Features - Storage Innovations:

HITACHI DATA SYSTEMS EXTENDS STORAGE CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS

Hitachi Data Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd, announced that it has partnered with McDATA Corp, an expert provider of multi-capable storage networking solutions, to offer small-and medium-sized enterprises a cost-effective alternative for storage area networking, the Hitachi TrueNorth iSCSI SAN Solution.

Small-and medium-sized enterprises can realize the many benefits of networked storage such as storage consolidation, improved capacity utilization, centralized backup, security and unified storage management, while lowering total cost of ownership by leveraging a customer's IP infrastructure. In addition, the solution has been tested with Microsoft's native iSCSI drivers making this a perfect fit for Windows environments.

Providing a lower-cost alternative to Fibre Channel SANs, the new solution from Hitachi Data Systems and McDATA includes the Hitachi Thunder 9570V modular storage system, the McDATA Eclipse 1620 SAN internetworking switch, and enablement services.

"The Hitachi TrueNorth iSCSI SAN Solution reinforces our strategy of providing a range of connectivity options that address customers' needs for performance and availability at an affordable price," said Scott Genereux, vice president of global marketing & business development at Hitachi Data Systems. "Our new iSCSI solution provides an alternative for customers who have been priced out of the SAN market by the high cost of Fibre Channel. Our partnership with McDATA has enabled us to bring this solution to market quickly with a combination of products and services that allows customers to rapidly and cost-effectively achieve the benefits of networked storage."

Market demand for iSCSI is quickly increasing. IDC forecasts that the iSCSI array market will jump from $216 million in 2003 to nearly $5 billion in 2007. A number of factors are contributing to the growing appeal of iSCSI, including:

• Ease of Deployment -- iSCSI can be implemented anywhere IP networks are available
• IP Benefits -- organizations can leverage the inherent management capabilities of IP including SAN management, quality of service, load-balancing, routing and security
• Based on Proven Technologies -- SCSI and Ethernet/IP are well established and enable organizations to leverage their existing IT infrastructures and knowledge
• Broad OS Support -- Most OS vendors, including Microsoft, have pledged support for iSCSI, and the Storage Networking Industry Association's IP Storage Forum expects that nearly all operating systems will offer iSCSI support by the end of 2003.

"As the need for access to information continues to grow, McDATA is committed to providing best-of-breed reliable solutions through partnerships with industry leaders," said Mike Gustafson, senior vice president of worldwide marketing for McDATA. "iSCSI allows customers to realise the benefits of a SAN at a lower entry cost, and McDATA is pleased to work with Hitachi Data Systems to make this exciting technology widely available to the market."

The iSCSI SAN Solution is the first offering available as part of Hitachi Data Systems' iSCSI strategy. This approach will build on the existing TrueNorth open and collaborative business model to over time deliver a range of iSCSI solutions for both the SME and enterprise market that will be complementary to the existing Freedom Data Networks SAN and NAS portfolio from Hitachi Data Systems. Additional iSCSI offerings will be announced in 2004.

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 maximise customers' ROI and minimise 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 2,700 employees, Hitachi Data Systems conducts business through direct and indirect channels in the public, government and private sectors in over 170 countries. 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, headquartered in Tokyo, is a leading global electronics company, with approximately 340,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2002 (ended March 31) consolidated sales totalled 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 www.hitachi.com.