1st Silicon and Taiwan's Premier Microelectronics Development Sign Agreement For Representation in Taiwan, China, Korea.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

KUCHING, Malaysia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 16, 2001

1st Silicon (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. and Premier Microelectronics Development Corporation of Taipei today announced a sales representative cooperative partnership for an ambitious representation plan that will bring greater awareness of 1st Silicon's foundry services to chip designers throughout Taiwan, Korea and China.

1st Silicon VP of Sales, Andrew Brown, remarked, "By signing Premier Microelectronics, 1st Silicon is expanding its sales presence through some of Asia's newest emerging areas in chip designs. This is part of our planned business expansion as a maturing foundry. Working through Premier will let us engage the Taiwan market more directly. We want to communicate the availability of 1st Silicon's service as a reliable additional source to the many Taiwanese companies searching for an alternative foundry from a geographical area outside of their historic earthquake- and typhoon-prone location. The strength Premier gives us in Korea, Taiwan and the new design centers of China will prove a significant part of 1st Silicon's over-all sales expansion efforts."

Mr. Y.S. Yeh, Chairman of Premier Microelectronics offered an optimistic view of opportunities open to 1st Silicon and stated that, "1st Silicon is a great addition to our product portfolio that allows us to provide Taiwan's, China's, and Korea's IC industry with an alternative choice when searching for a foundry partner. We believe that the combination of 1st Silicon's services and Premier's expertise will help develop market opportunities."

Mr. Y.S. Yeh continued, "As opportunities for Asia's markets increase, Premier is expanding to cover Taiwan, China, and Korea. This channel organization enables 1st Silicon to easily do business with major accounts located in those areas. In addition to our experienced engineering support team, Premier commits to provide our customers with excellent services that shorten the time to market cycle."

Mr. Brown concluded, "Premier is helping us communicate the message that 1st Silicon works with each customer individually to help them develop products for manufacturability. 1st Silicon's focus on providing service excellence and effective foundry support, are enhanced considerably by Premier's approach to customer support. Premier staff will soon join 1st Silicon's sales team to support business opportunities in the greater Asia region."

About Premier Microelectronics Development Corporation

Premier Microelectronics Development Corporation, a public listed company on the Taiwan stock exchange, is headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, with satellite offices in Hongkong, Shanghai, Nanking, and Shenzen. Premier is a leading distributor/representative of semiconductor components, subsystems and silicon IPs for major computer, communication, consumer, and IC design companies.

About 1st Silicon (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.

1st Silicon is a dedicated semiconductor foundry founded in 1998 by the Malaysian State of Sarawak. 1st Silicon's 200mm wafer fab, with a capacity in excess of 30,000 wafers per month, became operational in Q3 2000. Volume production with 0.25im digital and mixed signal CMOS technology began shipping in Q1 2001. Geometries of 0.18im and below will soon follow. 1st Silicon's customers include its technology partner, SHARP, and other major semiconductor companies. The Company has its headquarters in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia, and a US registered subsidiary corporation located in San Jose, California. Please visit 1st Silicon's homepage at www.1stsilicon.com for more information.

Note: "1st Silicon" and the 1st Silicon logo are trademarks belonging to 1st Silicon (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.