(SINGAPORE, November 12, 2009) - SV Probe ("SV"), a wholly owned subsidiary of SGX mainboard-listed Ellipsiz Ltd, today introduced GoldTouch™, a new Liquid Crystal Display ("LCD") probe card exclusively for the testing of LCD driver integrated circuits ("IC") with gold pads. The GoldTouch™ probe card is targeted towards the growing LCD IC market, providing a probe performance that improves wafer-level test consistency and significantly increases probe card life, critical for LCD driver device manufacturers trying to lower test costs.
Conventional LCD driver probe cards have a brief life span, largely due to the fragility of the probes, leading to costly repairs and replacements. The GoldTouch™ probe card offers a much lower cost of probe card ownership by utilizing a durable probe material proven to greatly reduce probe tip wear and damage, extending the life of the probe card. GoldTouch™ is capable of a significant increase in the number of touchdowns with minimal probe tip deterioration, a considerable improvement over traditional LCD driver probe cards.
SV has formulated a phased rollout of the GoldTouch™ probe card. Currently, we are in the initial stages, customer testing and qualification of the new probe material. It is our plan to ramp up to full production of this probe card in the fourth quarter of this year. Kevin Kurtz, President and CEO of SV said, "We are very excited with the GoldTouch™, this new probe card will deliver a significant cost savings for our LCD driver customers. The introduction of GoldTouch™ is perfectly aligned with the recovery of the LCD IC market, and we believe it will enable SV to acquire a larger share of the LCD driver probe card business."
During the recent ISMI Symposium in Austin, Texas, Jim Feldhan, President of Semico Research, noted that the IC industry is experiencing shortages in certain product sectors, including LCD drivers, and predicted that the worldwide semiconductor industry could grow 20% in 2010. Semico also expects more than a 30% CAGR over the next few years in two consumer product sectors, Netbooks and GPS Devices, both of which incorporate LCD driver ICs (semico.com, Oct 2009). GoldTouch™ LCD driver probe cards are essential tools in the electrical testing of semiconductor wafers before they are diced, packaged and assembled in electronic products such as televisions, mobile phones, computers and digital media players.
Note: GoldTouch™ is a pending trademark.
Investor Relations contact:
Howe Weng Khiong
Investor Relations, Ellipsiz
Office: 65-6311-8500, Email: wkhowe@ellipsiz.com
About Ellipsiz Ltd
Ellipsiz is a leading probe card company and semiconductor service provider serving the semiconductor and electronics industries. Our probe card division, SV Probe is the 4th largest probe card company in the world (VLSI, 2009). We provide comprehensive range of semiconductor equipment, outsourced services and consumables products.
Ellipsiz currently has 9 production facilities worldwide and a global network of 24 sales and customer support centers. We are headquartered in Singapore and have operations in Australia, China, France, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Taiwan ROC, Thailand, USA and Vietnam.
Ellipsiz is listed on the main board of the Singapore Exchange. We employ more than 1,300 people worldwide and achieved revenue of S$150 million for the financial year ended 30 June 2009. Please visit us on the web at www.ellipsiz.com.
SV Media Contact:
Karen Lynch
Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, SV Probe
Office: (480) 635-4700, Email: klynch@svprobe.com
About SV Probe
SV Probe is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ellipsiz Ltd. It is the fourth largest probe card company in the world (VLSI, 2009) and operates probe card factories located in the United States, China, Vietnam and Taiwan R.O.C., as well as an extensive network of customer support and sales offices.
SV Probe offers a diversified product line including memory, vertical and cantilever probe cards along with design and product application support services. Its global customer base is comprised of leading chip manufacturers and fabless design companies. Please visit SV Probe on the web at www.svprobe.com.
