SANTA CLARA, CA - August 27, 2003 - Hitachi Data Systems, a leader in enterprise storage and a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE:HIT) has been awarded first place in the VARBusiness 2003 Annual Report Card (ARC) for its channel partnership program for network storage. Hitachi Data Systems, in its first year of eligibility in the category, beat out a number of competitors to win the prestigious award. Hitachi Data Systems channel partners voted the storage leader number one based on its partnering activities with solution providers.
"This award strongly supports Hitachi Data Systems' ongoing commitment to the channel and to partnering with the `best of the best' to meet the evolving storage needs of our customers," said Charlie Wallace, director of global channel marketing of Hitachi Data Systems. "Hitachi Data Systems delivers the same level of industry leading commitment and support to its channel partners as we have delivered for years to our customers. Being recognized above any storage vendor for our channel partnership program clearly validates the success of our new partner program, the True North Solutions Alliance."
"We work with a lot of different companies, but Hitachi Data Systems clearly stands out from the pack as an example of how a successful channel program should operate," said John Varel, CEO of FusionStorm. "Through our reseller partnership with Hitachi Data Systems, we're able to provide our growing customer base with industry-leading storage solutions, making it a win-win situation for all involved. We're extremely pleased to work with such a proven partner and look forward to furthering our partnership with HDS to continue bringing new innovation to our customers."
Now in its 18th year, the VARBusiness ARC recognizes outstanding partner programs in categories such as storage management, desktops, servers and networking hardware. Winners were selected based on the survey results of more than 5,000 channel partners who evaluated 70 market-leading vendors across 18 product companies.
"By being recognized in the Annual Report Card, Hitachi Data Systems has clearly proven that it is a channel leader," said Robert DeMarzo, CMP Vice President/Editorial Director of VARBusiness. "The VARBusiness ARC has become the industry standard for measuring excellence and Hitachi Data Systems should be commended for the outstanding performance it has demonstrated with its partners over the last 12 months."
Hitachi Data Systems accepted the award at VARBusiness' Annual Report Card Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, August 26, 2003 in Orlando, Florida. Hitachi Data Systems was honored by hundreds of channel and partner professionals, industry executives and solution providers at the event, which coincided with XChange 2003, the industry's largest annual gathering of channel and partner professionals.
The complete list of winners, as well as interviews with the winners, will be published in the October 13th issue of VARBusiness.
About VARBusiness Magazine
For the past 16 years, VARBusiness' strategic resources have been the gateway to the Solution Provider community. VARBusiness provides strategic insight for technology integrators through industry-defining research, in-depth editorial, channel events and innovative Web services, enabling these IT professionals to make educated decisions for their businesses, partnerships and customers. VARBusiness has been the recipient of numerous industry awards for both editorial content and design. Additional information about VARBusiness products, events and services, is available at its Web site, .
About Hitachi Data Systems
Hitachi Data Systems is committed to enabling organizations worldwide to exploit the full potential of information. By following and deploying our TrueNorth™ strategy, we provide customers with a broad range of storage solutions to simplify, protect and optimize their information infrastructures. Our offerings include centralized and distributed storage systems and software, professional services, complemented by best-of-breed products through channel partners and industry alliances.
With 2,700 employees, Hitachi Data Systems conducts business through direct and indirect channels in the public, government and private sectors in over 170 countries and regions. Its customers include more than 50 percent of Fortune 100 companies. For more information, please visit our Web site at www.hds.com.
About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE: HIT), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company, with approximately 340,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2002 (ended March 31, 2003) consolidated sales totaled 8,191.7 billion yen ($68.3 billion). The company offers a wide range of systems, products and services in market sectors, including information systems, electronic devices, power and industrial systems, consumer products, materials and financial services. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's Web site at http://www.hitachi.com.
Contacts:
Jodi Reinman, Hitachi Data Systems, (408) 970-1050, jodi.reinman@hds.com
Freedom Storage, Lightning 9900, and Thunder 9200 are trademarks of Hitachi Data Systems.
© Hitachi Data Systems is registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as a trademark and service mark of Hitachi, Ltd.
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