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NEWS RELEASE
CONTACT:
Norris Battin
The Cooper Companies, Inc.
ir@coopercompanies.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COOPER COMPANIES' UNIT TO ACQUIRE CL-TINTERS
LAKE FOREST, Calif., April 10, 2001 -- The Cooper Companies, Inc (NYSE:COO)
announced today that its CooperVision (CVI) unit has signed a letter of
understanding to purchase privately held CL-Tinters (CLT) a leading manufacturer
of cosmetic contact lenses. Terms were not disclosed. The acquisition is subject
to the execution of definitive agreements and customary closing conditions.
Based in Helsinki, Finland, CLT, with annual revenue of about $4 million, was
founded in 1993 and markets its products through a network of distributors in
Europe and the Far East. CLT has an agreement with CVI to apply color tints to
CVI's Frequency'r' Colors line of aspheric cosmetic contact lenses, which CVI
currently markets in Europe and Canada. The lenses themselves are manufactured
by CVI.
CVI Chief Operating Officer Gregory A. Fryling said that the acquisition would
allow CVI to increase the manufacturing capacity for its recently introduced
Frequency Colors product line and decrease its unit cost. CVI has marketed
Frequency Colors in Europe since May 2000. It is currently introducing the
product line in the United States, which holds about 70 percent of the world
market for cosmetic lenses, under the Expressions'TM' label, and expects to have
the full launch completed by the end of the summer.
Ciba Vision Corporation, a subsidiary of Novartis AG, has initiated litigation
against the Company in the U.K. and France alleging that certain color lenses
manufactured under CVI's license agreement with CLT infringe upon certain Ciba
patents. Cooper has thoroughly studied the various patents associated with its
cosmetic product and is confident that its color lens does not infringe on the
valid patent rights of any third party. Cooper believes that Ciba's claims are
without merit and intends to vigorously defend against the lawsuits.
The cosmetic lens market -- opaque and color enhancing lenses that change the
appearance of the eye's natural color -- is the world's second largest and
fastest growing specialty lens market segment behind toric lenses. Worldwide
revenue is about $260 million. Disposable cosmetic lenses, the segment in which
Frequency Colors and Expressions competes, is about $150 million worldwide
growing at about 15 percent annually.
In addition to tinting opaque lenses, CLT also offers Crazy'r' Lens, a fashion
lens that provides various images or geometric patterns around the pupil and a
prosthetic lens that masks corneal scarring or other disfigurements of the eye.
CVI currently markets these lenses under its own label. CLT also plans to launch
a tinted color product that enhances the color of the eye in North America
within the next 12 months. CVI also markets Natural Touch'r' a conventional
opaque lens (replaced annually) that CL-Tinters will now manufacture.
Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the information included in this news release contains 'forward-looking
statements' as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Forward-looking statements include all statements regarding anticipated growth
in our revenue, anticipated market conditions and results of operations. To
identify forward-looking statements look for words like 'believes,' 'expects,'
'may,' 'will,' 'should,' 'seeks,' 'intends,' 'plans,' 'estimates' or
'anticipates' and similar words or phrases. Discussions of strategy, plans or
intentions often contain forward-looking statements. These, and all
forward-looking statements, necessarily depend on assumptions, data or methods
that may be incorrect or imprecise.
Events, among others, that could cause actual results and future actions to
differ materially from those described by or contemplated in forward-looking
statements include major changes in business conditions, a major disruption or
other production issues at our manufacturing facilities, new competitors or
technologies, the impact of an undetected virus on our computer systems,
acquisition integration delays or costs, foreign currency exchange exposure,
investments in research and development and other start-up projects, dilution to
earnings per share from acquisitions or issuing stock, regulatory issues,
significant environmental cleanup costs above those already accrued, litigation
costs including any related settlements, costs of business divestitures, the
requirement to provide for a significant liability or to write off a significant
asset, changes in accounting principles or estimates, and other factors
described in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including the
'Business' section in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended October
31, 2000. We caution investors not to rely on forward-looking statements. They
reflect our analysis only on their stated date or the date of this news release.
We disclaim any intent to update these forward-looking statements.
Internet Addresses
The Internet addresses in this release are for informational purposes only and
not intended for use as hyperlinks. Nothing in any of these addresses is a part
of this news release.
The Cooper Companies, Inc. and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture and market
specialty healthcare products. CooperVision, Inc., headquartered in Lake Forest,
Calif., with manufacturing facilities in Huntington Beach, Calif., Rochester,
N.Y., Toronto, Canada and Hamble, England, markets a broad range of contact
lenses for the vision care market. Its Web site is www.coopervision.com.
CooperSurgical, Inc., headquartered in Shelton, Conn., markets diagnostic
products, surgical instruments and accessories for the gynecological market. Its
Web site is www.coopersurgical.com. The Company's corporate offices are located
in Lake Forest and Pleasanton, Calif. A toll free interactive telephone system
at 1-800-334-1986 provides stock quotes, recent press releases and financial
data. The Cooper Companies Web address is www.coopercos.com.
The Cooper Companies, Inc., its subsidiaries, affiliates or both, own the
Frequency'r' trademark. Crazy'r' Lens is a trademark of CL-Tinters.
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