Optical Storage Industry Achieves Capacity Milestone With 2.3 GB 3.5-Inch Magneto-Optical Products.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 5, 2002

Latest Milestone On Technology Roadmap Increases Capacity From 1.3

GB To 2.3 GB On 90 mm (3.5-Inch) Optical Disks

The Optical Storage Technology Association (OSTA) today confirmed that the industry has achieved the next plateau on the 90-millimeter (3.5-inch) Magneto-Optical (MO) technology roadmap. With first shipments of 2.3 GB MO products in November 2001, the industry has continued to deliver on OSTA's target to provide a backward compatible capacity migration path, critical to high performance archival storage applications.

The 2.3 GB technology, developed by Fujitsu Ltd. and Sony Corp., has made great strides in increasing capacity and significantly lowering cost, while continuing to provide the high reliability and full backward compatibility of previous 90-millimeter (3.5-inch) MO disk capacities. The 2.3 GB MO disks now retail at about $30 (manufacturers' suggested retail price), making them a cost-effective, reliable solution for consumers as well as system integrators.

In addition, 2.3 GB technology is supported by numerous manufacturers, including: Hitachi Maxell Ltd., Konica Corp., Mitsubishi Chemical Corp., Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., Teijin Ltd., and RiTEK Corp.

Ninety-millimeter MO technology is well known in both medical (ultrasound) and telecommunications industries for its rugged disk construction, high performance and more than 50-year data archival life. The introduction of the 2.3 GB capacity point expands its market to include audio/video capture and playback, system backup and high reliability removable storage.

Full downward compatibility insures current MO users that smaller capacity MO disks will have full read and write capability, so data stored on them will still be available when they upgrade to the new capacity drive. Whether the application is desktop publishing, backup, or archiving medical or financial data, 3.5-inch MO disks are an ideal low-cost, high-reliability storage medium. More information about 2.3 GB technology can be found at www.MOstorage.com.

The 2.3 GB MO technology includes the following key features:

-- Magnetically induced Super Resolution (MSR)

-- Land and groove recording

-- 4.2 Gbit/in2 -- a 67% increase in the aerial bit density from the 1.3 GB
technology

-- Data transfer rate of up to 8 MB/sec

-- 18 m/sec seek time (average)

-- 665 nm laser diode

About OSTA

The Optical Storage Technology Association (OSTA) was incorporated as an international trade association in 1992 to promote the use of recordable optical technologies and products. The organization's membership includes optical product manufacturers and resellers from three continents, representing more than 85 percent of worldwide writable optical product shipments. They work to shape the future of the industry through regular meetings of CD/DVD, file interchange, market development, high performance optical, including MO, and planning committees.

Interested companies worldwide are invited to join the organization and participate in its programs by contacting an OSTA representative at 805/963-3853, by fax [phone] or by addressing its Web site at www.osta.org.

More information on this technology and other optical technologies is available at the OSTA Web site, www.osta.org.