Avid Announces Support for EMC Centera Content-Addressed Storage; New solution to connect with Avid Unity family designed for storing, managing and sharing media assets.

Business/Technology Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 29, 2002

Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID) today announced it has entered into an agreement with EMC Corporation to link its family of solutions for storing, managing and sharing media assets, Avid Unity(TM) storage products, to the newly announced EMC Centera content-addressed storage (CAS) solution. Avid plans to resell Centera as part of its Avid Unity offering.

EMC Centera is a new software-driven storage architecture purpose-built to address the unique information storage requirements of long-lasting, unchanging digital objects - or "fixed content" - such as professional video and audio content generated in filmmaking, television programming, for the Internet, and anywhere in the professional postproduction, broadcast or corporate communications marketplaces.

Specifically, Avid plans to integrate its Avid Unity TransferManager and MediaManager products with Centera, giving customers another powerful option to easily move media files from an Avid(R) editing environment to an archive and back again for reuse, re-air or resale. When used with an Avid Unity MediaNet shared storage environment, moving media to and from Centera, either within a facility or across the globe, will be as simple as dragging and dropping in a standard web browser.

Avid is currently demonstrating its integration with Centera to interested customers. Formal Centera support is expected to be included in upcoming versions of Avid Unity TransferManager and MediaManager, and is scheduled to ship later this quarter.

"Media assets have a long life span, and they can continue generating revenue streams for many years after their original play date," said David Krall, Avid's president and CEO. "The media assets our customers generate, from Oscar-winning films to primetime sit-coms, news broadcasts and music recordings, are among the most valuable media content in the world, and Avid's support for Centera will make it easier for our customers to safely store assets for future revenues."

"Avid Technology is not only a leader in solutions for professionals that generate rich media in video and audio postproduction and broadcast, but they are also streamlining how creators work through workflow innovation," said Tom Heiser, EMC's vice president and general manager, Content Addressed Storage. "Because storage is a critical part of a true nonlinear workflow, it just makes sense for Avid to integrate its networking and storage solutions with a technology literally designed for the unique requirements of rich media production and distribution."

Fixed content, previously stored away in tape archives, optical disks or on shelves, is increasingly being made available online for significant time and cost savings. In the video/audio postproduction and broadcast marketplaces, this transition has been facilitated by the widespread acceptance of digital media as well as the continuing search to identify new revenue streams for these media assets. Once digitized, media stored within an Avid Unity MediaNet environment can be archived on Centera, enabling future re-use for additional revenue-generating opportunities. This ability to manage, protect and access fixed content from the familiar Avid interface promises to make content-addressed storage an option for many customers in this important market.

From electronic business documents to major motion pictures or syndicated television programs, all types of fixed content have three common attributes: long-term value to an organization, the need to remain unchanged, and increased value through fast access with assured content integrity. The EMC Centera network-based storage solution is designed to deliver all three while economically scaling from multiple terabyte to petabyte-sized environments.

About EMC

EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) is the world leader in information storage systems, software, networks and services, providing the information infrastructure for a connected world. Information about EMC's products and services can be found at www.EMC.com.

About Avid Technology, Inc.

Avid Technology, Inc. delivers the solutions that Make, Manage and Move Media(TM). As a recognized digital standard for professionals who Make the world's media -- from video, audio and film to animation, special effects and streaming media -- Avid's products are used to make more television and news shows, commercials, music videos and CDs, corporate/industrial productions and major motion pictures combined than any other nonlinear editing manufacturer in the world. Building on its award-winning heritage, which includes several Emmy(R) awards as well as an Oscar(R) statuette representing the 1998 Scientific and Technical Award for the concept, design and engineering of the Avid Film Composer(R) systems for motion picture editing, Avid is extending its reach by redefining how digital media is shared, stored and distributed. To Manage today's increasingly rich collection of dynamic media, Avid provides powerful servers, networks and media tools to help customers search files, share media and collaborate on new productions, both locally and globally. Avid's solutions also empower users to easily Move media, whether on air, over cable or satellite or through the Internet. Like no other media company today, Avid's end-to-end solutions span the continuum of media creation, management and distribution. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Tewksbury, MA. More information about the company is available at www.avid.com.

(c) 2002 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Product specifications and availability are subject to change without notice. Avid, Film Composer, Avid Unity, and Make, Manage and Move Media are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. EMC is a registered trademark and Centera is a trademark of EMC Corporation. Oscar is a registered trademark and service mark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Emmy is a registered trademark of ATAS/NATAS. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.