Pioneer Ships PC-Based Blu-ray Disc Drives; Innovative Drive Significantly Increases Storage Capacity for Professionals.

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. is now shipping the industry's first Blu-ray Disc (BD) computer drives. The new Pioneer BDR-101A will change the way digital and high-definition media are stored by increasing disc capacity and performance capability. By utilizing shorter wavelength blue lasers, the BDR-101A can burn up to 25 gigabytes (billion bytes) of information on a single layer Blu-ray Disc.

The BDR-101A will be bundled with Sonic Solutions'(R) Roxio(R) Blu-ray Disc software and blank media by TDK that will enable end-users to store data and recorded content.

Blu-ray Disc is an ideal format for storage and distribution of high definition content. "As we move deeper into the transition to high-definition content creation and distribution, increasing storage capacity will become more and more critical," said Andy Parsons, senior vice president at Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. "Blu-ray Disc technology fulfills the rapidly growing need for additional storage space and Pioneer is proud to be one of the first companies bringing it to market through the BDR-101A."

This first generation BDR-101A product is targeted towards professional users and technology enthusiasts who will be using the Blu-ray Disc drive for advanced storage needs. "In order to serve our clients' needs at the highest level, we must anticipate their needs for uses of new media formats," said Randy Hudson, member of the DVD Association, and president and CEO of Broadness, a media service company providing A/V media services, digital cinema media services, and online video and audio media delivery solutions. "The professional DVD production community has always counted on Pioneer to deliver technologies, products and support that allows us to exceed our clients' expectations."

The Roxio(R) software bundle will support professional, high-definition Blu-ray Disc (BD) authoring applications by transferring BD disc images to BD-R and BD-RE media. It also features data storage applications such as the backup of up to 25GB of data on a single layer BD disc. The software supports the following key capabilities:

--BD/DVD Premastering

--Data write support

--Disc Image (create & record)

--Erase (Quick & Full BD-RE and -/+RW)

--Drive Utilities

"Pioneer is renowned for their contributions to the development of optical media, so we are extremely pleased to be collaborating with them on such a significant milestone in the rollout of Blu-ray Disc," said Stan Wong, general manager, Roxio division of Sonic Solutions.

Blank media from TDK will also be packaged with the BDR-101A. "TDK is the first company to offer recordable Blu-ray Discs," noted Bruce Youmans, TDK vice president of marketing. "Using TDK BD-RE media and the Pioneer BDR-101A computer writer, users can experience the full performance capabilities of Blu-ray. From archiving large data volumes to recording HD video at the highest resolutions, Blu-ray Disc extends new and exciting capabilities."

Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC)(http://www.sonic.com) is the leader in digital media software, providing a broad range of interoperable, platform-independent software tools and applications for creative professionals, business and home users, and technology partners. Sonic's products range from advanced DVD authoring systems and interactive content delivery technologies used to produce the majority of Hollywood DVD film releases, to the award-winning Roxio(R)-branded CD and DVD creation, playback and backup solutions that have become the premier choice for consumers, prosumers and business users worldwide.

Sonic products are globally available from major retailers, online at Sonic.com and Roxio.com, and are bundled with PCs, after-market drives and consumer electronic devices. Sonic's digital media creation engine is the de facto standard and has been licensed by major software and hardware manufacturers, including Adobe, Microsoft, Scientific-Atlanta, Sony, and many others. Sonic Solutions is headquartered in Marin County, California.

TDK Corporation (NYSE: TDK) is a leading global electronics company based in Japan. It was established in 1935 to commercialize "ferrite," a key material in electronics and magnetics. The company today is a leader in the development of next-generation technologies such as Blu-ray Disc recording media, an optical disc ideally suited for high-definition video recording. TDK offers a full line of recordable DVD and CD media, digital camcorder tapes, professional data storage solutions including LTO Ultrium media, and much more.

Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. is headquartered in Long Beach, Calif., and its U.S. Web address is www.pioneerelectronics.com. Its parent company, Pioneer Corporation, is a leader in optical disc technology and a preeminent manufacturer of high-performance audio, video and computer equipment for the home, car and business markets. The company focuses on four core business domains including Blu-ray Disc and DVD, display technologies, navigation, and Digital Network Entertainment(TM) and components.