Research Frontiers Licenses SPD 'Smart' Window to ThermoView
22 March 2000
Research Frontiers Licenses SPD 'Smart' Window Technology to ThermoView Industries, Inc.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. and WOODBURY, N.Y.--March 22, 2000--users to control the amount of light coming through their windows
without the need for shades, blinds or curtains
ThermoView Industries, Inc. (AMEX:THV), (America's Home Improvement Company), and Research Frontiers Incorporated (Nasdaq National Market:REFR) today jointly announced that ThermoView has been granted a worldwide (outside of Korea) non-exclusive license to manufacture and sell SPD "smart" windows which use Research Frontiers' patented fast-responding SPD light-control technology. A smart window using SPD film will enable users to electrically and instantly control the amount of light passing through windows. SPD film can be controlled either automatically (by means of a photocell or other sensing or control device) or adjusted manually by the user.
In addition to minimum annual royalties, Research Frontiers will receive a royalty of 5% of net sales of licensed products sold by ThermoView Industries. With the signing of this new license agreement, ThermoView becomes the fourth major company, and the first manufacturer/distributor specializing in residential replacement windows and doors, licensed by Research Frontiers to produce SPD "smart" windows.
SPD "smart" windows using SPD film will compete for a share of the estimated 20 billion square feet of flat glass produced worldwide each year, and will also provide significant opportunities for the much larger retrofit market for modifying conventional existing windows to become "smart." SPD "smart" windows can provide controllable degrees of light transmission with little or no haze when activated. When used in conjunction with low-E glass, which reflects heat, and other commercially available materials, SPD smart windows will also block ultraviolet light and promote energy efficiency. This will not only save energy, but will also reduce fading of rugs, pictures, furniture and other materials which are exposed to sunlight.
"We have been very favorably impressed with the speed and efficiency with which ThermoView has expanded its business, and we look forward to working with them to facilitate the production and wide distribution of SPD 'smart' windows within the residential replacement window market," stated Robert L. Saxe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Research Frontiers Incorporated. "ThermoView is one of the leading consolidators in the replacement window industry and is expected to grow rapidly in coming years. Research Frontiers is pleased to welcome ThermoView to our expanding group of licensees which are involved in the commercial development of SPD technology."
"As a leading integrator of businesses and technologies within the $8 billion replacement window/door industry, we are very enthusiastic about the potential for SPD light control technology to enhance the value of our custom vinyl window products," commented Steve Hoffman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ThermoView Industries, Inc. "We believe that 'smart' windows will play an important role in the future of our industry, and this license agreement will allow ThermoView to benefit from a proprietary technology that can provide significant benefits to homeowners."
"We are pleased that SPD technology is being embraced by many different industries," observed Joseph M. Harary, Executive Vice President of Research Frontiers Incorporated. "We have now licensed and trained key industry leaders in the chemical and film-coating industries to produce various components used to make SPD products, and this has made it progressively easier for end-product manufacturers and distributors, such as ThermoView, to get involved with innovative products which use SPD technology."
Research Frontiers Incorporated has now licensed the following companies to use SPD technology:
| - | Dainippon Ink and Chemicals Incorporated-the world's largest manufacturer of organic pigments; |
| - | General Electric Company ; |
| - | Glaverbel, SA of Belgium-majority-owned by Asahi Glass, one of the world's leading automotive glass manufacturing companies; |
| - | Global Mirror GmbH & Co. KG-the world's largest manufacturer of commercial vehicle mirror systems; |
| - | Hankuk Glass Industries Inc.-Asia's largest flat glass producer (outside of Japan); |
| - | Hitachi Chemical Co., Ltd.-an independent public company listed on the Tokyo and Osaka stock exchanges, which is majority-owned and part of Hitachi Ltd.; |
| - | Material Sciences Corporation-the world's second-largest producer of specialty window films ; |
| - | ThermoView Industries, Inc. - a leading integrator of businesses and technologies within the replacement window industry (AMEX:THV); |
| - | Vision Ease Lens-the world's largest producer of polycarbonate lenses which is owned by BMC Industries, Inc. |
About Research Frontiers Incorporated
Research Frontiers is a technological leader in the development and licensing of suspended particle devices (SPDs)-electrically operated light control devices using proprietary particle suspensions and films. SPD technology permits light transmission to be electrically controlled instantly, either automatically (by means of a photocell or other sensing or control device) or adjusted manually by the user. Research Frontiers' proprietary SPD technology enables users to control the amount of light passing through windows, skylights, eyewear (including prescription and non-prescription sunglasses and sports goggles), automotive sunroofs, sunvisors and rear-view mirrors, as well as enabling brighter easier to read flat panel information displays for use in computers, television, telephones and other electronic instruments and products. Research Frontiers currently has agreements in effect covering smart windows, automotive mirrors and sunvisors, eyewear, displays and other products with major international corporations and holds or has rights in over 350 patents and patent applications on SPD technology throughout the world. Licensees of Research Frontiers who incorporate SPD technology into end products will pay Research Frontiers a royalty of 5-10% of net sales of licensed products under license agreements currently in effect. Research Frontiers' common stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol "REFR". Additional information about Research Frontiers can be found on the Internet at http://www.refr-spd.com.
About ThermoView Industries, Inc.
Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, ThermoView Industries, Inc. designs, manufactures, markets, installs and services custom vinyl new and replacement windows and replacement doors, primarily for the existing home market. The Company's strategy is to pursue both internal and external growth opportunities within the $8 billion replacement window/door industry. To date, ThermoView has acquired or merged with 14 companies with combined yearly revenues in excess of $110 million. ThermoView Industries' common stock is listed on the American Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "THV". Additional information on ThermoView Industries can be accessed on the Internet at http://www.thermoviewinc.com.
This press release includes statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, acceptance of either ThermoView's or Research Frontiers' products or technology in the marketplace, competitive factors, dependence upon third-party vendors, and other risks discussed in the various filings made by these companies with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, ThermoView and Research Frontiers undertake no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.