Under the terms of an agreement, Toshiba will provide Walsin Lihwa with state-of-the-art production technology for amorphous TFT LCDs. This will give Walsin Lihwa the capability to manufacture displays on glass substrates as large as 550mm 650mm, the size required for production of large size TFT LCDs.

TFT LCDs are already the display of choice for portable personal computers and such applications as car navigation systems. Gains in size and resolution, combined with increasing price competitiveness, are now opening up new uses, including as displays for desktop computers. Taiwan, the world's largest manufacturing base for personal computers, is already one of the single largest markets for TFT LCDs, and demand there is expected to grow in coming years. Toshiba's agreement with Walsin Lihwa positions the companies to meet that demand.

Toshiba is an acknowledged leader in TFT development and manufacture. At Display Technologies, Inc., a Japan-based joint venture with IBM, the company has manufactured TFT LCDs on 550mm 650mm glass substrates since 1995. Following the new agreement, this advanced manufacturing technology will be provided to a new Walsin Lihwa subsidiary that will be dedicated to TFT display manufacture. Toshiba will dispatch engineers to the new company to support its start-up and to train its engineers, and will also provide training to Walsin Lihwa engineers dispatched to Japan.

Toshiba's decision to transfer the technology to Walsin Lihwa builds on earlier successful collaborations between the companies. In 1995, Toshiba licensed DRAM technology to Winbond Electronics Corporation, a Walsin Lihwa group company, and this now includes 0.25 micron process technology.

Outline of Walsin Lihwa Corp.

Chairman	Yu-Lon Chiao
Employees	1,500
Business	One of Taiwan's largest manufacturers of wire and cables, with subsidiaries and affiliates in the electronics and specialty steels sectors.
Address	12/F., No.117, Sec.3, Min-Sheng East Road, Taipei, Taiwan Tel: +886-2-719-2211; Fax: +886-2-719-5497