MILAN and NEW YORK, April 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Luxottica Group S.p.A. (NYSE: LUX; MTA: LUX), a global leader in premium fashion, luxury and sports eyewear, and Donna Karan International Inc. today announced a five-year extension of the license agreement for the design, production and worldwide distribution of prescription frames and sunglasses under the Donna Karan and DKNY brands. The new agreement will run through December 2014, with an option for a further five-year extension. Antonio Miyakawa, Executive Vice President, Wholesale and Marketing of Luxottica Group, commented: "We are very pleased with the long-term renewal of this partnership. The new agreement will allow us to target the market even more effectively, thus maximizing the potential of these two highly-recognizable brands each within its target market." "We are extremely pleased to further our longstanding partnership with Luxottica. The combined experience of our two companies in design, product development and building brand equity will enable us to further develop our eyewear business for growth," commented Mark Weber, Chairman and CEO of Donna Karan International. About Luxottica Group S.p.A. Luxottica Group is a global leader in premium fashion, luxury and sports eyewear, with over 6,250 optical and sun retail stores in North America, Asia-Pacific, China, South Africa and Europe and a strong and well balanced brand portfolio. Luxottica's key house brands include Ray-Ban, the best known sun eyewear brand in the world, Oakley, Vogue, Persol, Oliver Peoples, Arnette and REVO, while license brands include Bvlgari, Burberry, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Donna Karan, Polo Ralph Lauren, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Tiffany and Versace. In addition to a global wholesale network covering 130 countries, the Group manages leading retail brands such as LensCrafters and Pearle Vision in North America, OPSM and Laubman & Pank in Australasia, LensCrafters in Greater China and Sunglass Hut globally. The Group's products are designed and manufactured in six Italy-based manufacturing plants and in two wholly-owned plants in China. In 2008, Luxottica Group posted consolidated net sales of euro 5.2 billion. Additional information on the Group is available at http://www.luxottica.com/. About Donna Karan International Donna Karan International is one of the world's leading fashion design houses. It designs, markets and distributes collections of apparel, sportswear, accessories and shoes under the Donna Karan and DKNY brand names. The Company has selectively granted licenses for the manufacture and distribution of beauty and beauty related products, jeanswear, activewear, men's sportswear, men's furnishings, men's tailored clothing, eyewear, hosiery, intimate apparel, coats, children's apparel, watches and home. Since November 2001, Donna Karan International has been part of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world's leading luxury goods group. Safe Harbor Statement Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those which are anticipated. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the ability to successfully integrate Oakley's operations, the ability to realize expected synergies from the merger with Oakley, the ability to successfully introduce and market new products, the ability to maintain an efficient distribution network, the ability to manage the effect of the poor current global economic conditions on our business and predict future economic conditions and changes in consumer preferences, the ability to achieve and manage growth, the ability to negotiate and maintain favorable license arrangements, the availability of correction alternatives to prescription eyeglasses, fluctuations in exchange rates, the ability to effectively integrate other recently acquired businesses, as well as other political, economic and technological factors and other risks and uncertainties described in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof, and we do not assume any obligation to update them. DATASOURCE: Luxottica Group S.p.A. CONTACT: Media and Investor Relations: Ivan Dompe, Group Corporate Communications Director, +39(02)8633-4726, , or Luca Biondolillo, Group Director of International Communications, +39(02)8633-4668, mobile, +39(335)7870-903, , or Alessandra Senici, Group Investor Relations Director, +39(02)8633-4718, , all of Luxottica Group; or Patti Cohen, Executive Vice President, Global Marketing and Communications of Donna Karan International, +1-212-789-1857 Web Site: http://www.luxottica.com/

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