NEWS AFTER THE BELL......
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Friday February 25, 4:57 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Illinois Superconductor Corporation
Illinois Superconductor Launches New Product Family for Industry's Smallest Superconducting Receiver Front-end Systems
Patented ATP(TM) Technology Combines the Best Filter Performance With Zero Downtime Architecture
MOUNT PROSPECT, Ill., Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Illinois Superconductor Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: ISCO - news; ISC) announced today the introduction of an expanded family of superconductor-based receiver front-end products based upon its proprietary ATP(TM) Technology which combines the industry's best superconductor-based filter with a unique failure-proof architecture that ensures continued operation even in the event of a loss of electric power. This allows the smallest total-system footprint of any superconducting filter solution on the market.
``Superconducting filters have been recognized for some time as the best solution for controlling out-of-band interference that can impact quality and reduce capacity of a wireless system,' said Dr. George Calhoun, Chief Executive Officer of Illinois Superconductor. ``The perceived drawback of the technology has been the issue of the reliability of the cryogenic component required to maintain the cold temperature that the superconducting material needs. No operator wants to introduce additional uncertainty, and therefore we often see operators hesitating to commit to the use of superconducting filters without keeping conventional filters as a backup which raises cost and increases the size of the full filter system.
``We have solved this problem with ATP(TM) technology. Essentially ATP(TM) is a new filter architecture which operates as a high-performance superconducting filter system when it is cold, and reverts gracefully to the performance of a conventional filter if power is lost and the system warms up. This means that an operator can eliminate the use of bypass circuits and conventional back-up filters that must be installed today to ensure 100% availability. In addition, in actual operation the size of the total filter system in the receiver front-end is smaller for ATP(TM) than for any other superconducting system.'
Dr. Amr Abdelmonem, the company's Chief Technology Officer, commented further: ``ATP(TM) -- which stands for 'all temperature performance' -- is an advanced architectural concept that can only be implemented with thick-film HTS material technology. You cannot do this with today's thin-film techniques. In general thick film HTS is associated with superior performance- better Qs, better intermodulation performance, and better out-of-band interference rejection. There has been a lot of discussion of the supposed size disadvantage of thick-film. Yet the measure that counts is not just the size of one small element, but the total receive filter system. Moreover, we believe that our newest filter architectures will bring the size of the HTS element itself quite close to the best thin-film implementations. When you factor in the cryogenic elements, electronics, and packaging, we believe the basic system platform will be quite comparable in size and far superior in performance. And of course, the thin-film products still need the entire duplicate system of conventional filters as a back-up -- which we eliminate completely with the ATP(TM) design. So in terms of size, as well as cost, ATP(TM) should be the best superconducting solution on the market.'
Dennis Craig, the President and Chief Operating Officer of ISC, added ``It is important to emphasize that this is a fully commercialized technology. We have sold ATP(TM) systems to a number of different customers after our limited introduction of ATP(TM) last year, and we have now a substantial field experience with these systems. ATP(TM) is stable, reliable, and we believe this is the definitive solution for superconducting filter applications of the kind we typically see in the U.S. market.'
The Company is planning to offer ATP(TM) systems in several configurations, including:
The ATP(TM) 150 which is targeted at rural applications where the need is for good performance at an aggressive price-point, and
The ATP(TM) Classic which gives superior filter performance for more demanding applications faced with higher levels of interference.
``The ATP(TM) Classic is really focused on the emerging CDMA capacity-crisis,' said Dr. Calhoun. ``We believe that the CDMA operators are now starting to realize that superconducting front-ends are probably the least expensive way for them to gain capacity in their major markets, where the interference is typically the worst. Our controlled tests with CDMA operators indicate that better filter performance can gain back 30-50% of capacity that is otherwise lost due to out-of-band interference and inband noise. Meanwhile, the ATP(TM) 150 is a good solution for rural areas where the stress on the system is less acute, and cost is more of the dominant factor.'
Illinois Superconductor offers its products in a range of configurations, supporting all cellular and PCS bands, with and without notch filters, and with or without cryogenic low-noise amplifiers. ISC has sold more than 300 systems to operators in the U.S., with millions of hours of field operational experience. In addition, ISC is developing ultra-high-performance superconducting front-end products, including both transmitter and receiver products, for the emerging third generation of 3G wireless systems expected to replace current wireless systems in the next several years.
``We want to position ISC as the leader in superconducting solutions for 3G,' said Dr. Calhoun. ``The ATP(TM) technology is the right answer for today's 1G and 2G systems. 3G is going to be far more demanding in terms of filter performance than today's systems, and we expect to develop the best solutions for 3G using the high-performance of thick film superconducting designs.'
Illinois Superconductor Corporation is a leader in the commercialization of high temperature superconducting technology for the wireless telecommunications industry. The Company develops, manufactures and markets radio frequency (RF) products to enhance the quality and capacity of cellular telephone, personal communications services and other wireless telecommunications services. More information about Illinois Superconductor Corporation is available on the Company's Internet web site at ilsc.com .
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and reflect the Company's current expectations regarding the future results of operations, performance and achievements of the Company. The Company has tried, wherever possible, to identify these forward-looking statements by using words such as ``anticipates,' ``believes,' ``estimates,' ``expects,' ``plans,' ``intends,' and similar expressions. These statements reflect the Company's current beliefs and are based on information currently available to it. Accordingly, these statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and contingencies, which could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements for 2000 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, such statements. These important factors include, without limitation, the Company's history of net losses and the lack of assurance that the Company's earnings will be sufficient to cover fixed charges in the future; the degree to which the Company is leveraged and restrictions imposed on the Company under its existing debt instruments which may adversely affect the Company's ability to finance its future operations, uncertainty about the Company's ability to compete effectively against better capitalized competitors and to withstand downturns in its business or the economy generally; the adverse effects on liquidity of the Company's common stock because of its de-listing from the Nasdaq National Market in June 1999; continued downward pressure on the prices charged for the Company's products due to the competition of rival manufacturers of front end systems for the wireless telecommunications market; the timing and receipt of customer orders; the Company's ability to attract and retain key personnel; and the effects of legal proceedings. A more complete description of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions is included in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those described under the heading ``Risk Factors' in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1998. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements to reflect new events or uncertainties.
SOURCE: Illinois Superconductor Corporation
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