Zafar Ahmad Promoted to Vice President of European and North American Operations of Photronics, Inc.

During the course of his eight year career at Photronics, Mr.Ahmad has served in a variety of operating management positionsincluding site director roles in Europe and North America, beforebeing promoted to Vice President of North American Operations in 2003.Most recently, he served as Vice President of European Operations, aposition he has held since 2004. Effective immediately, all sitedirectors in Europe and North America will report to Mr. Ahmad.

In commenting on the expansion of Mr. Ahmad's responsibilities,Dr. Jeong noted, "As the markets served by the global semiconductorindustry are influenced by rapid changes in both performance andfunctionality, the aggressive advancement of Photronics' globalintegration initiatives will be essential in the Company's ability toserve as a strategic supplier of the advanced technology and servicesneeded to insure the success of these customers. Zafar's broad base ofexperience at the site level and regional Vice President level in bothEurope and North America uniquely qualifies him for this new positionfocused on optimizing our manufacturing operations."

"This realignment of the Company's regional presence in Europe andNorth America will improve both manufacturing efficiency and customerservice," noted Mr. Ahmad. "My immediate objectives are to leveragePhotronics' core customer service strengths as a means to grow ourshare of the 130 nanometer and 90 nanometer customers we serve inEurope and North America. Additionally, I expect that efficiency gainsin mainstream facilities will also enable us to expand our servedmarket among these customers."

Mr. Ahmad is a graduate of the University of Houston, where heearned a Bachelor of Arts degree.

Photronics is a leading worldwide manufacturer of photomasks.Photomasks are high precision quartz plates that contain microscopicimages of electronic circuits. A key element in the manufacture ofsemiconductors and flat panel displays, photomasks are used totransfer circuit patterns onto semiconductor wafers and flat panelsubstrates during the fabrication of integrated circuits, a variety offlat panel displays and, to a lesser extent, other types of electricaland optical components. They are produced in accordance with productdesigns provided by customers at strategically located manufacturingfacilities in Asia, Europe, and North America. Additional informationon the Company can be accessed at www.photronics.com.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities LitigationReform Act of 1995: Certain statements in this release are considered"forward looking statements" within the meaning of the PrivateSecurities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward lookingstatements involve risks and uncertainties. In particular, anystatement contained in this release regarding the consummation andbenefits of future acquisitions, expectations with respect to the MPMask Technology Center LLC joint venture with Micron Technology, theplanned fabrication facilities, future sales, financial performance,operating efficiencies and product expansion, are subject to known andunknown risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of which arebeyond the control of the Company. These factors may cause actualresults, performance or achievements to differ materially fromanticipated results, performances or achievements. Factors that mightaffect such forward looking statements include, but are not limitedto, overall economic and business conditions; the demand and receiptof orders for the Company's products; competitive factors in theindustries and geographic markets in which the Company competes;changes in federal, state and foreign tax requirements (including taxrate changes, new tax laws and revised tax law interpretations); theCompany's ability to place new equipment in service on a timely basis;interest rate fluctuations and other capital market conditions,including foreign currency rate fluctuations; economic and politicalconditions in international markets; the ability to obtain a new bankfacility or other financings; the ability to achieve anticipatedsynergies and other cost savings in connection with acquisitions andproductivity programs; uncertainties with respect to the integrationand management of a new joint venture, delays in the construction andequipping of the planned fabrication facilities, the ability totransfer licensed applications to other applications, the timing,impact and other uncertainties of future acquisitions and investments;the seasonal and cyclical nature of the semiconductor industry; theavailability of capital; management changes; damage or destruction toour facilities by natural disasters, labor strikes, political unrestor terrorist activity; the ability to fully utilize its tools; theability of the Company to receive desired yields, pricing, productmix, and market acceptance of its products; changes in technology; andother risks and uncertainties set forth in the Company's SEC filingsfrom time to time. Any forward-looking statements should be consideredin light of these factors. The Company assumes no obligation to updatethe information in this release.