Imation and Trek 2000 Announce Strategic Relationship
March 13 2005 - 10:07PM
PR Newswire (US)
Imation and Trek 2000 Announce Strategic Relationship Imation named
global distributor for Trek's ThumbDrive(R) and other USB portable
storage products SINGAPORE and OAKDALE, Minn., March 13
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Imation Corp (NYSE:IMN), a worldwide
leader in removable data storage media and Trek 2000 International
Ltd (SGX:TREK), a leading engineering solutions provider listed on
the Singapore Stock Exchange, today jointly announced the
establishment of a strategic business agreement designed to bring
an increasingly innovative portfolio of USB portable storage
products to customers worldwide. Under the agreement, Imation and
Trek will work together to deliver leading-edge USB storage
products to the market using Trek's technology, research and
development, leveraging Imation's global distribution capabilities.
Imation indicated it intends to make a minor equity investment in
Trek, which will be immaterial to Imation. "Today's agreement
represents an excellent opportunity for both companies and our
customers because it combines the core strengths of Imation and
Trek," said Henn Tan, executive chairman and CEO of Trek.
"Imation's global marketing and distribution strength, combined
with Trek's technological leadership, will allow us to rapidly
develop and market new USB portable storage solutions worldwide,
bringing a wider range of innovations to our customers more
quickly." This agreement grants Imation global sales, marketing and
distribution rights to Trek's USB portable storage products under
the ThumbDrive(R) brand. Universal Serial Bus (USB) is the
industry's standard port on virtually all new computers, designed
for easy "plug and play" connection to a wide array of digital
peripherals, such as printers, scanners, external drives, MP3
players and rapidly expanding flash memory drive options. The flash
drive segment of this USB peripheral market is estimated to grow to
over $3 billion dollars by 2008, according to industry analyst firm
Gartner, Inc. Trek is known as a leading innovator in the USB
portable storage peripheral market, with a broad portfolio of
patented technologies and strong brand recognition of its
ThumbDrive(R) products. As part of the strategic relationship
agreement with Imation, Trek will continue its primary focus on
research, development and manufacturing of leading-edge USB
portable storage products, providing unique solutions for personal
and business applications. In addition to standard flash storage
devices, Trek's flash portfolio includes MP3 players, drives with
embedded cameras and patented "biometric" drives designed for
high-security access-controlled applications requiring fingerprint
authentication. Trek unveiled its newest innovations in this
portfolio at the 2005 CeBIT trade show, March 10-16, 2005, in
Hannover, Germany, including its ThumbDrive(R) 0.85-inch Mini Disk
Drive with storage capacities ranging from 2 gigabytes(GB) to 4GB.
Imation, a global leader in data storage removable media, with more
than 50 years experience developing and marketing data storage
products, serves customers in over 100 countries worldwide. This
agreement with Trek extends Imation's flash portfolio of USB 2.0
Swivel Flash Drives and Flash Drive Minis to reach a broader
audience and position Imation for the future. "Imation delivers the
broadest portfolio of removable data storage products to our
customers throughout the world," said Frank Russomanno, chief
operating officer and executive vice president of Imation. "Trek's
innovative products are widely recognized by consumers and
businesses as convenient, high-quality solutions for their USB
storage needs. Imation's longstanding industry experience and
global distribution infrastructure enables us to bring this
innovative ThumbDrive(R) portfolio to customers worldwide. And with
the exploding demand for portable storage products, we look forward
to working with Trek to develop new solutions for this market's
future needs." "The Imation -- Trek relationship today clearly
demonstrates how global businesses can work together. The
ThumbDrive(R) is a product developed by Trek in Singapore. With the
help of a multinational company like Imation from the US, together
we are able to turn ThumbDrives into a global product. This is a
development that brings pride and encouragement to all of us in
Singapore," said Mr. Henn Tan. In the coming months, Imation and
Trek intend to provide more information to their customers
regarding product availability. About Imation Imation Corp is a
leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of magnetic and
optical removable data storage media. Additional information about
Imation is available on the company's website at
http://www.imation.com/, or by calling 1-888-466-3456. About Trek
2000 International Trek 2000 International Ltd offers
state-of-the-art design solutions ranging from portable storage
devices, digital audio and video products to wireless and
encryption -- all catering to the fast changing digital industry.
Trek has offices all over the world including the U.S., Malaysia,
Thailand, India, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Netherlands, China, the
Philippines and Japan to serve the rapidly expanding markets in all
regions. A public company on the Singapore Stock Exchange
(SGX:TREK), Trek 2000 International Ltd is named by Forbes Global
as one of the Best Small Companies in the World for 2000 and 2002.
Trek 2000 International Ltd is also ranked as the Best Managed
Small Company in Singapore by AsiaMoney (of Euromoney). More
information is available on the company's website at
http://www.trek2000.com.sg/ Trek(R) and ThumbDrive(R) are
trademarks or registered trademarks of Trek Group of Companies in
Singapore and / or other countries. Imation and the Imation logo
are trademarks of Imation Corp. All other trademarks are property
of their respective owners. DATASOURCE: Imation Corp. CONTACT: Mary
Rawlings-Taylor of Imation Corp., +1-651-704-6796, ; or Tan Peck
Hwa of Trek 2000 International Ltd, +011-65-6749 8871, Web site:
http://www.imation.com/ http://www.trek2000.com.sg/
Copyright