WS Packaging Group and ASK Form Joint Venture

GREEN BAY, Wis.—WS Packaging Group, Inc. and ASK, a France-headquartered company, have formed ASK-intTag LLC, a joint venture that will manufacture and market contactless cards and tickets for U.S. and Canadian markets.

The new company will be the first RFID manufacturer in the U.S. to print
silver-based inlays on paper, the composition of which is highly resistant
to forgery. ASK-intTag will produce a range of products for markets
involving food, healthcare, gaming, event ticketing, secure identification,
financial bankcards and mass transit, among others. Initial production will
focus on secure identification, financial bankcards and mass transit.

ASK is a leading global manufacturer of contactless microprocessor smart
cards, contactless cards and paper tickets, and RFID smart paper labels with more than 120 million products in circulation worldwide. Contactless cards and tickets developed by ASK are already being used in transportation networks in several large U.S. cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Philadelphia.

"Combining ASK's position as a world leader in contactless technology with
our capabilities as one of the largest printing and label converting
operations in North America enables our two companies to bring our
respective experiences and expertise together to become a major factor in
contactless technology and its application in North America," said Terry
Fulwiler, chief executive officer for WS Packaging.

“ASK has been dedicated to contactless technology since its creation in 1997 and we are very excited to be joining with such a prominent expert in RFID," Fulwiler said. "Combining our long experience and expertise in printing and packaging with ASK's patented RFID technology is a perfect marriage that is designed to meet the increasing demand for contactless products in U.S. and Canadian markets."

Headquartered in Sophia-Antipolis, France, ASK also operates sales offices
in Singapore and Culver City, Calif. ASK-intTag will be operated as a
separate company. Potential U.S. manufacturing locations are under review, but expect to be finalized by January 2009.

"As a leading manufacturer of labels, WS Packaging Group was the perfect
partner to boost our activity of RFID tags," said Bruno Moreau, ASK chief
executive officer. "ASK has already strong references in the U.S. with
clients involved in mass transit, banking and identity markets. But a joint
venture with a U.S. industrial leader will enhance our market presence and
contactless technology in the Northern American continent. Furthermore, our clients who requested a domestic manufacturing site will be pleased to
benefit from ASK technology and WS Packaging's strong market presence."

The viability of ASK's technology is confirmed by the 54 patents it holds, and is further strengthened by a unique and environmentally friendly technology for printing a silver antenna on paper substrate and die chip attach process. More than 120 million users on all five continents have been served so far in transportation, banking, RFID and identity sectors.

"Bringing the manufacturing to the US, ultimately improves our value
proposition in specific vertical markets," said Wayne Richter, WS Packaging
chief manufacturing officer. "It gives us access to RFID technology
currently being used, and further allows us to leverage ASK's rich heritage
of research and development for custom RFID applications in the future. This arrangement will greatly enhance our position in the RFID market by raising our level of credibility and product scope."