University of Miami Joins Cree LED University(tm) Program

MIAMI, April 16, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq:CREE), a leader in
LED lighting, announces that the University of Miami has joined the LED
University(tm) program, installing new LED pole lights to improve walkway
illumination on the main campus and retrofitting LED lighting at various
interior locations.

Twenty BetaLED(tm) LEDway fixtures now illuminate walkways on the main campus in
Coral Gables, providing much-improved visibility and safety. In addition, the
university is evaluating LED lighting for interior applications such as
conference rooms, hallways and classrooms. LED lighting pilot installations are
saving as much as 70 percent on energy used for lighting conference rooms and
hallways.

"With new LED lighting on our main campus, we achieve far better area
illumination -- enhancing visibility and safety at night," said Humberto
Speziani, vice president, business services. "The LED lights are more
energy-efficient than other technologies, reducing our carbon footprint in line
with the state's aggressive goals. The University of Miami is working toward
'greener' facilities, and we continue to evaluate new technologies, such as LED
lighting, for both interior and exterior applications. The university intends to
monitor the performance of LED lighting and other sustainable technologies as
they continue to advance."

The University of Miami joins LED University participants North Carolina State
University; Marquette University; University of California, Santa Barbara;
University of Arkansas; Madison Area Technical College; Notre Dame; University
of California, Davis; University of Alaska at Anchorage and Tianjin Polytechnic
University in China in evaluating and deploying LED lighting as they work toward
increasing energy savings, protecting the environment, reducing maintenance
costs, and providing better light quality for improved visibility and safety.

About University of Miami

The University of Miami is a private research university with more than 15,000
students enrolled from around the world. Founded in 1925 on 230 acres in Coral
Gables, just south of Miami, the University of Miami has grown to include the
Leonard M. Miller medical campus and James L. Knight Center in Miami; the
Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science on Virginia Key in Biscayne
Bay; the Richmond campus in southeast Miami-Dade county; and the John J. Koubek
Center in Little Havana. Additional information can be obtained at
www.miami.edu.

About LED University

The LED University initiative is a growing international community of
universities working to evaluate, deploy, and promote LED lighting across their
campus infrastructures to save energy, protect the environment, reduce
maintenance costs, and provide better light quality for improved visibility and
safety.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 22 percent of electricity used in
the U.S. powers lighting. In a world with soaring energy prices based on the
availability and control of fossil fuels, and with growing concern about
sustainability of the environment, a revolution in lighting is long overdue.

Details of each university's LED lighting pilots and installations are available
on the LED University web site: www.leduniversity.org.

About Cree, Inc.

Cree, Inc. is leading the LED lighting revolution and setting the stage to
obsolete the incandescent light bulb through the use of energy-efficient,
environmentally friendly LED lighting. Cree is a market-leading innovator of
lighting-class LEDs, LED lighting retrofit solutions, and semiconductor
solutions for backlighting, wireless and power applications.

For additional product and company information, please refer to www.cree.com.

The Cree, Inc. logo is available at
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=3529

This press release contains forward-looking statements involving risks and
uncertainties, both known and unknown, that may cause actual results to differ
materially from those indicated. Actual results may differ materially due to a
number of factors, including the possibility that actual energy savings may vary
from expectations; customer acceptance of LED products; the rapid development of
new technology and competing products that may impair demand or render Cree's
products obsolete; and other factors discussed in Cree's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including its report on Form 10-K for the
year ended June 29, 2008, and subsequent filings.

Cree is a registered trademark and LED University is a trademark of Cree, Inc.

BetaLED is a trademark of Ruud Lighting, Inc.

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CONTACT: Cree, Inc.
Deb Lovig, LED Programs Manager
(919) 287-7505
deb_lovig@cree.com