Unidym, Inc., a majority
owned subsidiary of Arrowhead Research Corporation (NASDAQ: ARWR), today announced
that it has signed a definitive agreement to create a joint venture partnership
with Wisepower, a publicly traded Korean company (KOSDAQ: 040670), to market
and co-develop Unidym's proprietary film and electronic ink products into
the Korean touch panel and display industries. The newly formed entity will
be called Unidym Korea.
“South Korea is becoming an increasingly important geography for our
target markets in touch panel, LCD and other display and solar markets,”
said Mark Tilley, CEO of Unidym. “We are honored to be working with a
company of Wisepower's caliber. Wisepower has demonstrated its ability
to effectively build new businesses in electronics. By creating Unidym Korea
in partnership with Wisepower, we will have the local presence to support our
efforts with major Korean display manufacturers and accelerate our business
development activities with local partners.”
“With its superior product offerings and dominant intellectual property
portfolio, we believe Unidym is the world leader in CNT electronics,”
said Gi Ho Park, CEO of Wisepower. “We look forward to working with Unidym
to expand this business in Korea. Furthermore, we intend to explore the possible
applications of CNTs in the areas of LEDs and rechargeable batteries. This cooperation
with Unidym will enable Wisepower to use new materials such as CNTs to enhance
its rechargeable batteries and LED product position in the market.”
Unidym will retain a significant ownership position in Unidym Korea in exchange
for a license to the new company for certain intellectual property. Under the
arrangement, Unidym has agreed to supply its carbon nanotube based transparent
conductive film to Unidym Korea. Wisepower has agreed to contribute operating
capital and provide local manufacturing, sales, and distribution expertise.
Unidym is a leader in carbon nanotube-based transparent, conductive films (TCFs)
for the electronics industry. TCFs are a critical component in devices such
as touch panels, displays, and thin-film solar cells. For example, both touch
panels and LCDs typically employ two TCF layers per device. Unidym's TCFs offer
substantial advantages over the incumbent technology, indium-based metal oxides,
including: improved durability, lower processing costs, and lower overall cost
structure.