MicroEmissive Displays is named in Tornado Insider’s Top 100 for Europe’s most promising and innovative companies, which have clearly demonstrated that the technology they are commercializing today will change the way life is tomorrow

MicroEmissive Displays Ltd, the pioneer of light emitting polymer based microdisplays, today announced the appointment of start-up veteran Alan Bennie as chief financial officer. Bennie brings more than 15 years senior management experience with technology companies to MED. In addition to his financial expertise his appointment further strengthens the company’s business planning, manufacturing and logistics knowledge.

“We are very excited to welcome Alan to MED’s executive team. His last three appointments have been with successful technology start-ups where he has contributed to fund raising from multiple sources as well as the day to day financial health of the companies. Alan’s appointment is a further step in MED’s drive towards successful entry into the microdisplay market”, said Bill Campbell, chief executive officer of the Edinburgh based company.

Bennie joins MED after 7 successful years at video-over-internet start-up IndigoVision PLC where he was part of the original management team and was responsible for funding, acquisitions, operating procedures and alliances. Prior to IndigoVision, he held director level positions at privately held DML Computer where he negotiated a trade sale to StorageTek and Avex Electronics where he was involved in the inward investment to bring Avex to Scotland.

Commenting on Bennie’s appointment, Robin Winning of 3i said, “Alan is well known to us from his time at Indigo. His breadth of experience in the development of early stage companies leaves MED strongly positioned as they transfer their unique technology into a viable business in a high growth market.”

About MicroEmissive Displays Ltd
MicroEmissive Displays Ltd (MED) was founded in late 1999 by Dr Jeff Wright and Dr Ian Underwood as a spin-out from Napier and Edinburgh Universities. The company aims to become the leading provider of microdisplays for portable consumer electronics. Typical applications include electronic viewfinders for high growth market such as digital still camera and camcorders.

Chaired by Professor Peter Denyer, founder and former CEO of Vision Group, the CMOS image sensor company acquired by STMicroelectronics in 1995, the company is financed by 3i, Europe’s leading venture capital company, Scottish Equity Partners, (SEP) and European Venture Partners (EVP) with $12M total investment.

The company has developed intellectual property within light emitting polymer microdisplays and their associated manufacturing process. This IP is further complemented by the license granted by Cambridge Display Technology (CDT) to MED to use their world leading portfolio of intellectual property.

MED is headquartered at the Scottish Microelectronics Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland and has established sale channels in Taiwan and Japan.

Contact details:
Bill Campbell
Chief Executive Officer
Tel: +44 131 650 7764
Email: bill.Campbell@microemissive.com
Or via: www.microemissive.com

MICROEMISSIVE Displays Ltd (MED) announces the appointment of electronics veteran Bill Campbell as chief executive and the completion of a new deal with Cambridge Display Technology (CDT) which has acquired a minority stake in the Edinburgh-based developer of high-resolution, low-power miniature displays.

Campbell, formerly European sales director for California-based Tensilica, which designs tools for the semiconductor industry, brings invaluable experience in securing licencing deals and in steering the rapid growth of a young hi-tech company with strong international sales potential.

“We are delighted to be adding Bill to our management team. He brings a wealth of commercial experience to complement the outstanding technical skills of the founders” said Peter Denyer, MED’s executive chairman and the founder of Vision, an image sensor company which floated in 1995.

MED, which has developed world leading technology, was founded in 1999 by Jeff Wright and Ian Underwood as a spinout from Napier and Edinburgh Universities. The company secured a $9 million financing deal in April and is backed by several venture capital investors including 3i, Scottish Equity Partners and European Venture Partners.

Campbell who has just taken up his post at MED’s headquarters in the Scottish Microelectronics Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland, said “’I was excited by the tremendous market opportunity, initial customer feedback and the expertise of the MED team’.” Campbell was among the senior executive team at Tensilica, a venture-capital backed business headquartered in Santa Clara, California, which was set up in 1997 and is now capitalised at $64 million.

MED has strengthened its board further with the appointment of Paul Strzelecki as a non-executive director. Strzelecki was previously a senior manager in the semiconductor industry with Motorola and also Sony, and is also a non-executive at Indigo Vision PLC, a global leader in embedded live networked video.

“I like to work with companies that have great potential for growth, and MED certainly has that, as its ultra-low power display technology is exactly what the market is demanding” Strzelecki said.

MED, which became a licensee of CDT last year, further strengthened its ties with the company through a deal in which CDT has acquired a minority stake in MED for an undisclosed sum.

CDT owns the key intellectual property (IP) in the light emitting polymer technology which MED uses in its displays. CDT announced last year that MED had become a licensee, gaining access to its portfolio of over 300 patents and patent applications. David Fyfe, chief executive of CDT, commented: “These additions to the management team at MED further justify my belief that MED, through its polymer microdisplays, is uniquely positioned to become a significant player in the microdisplay markets.”

MED’s microdisplays are very small displays viewed via a lens which combine a high quality ‘virtual image’ similar in size to the image on a desktop monitor, with the added benefit of ultra-low power consumption. This enables video, full web-pages and other high resolution images to be viewed on portable and personal consumer electronics products with minimal impact on battery life.

Microdisplays are expected to have application in camcorders, digital cameras, PDA’s, 3G mobile phones, toys, headsets for wearable computing, and a wide range of other headset products.

Market data from DisplaySearch forecasts that the organic light emitting diode (OLED) display technology used by MED, is set to challenge the ubiquitous LCD technology over the next decade, with OLEDs expected to have a 110% compound annual growth rate and to reach a total market value of $2.2 billion by 2006.

MED has initially developed viewfinder product applications for its tiny high resolution displays for use in video camcorders, digital cameras, and toys.

Bill Campbell said, “ These displays can go into all types of mobile devices, and give television picture quality, with ultra-low power consumption at a price which the market will find acceptable. ”

About MicroEmissive Displays Ltd
MicroEmissive Displays Ltd was co-founded in late 1999 by, Jeff Wright, and Ian Underwood as a spin-out from Napier and Edinburgh Universities. The company aims to become the leading provider of microdisplays for portable consumer electronic products. MED, is chaired by Peter Denyer, the founder and former CEO of Vision Group, the CMOS image sensor company, which floated in 1995 and was acquired in 1998 by ST Microelectronics. 3i, Europe’s leading venture capital company invested £1.5 million in September 2000, and led the $9 million funding round, announced in April 2002, that included Scottish Equity Partners, and European Venture Partners. The company has developed intellectual property around light emitting polymer microdisplays and the manufacture thereof, and this IP is further complemented by the license granted by Cambridge Display Technology ( CDT ) to MED to use their world leading portfolio of intellectual property. MED has its headquarters at the Scottish Microelectronics Centre in Edinburgh. The company is set to release first product in 2002. For further information on the company please visit the web-site at: www.microemissive.com or e-mail to: enquiries@microemissive.com

About Cambridge Display Technology Ltd
Cambridge Display Technology (CDT) is a privately held company leading the research, development and commercialization of polymer technology for flat panel displays, lighting, and photovoltaics. CDT’s light emitting polymer (LEP) technology is targeted for use in a wide range of electronic display products used for information management, communications and entertainment. Features include reduced power consumption, size, thickness and weight, very wide viewing angle, superior video imaging performance and the potential to produce displays on plastic substrates. To date, licenses have been granted to Delta Optoelectronics, DuPont Displays, MicroEmissive Displays, OSRAM, Philips, and Seiko-Epson.
CDT is promoting LEP technology development and speeding its commercialization through a global business strategy including co-developments with leading companies in a wide range of display and related technology areas. Founded in 1992, the company is headquartered in Cambridge, U.K. and has a LEP manufacturing development center in Godmanchester, U.K. More information about CDT is available at: www.cdtltd.co.uk

MicroEmissive Displays (MED) today announced the completion and receipt of further investment totalling $9 million dollars. The funding was a mixture of venture capital, corporate investment, lease, and loan financing.

The investment was led by 3i, who provided first round financing to MED in September 2000, and they were joined in a syndicate by existing and new investors that included Scottish Equity Partners (SEP) and European Venture Partners (EVP).

Commenting on the investment, Gary LeSeur of SEP said, “MED have a world leading technology and we believe there is a great opportunity for their low power emissive polymer microdisplays. We are delighted to be investing in MED.” Mark Taylor of EVP added, “The company has brilliant technologists and are adding to a management team which has an impeccable track record in building companies and delivering quality products at high volume, for consumer electronic goods.”

MED’s microdisplays are very small displays that are viewed via a lens, and combine a high quality ‘virtual image’ similar in size to that seen from a desktop monitor, with low power consumption. This approach enables video, full web-pages or high resolution still images to be viewed on portable consumer products without appreciably reducing battery life. Microdisplays are expected to have application in camcorders, cameras, 3G mobile phones, toys, headsets for wearable computing, and a wide range of other headset products.

According to market data from DisplaySearch, the organic light emitting diode (OLED) display technology that MED use, is set challenge the ubiquitous LCD technology over the next few years, with OLEDs expected to have a 110% CAGR and reach a market value of $2.2 billion by 2006.

MED has initially developed viewfinder product applications of their tiny high resolution displays for use in video camcorders, digital cameras, and toys. Peter Denyer, Executive Chairman of MED, said, “The investment will allow the company to continue to make progress into the viewfinder market, where our technology and products have clear advantages over competing microdisplay technologies. We have a great level of customer interest, and we are building long-term partnerships for volume manufacture that will allow us to quickly establish MED as a leading supplier of low power microdisplay technology for the consumer applications that we are targeting.”

About MicroEmissive Displays
MicroEmissive Displays was co-founded in 1999 by, Jeff Wright, and Ian Underwood as a spin-out from Napier and Edinburgh Universities. The company aims to become the leading provider of microdisplays for portable consumer electronic products. MED, is chaired by Peter Denyer, the founder and former CEO of Vision Group, the CMOS image sensor company, which floated in 1995 and was acquired in 1998 by ST Microelectronics. 3i, Europe’s leading venture capital company invested £1.5 million in MED in September 2000. The company has developed intellectual property around light emitting polymer microdisplays and the manufacture thereof, and this IP is further complemented by the license granted by Cambridge Display Technology (CDT) to MED to use their world leading portfolio of intellectual property. MED has its headquarters at the Scottish Microelectronics Centre in Edinburgh. The company is set to announce further board appointments in the near future.

More information available on the internet: www.microemissive.com.

Email to: enquiries@microemissive.com

MED closes 2nd round of funding of $9 million. Investors include 3i plc, Scottish Equity Partners (SEP), European Venture Partners (EVP) and Cambridge Display Technology (CDT)