I agree with all that was said, but I'd like to try to be more precise...
I have always assumed that "3rd Party Foundry" referred to a company that was attempting to test the technology "independent of Poet"....meaning at arm's length....meaning Poet could not/would not influence the outcomes of the testing.
That's what makes this news more important.....not simply the fact that 40/100nm has been achieved, but that a third party has proven/confirmed it.