Sharp Unveils AQUOS Experience and Gives Hope During Holiday Season

MAHWAH, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sharp Electronics reveals a groundbreaking tower of AQUOS Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) televisions - the AQUOS Experience - in Grand Central Terminal, New York City’s treasured landmark. As presenting sponsor of the Grand Central Terminal Kaleidoscope Light Show, Sharp designed the AQUOS Experience, which will be on display throughout the month of December, enhancing the holiday atmosphere in the terminal. As part of this initiative, Sharp will be making a significant donation to The HOPE Program, a charity that equips its participants with the skills they need to find, keep, and advance in jobs. With Sharp’s donation, The HOPE Program will be able to launch the “Green Collar Project,” a new program to help people find green collar jobs in an environmental field. This will not only allow participants to become economically self sufficient, but will also help preserve the environment.

“Year after year, we strive to help those in need become self-sufficient and maintain employment in various industries”

“We created the AQUOS Experience as a symbol of hope, especially important during this holiday season, and chose to work with The HOPE Program to help those who are out of work,” said Doug Koshima, chairman and CEO, Sharp Electronics Corporation. “We strongly believe in the HOPE Program’s important cause that not only helps those out of work to train and find jobs, but to maintain those jobs and turn them into careers for a better future for them and their families.”

The AQUOS Experience stands a staggering 26 feet high on the bridge between the Main Concourse of Grand Central Terminal and Vanderbilt Hall. The structure consists of 43 Sharp AQUOS LCD TVs in varying sizes, ranging from 19-inch screen class (18 ½” diagonal) through 52-inch screen class (52 1/32” diagonal), that form the shape of a tree. Video content, created by Fujisankei Communications International, runs in two to three minute vignettes, creating uniform scenic imagery that spans the height and width of the structure.

Two kiosks flank the AQUOS Experience, where consumers can enter a sweepstakes to win one of the 43 TVs from the tower. As part of this initiative, Sharp will donate $1 to the HOPE Program for every individual* who enters the sweepstakes, up to $100,000 total donation, and a minimum of $50,000.

“Year after year, we strive to help those in need become self-sufficient and maintain employment in various industries,” said Barbara Edwards Delsman, Executive Director of The HOPE Program. “We’ve been trying to launch the Green Collar Project to provide the proper training and job placement in the green sector and with assistance from Sharp, now we can. Sharp’s donation will help create a green pathway out of poverty, not only for HOPE students, but since many are parents, for their children and for future generations of New Yorkers to come.”

The HOPE Program offers work readiness training, job placement, job retention, and career advancement services. Through HOPEworks, students are prepared to compete in today's workforce. Additionally, an array of on-site support services is provided including mental health therapy; legal counseling; food and clothing; and assistance in obtaining housing, childcare, medical, and transitional work benefits.

The Green Collar Project will prepare HOPE Students for jobs in an environmental field that provides family sustaining wages, safe working conditions, and chances for advancement. This includes jobs in the fields of construction, energy, horticulture, building retrofitting, transportation, manufacturing sectors and more. Students of the Green Collar Project will be trained and placed in jobs like Environmental Remediation Technician Training including removal of asbestos and OSHA regulations, as well green maintenance and waste management, recycling, urban forestry, waterfront restoration, green roofs and many more.

“As a world leader in solar power and in energy-saving LCD TVs the Green Collar Project aligns well with Sharp’s core vision of creating energy-saving and energy-creating products. This project reinforces Sharp’s commitment to helping the environment and maintaining a cleaner and safer planet,” said Koshima.

For images of the AQUOS Experience, please visit https://www3.stantoncrenshaw.com/Sharp/112608/img_gallery.html.

About AQUOS

All Sharp AQUOS models feature Sharp’s proprietary Advanced Super View (ASV) LCD panels with Black TFT low-reflection coating to dramatically reduce glare, so they can be placed virtually anywhere – even near windows, doors or other light sources. The units also offer 176-degree viewing angles, enabling consumers to watch TV clearly from virtually anywhere in the room, as well as extremely high contrast for blacker blacks and clear, vivid pictures, and high brightness with exceptional color clarity. The stylish designs fit seamlessly into any décor, and the detachable table stands and side or bottom speakers allow the televisions to be installed in a variety of design scenarios, including wall mounting.

For more information on Sharp’s full line of Liquid Crystal Televisions, contact Sharp Electronics Corporation, Sharp Plaza, Mahwah, N.J., 07430, or call 800-BE-SHARP. For online product information, visit Sharp’s Web site at sharpusa.com.

About Grand Central Terminal

Completely restored back to its 1913 splendor, Grand Central has become a midtown destination for five restaurants and cocktail lounges, 20 casual international eateries in the lower level Dining Concourse, gourmet foods from the Grand Central Market, and 50 specialty shops throughout the concourses, all in addition to transportation and a venue for ongoing free public events. Grand Central Terminal, which is owned and operated by MTA Metro North, is located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue and is open seven days a week. For a complete listing of all stores, restaurants, merchants, events and more, go to http://www.grandcentralterminal.com/.

About The HOPE Program

The HOPE Program was created in 1984 to offer impoverished New Yorkers a different type of program: one that offered a way out of poverty. At the time, most programs for the homeless provided emergency assistance only. HOPE was different: rather than offering a handout, HOPE provided a hand-up by equipping participants with the skills they needed to find, keep and advance in jobs. For more information about The HOPE Program and the Green Collar Project, visit www.theHOPEProgram.org.

Sharp Electronics Corporation is the U.S. subsidiary of Japan's Sharp Corporation, a worldwide developer of one-of-a-kind home entertainment products, appliances, networked multifunctional office solutions, solar energy solutions and mobile communication and information tools. Leading brands include AQUOS^® Liquid Crystal Televisions, 1-Bit™ digital audio products, SharpVision^® projection products, Insight^® Microwave Drawer^® appliances, and Notevision^® multimedia projectors. For more information visit Sharp Electronics Corporation at www.sharpusa.com.