ATL Products selected by Sun Microsystems as library supplier for enterprise storage initiative.

ANAHEIM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 22, 1997--ATL Products Inc., a major supplier of midrange automated DLT(a) library systems, and an Odetics company (NASDAQ:ODETA, ODETB), Wednesday announced its OEM relationship with Sun Microsystems.

Under these agreements, ATL will provide automated DLT-based library storage products for Sun's new enterprise storage solutions initiative, and through a joint development agreement, library management software.

Under terms of the agreement, ATL Products will supply Sun Microsystems with DLT automated libraries, beginning with the Sun Enterprise Tape Library 4/1000, and will jointly develop Sun library management software. Sun will incorporate the multi-terabyte ATL libraries and software into its new product line which features high-end RAID systems and enterprise storage management software designed to meet the mission-critical needs of its customers.

Chet Baffa, vice president, marketing and sales at ATL Products, said that the emphasis that Sun is placing on enterprise storage fits well with ATL's market approach, emphasizing product reliability, broad application coverage and ease of use. "We have been committed to providing products that meet the broad needs of customers with mission-critical, enterprise-wide requirements for automated tape solutions."

Baffa noted that Sun's enterprise storage announcement follows a similar initiative at ATL Products, highlighted by the company's recent innovations, including ATL's new MediaLibrarian and WebAdmin software management tools, and the 7100 series of open enterprise library products.

The new tape libraries, RAID systems and storage software products introduced by Sun are part of the company's strategic focus on the enterprise storage business.

Sun's objective with this new push, said Kathleen Holmgren, vice president and general manager of Sun's storage product business unit, is leveraging the company's existing leadership position in the UNIX storage market to create new opportunities for its storage business unit, both to the Sun systems market, as well as taking its expertise to the non-Sun market for the first time, including HP-UX and Windows NT platforms.

Holmgren said that a key component of Sun's enterprise storage strategy is to deliver solutions that provide the highest degree of data availability and reliability. "The ability to share information across the enterprise without interruption is a critical requirement for today's storage solution," said Holmgren. "ATL's commitment to high reliability is important to Sun and our customers and is fundamental to our enterprise storage strategy."

Sun's Enterprise Tape Library 4/1000, based on the ATL 4/52 DLT tape library, is a compact multi-terabyte automated storage solution providing more than one terabyte of capacity using DLT4000 drives. To keep pace with its high capacity, the library is capable of aggregate throughput of 21.6 gigabytes per hour. With on-board hardware data compression enabled, capacity is doubled to more than two terabytes and throughput is increased to 43.2 gigabytes per hour.

Contributing to its reliability, the ATL 4/52 features IntelliGrip Inside and ATL-specified DLT drives. ATL's IntelliGrip robotics system automatically performs self-calibration, providing constant and precise alignment between the critical mechanical elements of the system. By protecting the library system from the effects of temperature change misalignments, wear and other operational factors, ATL libraries have met or exceeded their expected field reliability.

ATL-specified drives have achieved reliability 200 percent higher than the drive manufacturer's rated reliability specifications. This is attributed to another suite of innovations which include ATL's dedicated serial interface to the DLT drives.

Through the serial interface, IntelliGrip responds to a "drive needs cleaning" message by automatically inserting a cleaning cartridge. The result is ATL-specified DLT drives maintain their reliability and performance potential throughout the life of the library.

This news release contains statements which may be deemed to be forward-looking. The actual results of the company may differ materially and will depend on its performance, which could be adversely affected by such factors as short product lives, unexpected shortages of critical components, the timing and market acceptance of planned new product introductions, competition (including new and directly competitive products from others), and the significant uncertainty of market acceptance of new products by both distribution channels and end-user customers.

The company's forward-looking statements are qualified by reference to these factors affecting its business. Investors are strongly urged to review the risk factors set forth in the last filed 10-K and 10Q of Odetics Inc.

ATL Products, a wholly owned subsidiary of Odetics, supplies midrange DLT automated tape library systems for the network server, midrange and mainframe computer markets. Based on the ATL implementation of its IntelliGrip automation technology coupled with its ATL-specified DLT tape drives, its library products store critical enterprise data in sites throughout the world.

ATL Products provides sales and service support throughout the United States and in major cities in Europe and Asia. The company's world headquarters are located at 1515 South Manchester, Anaheim, Calif. 92802-2907. Telephone: [phone]. Fax: [phone]. E-mail: [e-mail]. WWW site: http://www.atlp.com/ . -0- (a) A trademark or trade name of an entity other than ATL Products.

CONTACT: ATL Products Inc., Anaheim

Chet Baffa, 714/780-7790

[e-mail]

http://www.atlp.com/

or

JPR Communications

Judy Smith, 818/992-8867

[e-mail]

http://www.jprcom.com