Leading Flat Panel Display Materials Companies to Present at DisplaySearch US FPD Conference; Corning to Keynote FPD Materials Session; Early Bird Attendee Registration Price Ends February 28.

AUSTIN, Texas -- DisplaySearch, an NPD Group Company and the worldwide leader in display market research and consulting, is proud to announce that four leading companies in the FPD materials market and DisplaySearch will present during the FPD Materials session at the upcoming 8th Annual DisplaySearch US FPD Conference. 3M, Corning, Hoya and Fuji Photo Film will provide their insights into this critical FPD industry segment; components and materials account for as much as 75% of total costs for large LCD TVs.

The 8th Annual DisplaySearch US FPD Conference is being held at Loews Coronado Bay Resort in San Diego on March 21-23, 2006.

"Because FPD materials markets tend to grow with increases in display area size, they are some of the highest growth, and often most profitable, segments of the display industry. Without sufficient supply of materials, not enough flat panel displays can be manufactured to meet surging end market demand. Because this arena addresses the basis of overall cost reduction, concerns about component limited supply, technology issues and also indicates rapid expanding market segments, it is of interest to all members of the FPD supply chain," states Charles Annis, VP of FPD Manufacturing Research at DisplaySearch.

The FPD Materials session will feature these five speakers on Wednesday, March 22:

--James P. Clappin, President of Corning Display Technologies, will kick off the session with a keynote discussing the outlook for the TFT LCD glass market including the challenges and opportunities associated with the continued growth in substrate sizes and scale of the TFT LCD market. With glass input capacity growing at approximately 40% CAGR this decade, discussions on the glass market promise to be a highlight of the conference.

--Charles Annis, VP of FPD Manufacturing Research at DisplaySearch, will examine the role of materials and components in the LCD industry by investigating technical trends, by breaking down costs and by forecasting the revenue opportunities for glass, color filters, backlights, liquid crystal and more.

--Bill Smyth, Senior Manager of Marketing and Development in the Optical Systems Division of 3M, will define what Brightness Enhancement Films (BEF) are and how they are used, along with a market and technology trend outlook for this market segment. BEFs provide considerable brightness performance, but with a cost trade off. Mr. Smyth will address the contradictory demands of the TV market to improve performance while reducing costs.

--Asao Shikata, Chief General Manager of the Mask Division at Hoya Corporation, will explain the role of photo masks in the LCD manufacturing process and how they enable overall cost reduction. The mask market is predicted to expand almost 40% in 2006. This presentation will provide an in-depth look at an under-exposed FPD components market segment.

--Katsumi Makino, Deputy General Manager at Fuji Photo Film, will review the market and technical trends for polarizers, compensation and anti-reflection films, and describe how each can increase screen image performance. With well over 70% of worldwide capacity, Fuji Photo Film is by far the dominant provider of TAC film, a critical material used to manufacture polarizers. Of special interest to TV makers, a tight supply of TAC is expected in 2006, which could potentially constrain the LCD TV market.

For a full agenda with speaker biographies and abstracts, please visit http://www.displaysearch.com/usfpd2006/agenda.html.

Attendees are encouraged to register for the conference by February 28 to save $100. Register online at www.displaysearch.com/usfpd2006. Attendees are also encouraged to reserve their room directly with the Loews Coronado Bay Resort by calling 800-815-6397. The special conference rate of $205/night is only available until the room block is filled.

The 8th Annual DisplaySearch US FPD Conference is sponsored by 3M Vikuiti, LG.Philips LCD, Samsung, Syntax-Brillian, Micronas, Coherent Lambda Physik, Silicon Image and the USDC. Media supporters include Cleverdis, CustomRetailer, Dealerscope, HomeToys and Veritas et Visus. The official newswire sponsor is Business Wire.

For more info or to sponsor and exhibit, please contact Kendra Smith, Director of Events, at 512-459-3126 x107 or [e-mail].

About DisplaySearch

DisplaySearch, an NPD Group company, has a core team of 33 employees located in North America and Asia who produce a valued suite of FPD-related market forecasts, technology assessments, surveys, studies and analyses. The company also organizes influential events worldwide. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, DisplaySearch has regional operations in Chicago, Hong Kong, Houston, Kyoto, San Diego, San Jose, Seoul, Shenzhen, Taipei and Tokyo, and the company is on the web at www.displaysearch.com.

About The NPD Group Inc.

Since 1967, The NPD Group has provided reliable and comprehensive consumer and retail information for a wide range of industries. Today more than 1,400 manufacturers and retailers rely on NPD to help them better understand their customers, product categories, distribution channels and competition in order to help guide their business. Information from The NPD Group is available for the following major vertical sectors: apparel, appliances, automotive, beauty, consumer electronics, food and beverage, foodservice, footwear, home improvement, housewares, imaging, information technology, music, software, travel, toys, video games, and wireless. For more information, visit www.npd.com.