Regional Multimillion Dollar Agreement Will Allow Asian Computer Giant to Deliver Superior Storage Area Network Solutions to Small and Medium Businesses
Taipei, Taiwan, June 15, 2004— Hitachi Data Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE: HIT), and Acer Inc., the world's top five PC vendor, today announced a regional distribution agreement whereby Acer will market, sell, and support the Hitachi Thunder 9500™V Series modular storage systems in addition to third party products, as part of a total SAN solution. Acer will join the Hitachi TrueNorth Channel Partner Program, in a three-year agreement for the Asia Pacific market, in the elite tier known as Regional Platinum Solutions Partner.
This partnership will accelerate Acer's position in the entry to mid-level SAN market and will give Hitachi Data Systems a strong entry into the storage-attached-oriented PC server market. Initially, the agreement will cover the Asia Pacific markets including Australia, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. Acer will promote the Hitachi Thunder family of storage systems through its local channel partners.
This agreement significantly enhances the competitive advantage for Acer and Hitachi Data Systems customers seeking to meet increasingly demanding overall application service levels. The complementary skills that Acer and Hitachi Data Systems bring will give customers more choice of SAN solutions that fulfill their particular business requirements.
"Acer's primary objective is to provide value to our customers by delivering dependable, easy-to-use products and services that meet their specific needs," said Evis Lin, Head of Enterprise Products Line, Acer Inc. "By integrating Hitachi's industry-leading storage and storage area management, we are now able to deliver a truly complete and open SAN solution to Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs)."
Jim Wong, President of IT Products Business Group, Acer Inc., added, "We look forward to working with Hitachi Data Systems in a business relationship that is set to grow from strength to strength."
"We see tremendous opportunity for growth within the SME marketplace as more and more enterprise applications become available on the Windows operating system, including e-mail is as ubiquitous as office stationery," said Martin Darling, Senior Director of Channels in Asia Pacific and Latin America, Hitachi Data Systems. "Our Application Optimized Storage™ solutions are built on the same tradition of quality that has made Hitachi Data Systems a recognized name among Fortune 500 customers."
As part of this agreement, Acer will also become a Partner Authorized Service Provider in each of the participating countries. In addition, Acer partners who complete the training process will be certified to provide installation and configuration of Hitachi Data Systems solutions.
About Acer
Acer ranks among the world's top ten branded PC vendors, designing and marketing easy, dependable IT solutions that empower people to reach their goals and enhance their lives. In 2000, Acer spun-off its manufacturing operation to focus on globally marketing its brand-name products: desktop and mobile PCs, servers and storage, displays, peripherals, and e-business solutions for business, government, education, and home users. Established in 1976, the pan Acer Group employs 60,000 people supporting dealers and distributors in more than 100 countries. Revenues reached US$15.6 billion in 2003. Please visit www.acer.com.
About Hitachi Data Systems
Hitachi Data Systems leverages global R&D resources to develop storage solutions built on industry-leading technology with the performance, availability and scalability to maximize customers' ROI and minimize their risk. By focusing on the customer's perspective as we apply the best hardware, software, and services from Hitachi and our partners, we uniquely satisfy our customers' business needs.
With 2,800 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 326,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2003 (ended March 31, 2004) consolidated sales totaled 8,632.4 billion yen ($81.4 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.
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Hitachi Data Systems is registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as a trademark and service mark of Hitachi, Ltd. Thunder 9500, TrueNorth, and Application Optimized Storage are trademarks of Hitachi Data Systems.
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