April 2000

NEWS & ANALYSIS
3-lb DLP Projectors will Debut at INFOCOMM
We predict that the hottest news from INFOCOMM this year will be the arrival of 3-pound projection systems. Last year it was 5 pound projectors based upon the DLP (Digital Light Processing) technology from Texas Instruments that stole the show and it looks like a repeat for this year.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics to Field Rear-Pro Monitor
The drumbeat to introduce a rear-projection desktop monitor got a bit louder this month as Samsung Electro-Mechanics Company, Ltd. (SEM, Suwon, Korea) announced they intend to field a 25-inch model this summer. The product will feature a graphics card to support the native SXGA resolution of the display, and an analog TV tuner section so it can act as a PCTV convergence device. Pricing will reportedly come in around $2500 and the monitor will be a slim 12 inches deep.

InFocus-Proxima To Merge
Two leaders in the multimedia projection market, InFocus Systems and Proxima , have agreed to merge. The move, if approved by shareholders and regulators, would create the market's largest projection product supplier offering a much broader line-up.

New Interconnect Technology Unveiled
One of the most expensive and costly aspects of microdisplay fabrication is the backend process, which consists of assembly and packaging tasks. In particular, interconnecting the fine pitches required with microdisplays can be tough and complicated. Now, a new wirebondable cable technology has been developed by W.L. Gore & Associates that promises to simplify, cost reduce and speed up this process.

eMagin Goes Public; Raises $27M
eMagin Corporation, formerly FED Corporation, began trading on the American Stock Exchange on March 17, 2000 under the ticker symbol, EMA. At the same time, the company announced it had completed a $27M private equity offering led by Citigroup and Verus International Ltd. "The completion of this financing, as well as new access to the capital markets, will allow us to continue our transition along our business plan from R&D into initial manufacturing this year, said Gary Jones, President and Chief Executive Officer of eMagin.

TFS Announces Pre-Production Shipments to Inviso
In an apparent response to recent production announcements from competitive LCOS (liquid crystal on silicon) providers, Three-Five Systems says they are now shipping SVGA microdisplays in pre-production volumes to partner Inviso.

APPLICATIONS
Digital Cinema
A year ago we reported that the digital cinema era may have started at the ShoWest Exhibition in Las Vegas. Since then, both Texas Instruments and the Victor Company of Japan (JVC) have been busy improving the technology, lining up platform developers, and showcasing the technology to consumers, Hollywood executives and everyone else needed to get the industry rolling. At ShoWest this year, it was TI and it's partners that seem to be stealing the show, however. JVC has been strangely quiet.

Additional coverage on Barco, Kodak, Christie Systems, Imax, TI, JVC, and NEC Technologies.

Headsets
Long round up of recent news from Daeyang E&C, Inviso, Microvision, Liteye Microdisplay Systems, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, i-O Display Systems, and Vista Medical Technologies.

Front Projection
New product and business news from Lightware, Hitachi America, JVC Professional Products Company, 3M Visual Systems Division, and Prokia Technology Corporation.

LCD/DLP Rear Projection
Technology and product news from The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), JVC Professional Products Company, and Davis North America.

Wearables
Important patent news from Xybernaut Corporation, as well as other developments with Microvision, Symbol Technology, IBM, InfoCharms, and International Data Corp.

MARKET INTELLIGENCE
DTV Marketplace Trends and Product Reports Now Available
TFT-LCD Monitors Continue to Challenge CRT Stronghold
Stanford Resources Partners with Strategies Unlimited to Introduce First OLED Displays Report
First Report on Plasma Display Panels From Stanford Resources
Nikkei Microdevices Yearbook Covers FPD Industry
Digital Imaging Goes Mainstream

BOTTOM LINE
Microvision Invests in New Markets
Three-Five Has Record Sales
Xybernaut Revenues Nearly Quadruple
n-Vision Merges with Advanced Technology
Barco Continues Recovery Process
Balzers Merges Optics Divisions
Scipher to be included in FTSE 250
Photera Technologies Buys Laser Power Assets
Universal Display's 1999 Loss Increases
CAE Reports Strong Earnings Growth

MOVERS & SHAKERS
Moves by Kenney R. Roberts, Bruce Spenner, David McDonald, Glenn Sherman, Michael Mooney, Bill Speer, Steven Barlow, Ed Oppenheim, and James Sanduski.