New DisplaySearch PDP Cost Model And Report Now Available - Greater Than 60% Cost Reductions Expected Through 2011

June 27, 2007

DisplaySearch, the worldwide leader in flat panel display market research and consulting, is pleased to announce the launch of its Quarterly PDP Cost Model and Quarterly PDP Cost Model and Report. The Quarterly PDP Cost Model is an interactive Excel-based simulation tool that creates an accurate bill of materials for 26 different plasma panels found in TVs and Public Displays ranging in size from 37" to 103". The model provides manufacturing costs as well as cash costs, total costs, panel prices and profits/margins for all panels from Q1'06 to Q4'11 and is updated every quarter based on surveys of Japanese and Korean panel and component suppliers. In addition, the model allows the user to select a wide variety of parameters such as -- Panel size and resolution -- Glass size -- Glass type -- Glass thickness -- ITO coating -- Number of driver IC channels -- Single or dual scan driving -- Ag paste amount -- Chassis type -- Number of shifts -- Interest rate -- SG&A -- Depreciation method -- Date of full depreciation Because many aspects of PDP technology are changing, the model includes technology transitions and allows the user to select "average" values when there is a technology transition like glass thickness or number of driver IC channels. The model also allows the user to compare costs and margins for up to five different substrate sizes to determine which substrate size is the most cost effective for each panel. The Quarterly PDP Cost Model and Report features the PDP cost model along with a greater than 100-slide PowerPoint report explaining why costs are falling and graphically representing the cost trends at major panel sizes. According to Yoonsung Chung, Director of FPD Material and Technology Analysis for DisplaySearch, "Our new PDP cost model and report are excellent tools for understanding where PDP costs and margins are today, where they are likely to go in the future and how they are going to get there. As plasma is a relatively immature technology, there remain numerous opportunities for additional cost reduction, particularly in the area of electronics which can account for more than a third of total plasma panel costs depending on the panel size, resolution and substrate size. PDP manufacturers and their component suppliers are working feverishly to reduce costs and improve profitability to gain share in the highly competitive flat panel TV and Public Display markets. This report tracks their progress and their cost reduction/profitability outlook and predicts greater than 60% cost reduction between 2007 and 2011 for most plasma panels." Examples of near term opportunities for cost reduction include -- Driver ICs with increased pin count from 192 to 256 and through additional reductions in address voltage to 384 -- Driving circuitry with reducing multi-layer PCB to single layer PCB and with packaging discrete FET switching components -- Logic circuitry by packaging controller, communication and memory ICs into a single ASIC -- Changing chassis materials from aluminum to steel or galvanized iron and reducing thickness -- Continued improvements in luminous efficiency to greater than 3 lumens per watt, which reduces sustain voltage, power supply costs and all driver IC costs -- Reducing glass thickness from 2.8 mm to 1.8 mm -- Reducing Ag usage by enhancing the production process and altering the electrode material For more information on DisplaySearch's Quarterly PDP Cost Model and Quarterly PDP Cost Model and Report, please contact DisplaySearch sales at 512-687-1511, sales@displaysearch.com or your local office in Asia and Europe. PDP and LCD costs will be discussed in detail at DisplaySearch's next Japan Forum on July 23-24 in Tokyo, Japan. Please visit http://www.displaysearch-japan.com/seminar13/index.html for additional information. About DisplaySearch DisplaySearch, an NPD Group company, has a core team of 46 employees located in Europe, 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, Houston, Kyoto, London, San Diego, San Jose, Seoul, Shenzhen, Taipei and Tokyo, and the company is on the web at http://www.displaysearch.com.

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http://www.displaysearch.com
http://www.displaysearch-japan.com/seminar13/index.html