Rudolph Technologies Acquires Semiconductor Business of Applied Precision, LLC

Rudolph Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:RTEC), a leading provider of process characterization equipment and software for thin film measurement and macro defect inspection, announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire the net assets of the semiconductor business of Applied Precision®, LLC. Applied Precision, headquartered in Issaquah, Washington, provides precision wafer probe card metrology systems and wafer probe process management systems to semiconductor final manufacturing facilities. "We are very excited about bringing the Applied Precision semiconductor team into our organization," said Paul F. McLaughlin, chairman and chief executive officer of Rudolph. "This acquisition combines two successful companies with complementary products and technologies, and will accelerate our efforts to be a more complete supplier of back-end equipment and software. As the consolidation of our industry continues, we believe our combined strengths will enable us to continue providing our customers with process characterization excellence to meet tomorrow's process challenges. In addition, this acquisition gives us the benefit of leveraging multiple synergies between the two organizations, and we expect this transaction to be accretive to earnings within the first year." "Applied Precision’s position as an industry leader in probe card test and analysis is a strategic fit for our organization, and will give us the benefit of additional resources and global depth to address next-generation solutions for our customers," said Nathan Little, executive vice president and general manager of the Inspection Business Unit. "We are looking forward to combining operations with the newly-formed Probe Card Test and Analysis Division,” he continued, ”and we expect to build on the new division’s number one market share position in the probe card analytics market." Little added, "Rudolph and Applied Precision have an established presence in the final manufacturing arena and are well positioned to address new opportunities in wafer probe card test and analysis. We believe this acquisition will allow Rudolph to continue to build on our vision of being able to deliver innovative products, superior services and exceptional shareholder value in the years ahead.” Terms of the transaction include a combination of cash and Rudolph Technologies common stock. Rudolph has scheduled a conference call to discuss the acquisition for 0930 EST, Thursday, December 20, 2007. Rudolph Technologies is a worldwide leader in the design, development, manufacture and support of high-performance process control metrology, defect inspection and data analysis systems used by semiconductor device manufacturers. Rudolph provides a full-fab solution through its families of proprietary products that provide critical yield-enhancing information, enabling microelectronic device manufacturers to drive down costs and time to market. The company has enhanced the competitiveness of its products in the marketplace by anticipating and addressing many emerging trends driving the semiconductor industry's growth. Rudolph’s strategy for continued technological and market leadership includes aggressive research and development of complementary metrology and inspection solutions. Headquartered in Flanders, New Jersey, Rudolph supports its customers with a worldwide sales and service organization. Additional information can be found on the company’s web site at www.rudolphtech.com. Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Act”). In some cases, you can identify those so-called "forward-looking statements” by words such as "may,” "will,” "would,” "should,” "expects,” "plans,” "anticipates,” "believes,” "feels,” "estimates,” "predicts,” "potential,” or "continue,” or the negative of those words and other comparable words. Rudolph wishes to take advantage of the "safe harbor” provided for by the Act and cautions that actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of various factors, including risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Rudolph’s control. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements, include, but are not limited to, (1) cyclicality of the semiconductor industry; (2) customer concentration; (3) introduction of new products by Rudolph’s competitors; (4) sole or limited sources of supply; (5) the businesses of Rudolph and Applied Precision may not be integrated successfully, which may result in the combined company not operating as effectively and efficiently as expected or such integration may be more difficult, time-consuming or costly than expected; (6) expected combination benefits from the acquisition may not be fully realized or realized within the expected time frame; (7) revenues following the acquisition may be lower than expected; (8) costs, customer loss and business disruption, including, without limitation, difficulties in maintaining relationships with employees, customers, clients or suppliers, may be greater than expected following the consummation of the acquisition, or the effects of purchase accounting may be different from the companies’ expectations; (9) the credit ratings of the combined company or its subsidiaries may be different from what the companies expect; (10) the businesses of the companies may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the transaction; (11) the industry may be subject to future regulatory or legislative actions that could adversely affect the companies; (12) the impact of the slowdown in the overall economy; (13) uncertainty of the current global political environment; (14) the potential for terrorist attacks; (15) the potential for business disruptions due to infectious diseases; (16) changes in customer demands for our existing and new products, the timing, cancellation or delay of customer orders and shipments; (17) the timing of revenue recognition of shipments; (18) changes in or an inability to execute Rudolph’s business strategy; (19) unanticipated manufacturing or supply problems; and (20) changes in tax rules. Rudolph cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements. The matters discussed in this press release also involve risks and uncertainties as summarized in Rudolph’s Form 10-K report for the year ended December 31, 2006 and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC”), which are available at http://www.sec.gov, the SEC’s website, and at http://www.rudolphtech.com, the Rudolph website. While these factors may be updated from time to time through the filing of reports and registration statements with the SEC, Rudolph does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this press release.