Second Sight’s Argus® II Retinal Prosthetic Implant to be Sold in Turkey

SYLMAR, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Second Sight Medical Products, Inc. (Nasdaq:EYES) (“Second Sight” or “the Company”), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of implantable visual prosthetics to restore some functional vision to blind patients, today announced that it has entered into an exclusive agreement with distributor Erişçi Elektronik Ltd. (“Erisci Elektronik”) to offer the world’s first and only FDA approved retinal implant to blind patients in Turkey.

The Argus II^® Retinal Prosthesis is intended to restore some functional vision to patients who suffer from a rare opthalmic disease, Retinitis Pigmentosa. Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is a genetic disease that can start at an early age, causes vision loss over time and results in blindness. It is estimated that of Turkey’s population of 76 million people, approximately 28,000 people suffer from RP. Second Sight is also developing the Orion^TM cortical prosthesis to restore some vision to individuals legally blind due to causes other than preventable or treatable conditions. The population of people potentially eligible for the future Orion cortical prosthesis in Turkey is over 150,000.

“By offering our Argus II retina implant in Turkey, we are able to provide patients with RP the ability to lead more independent lives,” said Dr. Robert Greenberg, Chief Executive Officer of Second Sight. “We are pleased to be working closely with Erisci Elektronik to distribute our revolutionary product that restores a level of useful vision to patients affected by the disease. Looking ahead, we believe our technology will become more widely accepted and, ultimately, lead to a significantly expanded geographic footprint as we continue to improve the quality of our existing product, the Argus II, and introduce new products such as Orion.”

The Argus II retinal implant will initially be offered to eligible RP patients at two now approved centers in Turkey: in the Ankara University Medical Faculty Vehbi Koç Eye Hospital by Prof. Dr. Emin Özmert, and in the Sisli Hamidiye Etfal Training and Research Hospital Eye Clinic by Doc. Dr. Dilek Güven. More approved centers are expected to be added in the near future.

The Argus II retinal implant has been implanted in more than 100 patients in the world. The treatment is currently offered at approved centers in Germany, France, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Netherlands, the United States and Canada.

Argus II received CE certification in Europe in 2011 and FDA approval in the USA in 2013 and is now registered with the Turkish Ministry of Health. Argus II is currently reimbursed by health authorities in several countries including the USA, Germany, France and others. Applications have been submitted to the Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (“SGK”), Turkey’s social security institution, to secure reimbursement coverage for the Argus II in Turkey, which is expected late in 2015.

About Second Sight

Second Sight Medical Products, Inc. was founded in 1998 to create a retinal prosthesis to provide sight to patients blinded from outer retinal degenerations such as Retinitis Pigmentosa. Through dedication and innovation, Second Sight's mission is to develop, manufacture and market implantable visual prosthetics to enable blind individuals to achieve greater independence. The company’s U.S. Headquarters are in Sylmar, California; European Headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland. For more information, visit http://www.secondsight.com.

About Erişçi Elektronik

Located in Istanbul, Turkey, Erişçi Elektronik Ltd. was founded in 1990 to serve hearing impaired people. Erişçi Elektronik has more than fifteen years of experience in cochlear implants, which are surgically implanted electronic devices that provide sound to patients who are profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing. For more information, visit http://www.biyonikgoz.com

Safe Harbor

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the "safe harbor" created by those sections. All statements in this release that are not based on historical fact are "forward looking statements". While management has based any forward looking statements included in this release on its current expectations, the information on which such expectations were based may change. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, as a result of various factors including those risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors and in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations sections of our recently filed registration statement on Form S-1. We urge you to consider those risks and uncertainties in evaluating our forward-looking statements. We caution readers not to place undue reliance upon any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as otherwise required by the federal securities laws, we disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly release any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein (or elsewhere) to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

For Turkey Patient Inquiries:
Argus II Hotline: +90 212 230 56 48
or
All Other Patient Inquiries:
http://www.secondsight.com
or
Media Relations:
Pascale Communications, LLC
Allison Potter, 412-228-1678
allison@pascalecommunications.com
or
Investor Relations:
Retail Investors
MZ North America
Matt Hayden, 949-259-4986
Chairman
matt.hayden@mzgroup.us
www.mzgroup.us
or
Institutional Investors
In-Site Communications, Inc.
Lisa Wilson, 212-452-2793
President
lwilson@insitecony.com

Source: Second Sight Medical Products, Inc.

Released December 17, 2014