UMC and Ricoh Broaden 0.13um Manufacturing Partnership

Ricoh builds on volume production success of its existing 0.13um products at UMC with the introduction of several new image-processing ICs

Hsinchu, Taiwan, and Osaka, Japan, September 17, 2003 -- UMC (NYSE: UMC), a world leading semiconductor foundry and Ricoh Company Ltd., today announced that the two companies have expanded upon their 0.13um partnership success with the introduction of several new image-processing ICs based on this leading edge process technology, with working silicon already achieved for one of the new products. UMC has been in volume production for Ricoh's 0.13um GPU chip with excellent manufacturing yields, and is applying this knowledge and experience to rapidly develop Ricoh's new line of 0.13um products.

Mr. Kenji Wakabayashi, director of Imagining System LSI Development Center at Ricoh Company Ltd, commented, "We are impressed with UMC's outstanding 0.13um support and proven world class manufacturing. The low defect densities achieved during volume production for Ricoh's existing 0.13um products at UMC has allowed us to realize the increased performance and cost benefits of this technology. We look forward to leveraging this 0.13um success for Ricoh's upcoming products to reinforce the company's status as a leading advanced LSI IC provider for Japan's competitive image processing segment."

"This important milestone underscores the close partnership between Ricoh and UMC and our ability to deliver the many advantages of 0.13um technology to them,"said H.J. Wu, president of UMC in charge of the Japan Business Group and also president of UMCJ. "The smaller die sizes associated with 0.13um designs combined with volume production and high yields translate into greatly increased productivity. These are benefits that Ricoh can directly pass on to their customers."

UMC is currently in 0.13um volume production for numerous customers with ICs that serve a wide range of applications from markets that include consumer, computer and networking products. Sales from products manufactured on 0.13um represented 6 percent of UMC's revenue in Q2 2003.

About Ricoh
Ricoh Company Ltd. is a leading global manufacturer of office automation equipment and digital imaging systems, including copiers, printers, facsimile machines, DVD+RW/+R drives and media, and related supplies and services.
Ricoh is also prominent in digital cameras and advanced electric devices. The Electronic Devices Company within Ricoh manufactures application-specific integration circuits that process images for its MFPs and printers, as well as advanced LSIs, and power ICs that conserve electricity, second-generation battery ICs, real-time clock ICs, and analog LSIs for mobile phones. The company enjoys large shares in the markets for PC interface LSIs, DVD+RW/+R controllers, and application-specific standard products based on JPEG 2000 and other systems technologies.
Ricoh has 133 consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates in Japan and 262 overseas, together employing around 74,600 people. In the fiscal year ended March 31, 2003, net sales were 1,738-billion-yen and net income was 72.5-billion-yen. For more information, visit the company's website, http://www.ricoh.com.

About UMC
UMC (NYSE: UMC, TSE: 2303) is a leading global semiconductor foundry that manufactures advanced process ICs for applications spanning every major sector of the semiconductor industry. UMC delivers cutting-edge foundry technologies that enable sophisticated system-on-chip (SOC) designs, including 90nm copper, 0.13um copper, embedded DRAM, and mixed signal/RFCMOS. UMC is also a leader in 300mm manufacturing; Fab 12A in Taiwan is currently in volume production for a variety of customer products, while the Singapore-based UMCi will begin pilot production later this year. UMC employs over 8,500 people worldwide and has offices in Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, Europe, and the United States. UMC can be found on the web at http://www.umc.com.

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