HSINCHU, Taiwan, March 29, 2004 - UMC (NYSE: UMC; TSE: 2303), a world leading semiconductor foundry, today launched its e-Workshop online technology seminar. This enhanced web offering provides customers with detailed, comprehensive data on UMC's mainstream offerings including its production-qualified 0.18um, 0.15um, and 0.13um process technologies as well as in-depth information on IP, design, and backend service resources.

Jackson Hu, CEO of UMC, said, "We are pleased to have developed this valuable online information resource as a unique service for our customers. The e-Workshop is designed to save customers time and effort by using the convenience of the Internet to deliver complete and accurate information on UMC's mainstream technologies and services."

In the past, UMC held annual technology workshops at various locations around the world. However, customers indicated that technical material distributed at these events soon became outdated, while timing or geography often prevented many from attending. The e-Workshop gives customers the confidence that they can now access the most current technical data from UMC using any Internet-enabled computer, as UMC will update the information periodically.

Hu added, "The e-Workshop is not a replacement for our traditional means of communication with customers. UMC will continue to provide the close, personalized service our customers are accustomed to through our traditional sales and support channels. However, our customers will find that the e-Workshop is a welcome enhancement to our existing services as it provides an added dimension of customer convenience."

UMC's e-Workshop can be accessed at http://www.umc.com.

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 Singapore-based UMCi has just entered volume production. 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.