0) 170 920 29 24 Company profile SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES is the only global manufacturer of CD and DVD replication systems offering a comprehensive line of optical disc manufacturing processes. The company covers the entire value chain and is the global market leader in the most important areas such as mastering and DVD replication. The company’s global market share for CD and DVD equipment amounted to roughly 65% in 2004. Its share for mastering equipment was even higher. The company’s core competence is “vacuum thin film technology”. This is a process of applying thin layers of material, often measured in nanometers, in a vacuum by means of cathode deposition. We view ourselves as a growth company. Within this context, the company has intensified its search for new key applications in vacuum thin film technology since 2002. Two new business sectors have been developed in the interim, each with the potential to become an independent growth entity: – TMR thin film coating machines for MRAM. MRAM is expected to become the standard technology for new semiconductor memory storage for the next generation of computers. – Optical coating applications, i.e., automated machines for the inline coating of ophthalmic lenses and other optical substrates. The company considers itself well-equipped for the future due to its technological core competence and the opportunities presented by the emerging HD DVD and Blu-ray third generation optical discs. SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES – Smart Solutions to Drive the Future End of announcement (c)DGAP 04.10.2005 —————————————————————————— WKN: 723890; ISIN: DE0007238909; Index: TecDAX Listed: Geregelter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin- Bremen, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover, München und Stuttgart 040730 Okt 05