STLW Stratos Intl (MM)

- Ranked at Top of Peer Grouping by Institutional Shareholder Services - CHICAGO, July 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Stratos International, Inc. (NASDAQ:STLW) today announced that the Institutional Shareholder Services ("ISS") has rated its Corporate Governance Practices among the highest in the nation among its peer groups. ISS's Corporate Governance Quotient ("CGQ(R)") for Stratos International as of July 1, 2006 was 100.0% of the CGQ universe of companies and was better than 99.6% of Technology Hardware & Equipment companies, categories that ISS utilizes in its peer groupings. According to Reg Barrett, chairman of Stratos International, "The Board of Directors had three primary objectives during the last several years -- all focused on improving shareholder value. The first objective was improvement of operational efficiency through better management. The second objective was improvement of corporate governance and transparency with shareholders. And our third objective was development of an enduring strategy for continuously improving revenue and earnings." Andy Harris, president and CEO, reports, "Operationally, our efforts produced significant improvements within every part of the organization. We completed five consecutive quarters with positive operating cash flow. Recent gains in sales order backlog, new sector sales growth, and cost containment reflect our strategy of penetrating video, military and other selected markets while simultaneously achieving operating efficiency. We believe we are in a strong position to capitalize on those improvements." Vice Chairman Newell Starks followed up by stating, "Stratos International started three years ago with policies and procedures which could have been perceived as less than shareholder-friendly, resulting in relatively low CGQ ratings. Our board agreed at that time on a plan of action to improve our standing among shareholders in governance matters. Achieving this top ranking by ISS within our peer group as quickly and responsibly as we did is a testimony to the diligent efforts we have made to improve best practices within our board of directors and management team." ABOUT STRATOS INTERNATIONAL Stratos International, Inc. is a leading designer, developer and manufacturer of RF and microwave, as well as optical subsystems, components and interconnect products used in telecom, enterprise, military and video markets. Stratos has a rich history of optical and mechanical packaging expertise and has been a pioneer in developing several optical devices using innovative form-factors for telecom, datacom and harsh environment applications. This expertise, coupled with several strategic acquisitions, has allowed Stratos to amass a broad range of products and build a strong IP portfolio of more than 100 patents. Stratos currently serves more than 1,300 active customers, primarily in the telecom/datacom, military/aerospace and video markets. Stratos International shares trade on the Nasdaq market under the symbol STLW. The company headquarters is located in Chicago, IL. For more information call 800.323.6858 or visit the company website at http://www.stratosinternational.com/ . DATASOURCE: Stratos International, Inc. CONTACT: Barry Hollingsworth of Stratos International, Inc., +1-708-457-2379 Web site: http://www.stratosinternational.com/

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