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Iomega Corp. -
Computer Storage - Category Directory
(858)
314-7000
10955
Vista Sorrento Parkway
San
Diego, CA 92130
www.iomega.com
Sales
$391
million
Business Description
SIomega designs and markets products that help customers protect, secure,
capture and share their valuable digital information. The Company has
organized its products into three broad business categories to align with
its customers for marketing purposes: a) Mobile and Desktop Storage Systems,
b) Network Storage Systems and c) New Technologies.
Product Categories
The Company’s Mobile and Desktop Storage Systems products include the
following:
• Zip® drives, which use removable flexible magnetic disks and are available
in megabyte (“MB”) capacities of 100MB, 250MB and 750MB;
• Iomega® CD-RW drives, which store data on writable (CD-R) and rewritable
(CD-RW) optical discs and read CDs;
• Iomega DVD rewritable drives, which store data on writable (DVD+R and
DVD-R) and rewritable (DVD+RW, DVD-RW and DVD-RAM) optical discs and read
DVDs;
• Iomega desktop hard disk drives (“HDD”), paperback-sized external hard
drives designed for desktop use, which are available in GB capacities
ranging from 80GB to 250GB;
• Iomega portable HDD drives, pocket-sized external hard drives with
capacities ranging from 20GB to 60GB;
• Iomega Mini and Micro Mini USB drives, key-sized solid state memory
devices designed for portability and available in capacities ranging from
64MB to 512MB;
• Iomega Floppy drives which store data on 3.5-inch disks with 1.44MB
capacity and
• Software that provides automatic backup, CD/DVD writing capability and the
ability to launch Active Disk™ applications automatically from a Zip disk
and other storage products without separately installing the software on the
host computer.
The Company’s Network Storage Systems products include:
• Iomega network attached storage (“NAS”) servers, which provide
network-connected storage for small- and medium-sized businesses and
enterprise workgroups and
• Aftermarket service plans for Iomega NAS servers which are available
either separately or bundled with NAS servers depending upon the NAS server
model and may include, among other options, on-site repair, extended
warranties and 24-hour phone support.
The Company’s New Technologies products include:
• A removable hard disk storage system, referred to as Removable Rigid Disk
(“RRD”) technology or by the “REV” trademark, that is expected to have a
native capacity of approximately 35GB and a compressed capacity of up to
90GB and is anticipated to begin shipping in April 2004 and
• A small-form factor removable flexible magnetic storage device (referred
to as Digital Capture Technology or “DCT”) that is expected to have a
capacity of about 1.2 to 1.5GB and is anticipated to begin shipping in the
summer of 2004.
Regarding all capacity references contained in this filing, one megabyte (or
“MB”) equals 1 million bytes, one gigabyte (or “GB”) equals 1 billion bytes
and one terabyte (or “TB”) equals 1 trillion bytes.
Availability
Iomega’s Mobile and Desktop Storage Systems products are generally available
worldwide from retailers, catalog, distribution, original equipment
manufacturers (“OEMs”) and online vendors. Iomega Network Storage Systems
products are available worldwide from catalog, distribution, online vendors,
value-added resellers (“VARs”) and system integrators. When shipped, the
Company expects REV products to be available worldwide from catalog,
distribution, online vendors, VARs and system integrators. The Company also
sells its products through its www.iomega.com website.
Company Products
Mobile and Desktop Storage Systems Products
Zip Products
Zip Drives. The Company introduced the Zip drive in March 1995. Designed as
an affordable portable storage product for personal computer users, Zip
drives address multiple needs: data storage, archiving, portable
applications (with Active Disk technology, which automatically configures
and launches applications contained on a Zip disk whenever the disk is
inserted into a Zip drive), data transportability, file distribution
(including multimedia presentations), data security and backup. Zip drives
are available in 100MB, 250MB and 750MB capacities. Zip drives are
compatible with leading operating systems for personal computers and
workstations (both PC and Mac®). Software included with the Zip drives helps
users organize, copy, move and back up their data and offers software
read/write protection. Zip drives use Iomega proprietary Zip disks and are
available as both an internal and external drive.
Zip Disks. Zip disks are available in 100MB, 250MB and 750MB capacities.
Optical Products
Optical products include Iomega CD-RW drives and Iomega DVD rewritable
drives. Iomega CD-RW drives are used for creating customized music CDs,
archiving and distributing other digital information such as photos and
graphics. DVD rewritable drives are used for these purposes and for
transferring and storing video content on DVD discs.
Iomega CD-RW Drives
At December 31, 2003, the Company shipped external drives with capacities up
to 52x24x52 speed. The Company also shipped a CD-RW/DVD combination drive
with a CD-RW speed of 48x24x48 and a DVD-ROM read speed of 16x. The three
speeds of a CD-RW drive, such as 52x24x52, represent the write (record once
on CD-R media), Re-Write (rewritable speed using CD-RW media) and Read
(CD-ROM) speeds, respectively. These drives are compatible with both USB 1.1
and USB 2.0 interfaces. These drives currently come with Iomega’s HotBurn®
Pro CD/DVD writer software, Iomega Automatic Backup software and also
include certain third-party software packages. These drives are compatible
with both PC and Mac® platforms.
Iomega DVD Rewritable Drives
During 2003, the Company began selling DVD products and at December 31,
2003, sold both internal and external DVD drives. Iomega’s Super DVD
rewritable drives support all DVD formats including DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD-R,
DVD-RW, DVD-ROM and DVD-RAM. These drives also support CD-R, CD-RW and
CD-ROM. DVDs can store up to 4.7GB of data files per disc. All Iomega DVD
rewritable drives currently ship with HotBurn Pro DVD burning software,
Iomega Automatic Backup software and also include certain third-party
software packages.
The Company anticipates that DVD technology, like CD-RW technology, will be
characterized by rapid advances in available write, re-write and read
speeds. The Company may offer DVD rewritable drives with upgraded speeds as
they become available, provided that market demand and other factors make it
prudent for the Company to do so.
Other Mobile and Desktop Storage Systems Products
Iomega HDD Drives
Iomega Desktop HDD Drives. Iomega desktop HDD drives add storage easily and
quickly to personal computers. Complete with Iomega Automatic Backup
software and Norton Ghost™ disaster recovery software, they are preformatted
for ease of use. USB 1.1, USB 2.0 and FireWire® compatibility make switching
between PC and Mac® easy. The Iomega desktop HDD drives are available in
capacities ranging from 80GB to 250GB and come in a 3.5-inch form factor.
Iomega Portable HDD Drives. Iomega portable HDD drives make security,
recovery and data storage easy. These drives for PC or Mac® are available in
20GB to 60GB capacities. USB 1.1, USB 2.0 and FireWire® compatibility make
switching between PC and Mac® easy. They feature patented Shock Resistance
Technology for a compact device (2.5-inch form factor) that is small enough
to fit in a shirt pocket. The portable HDD drives ship with Iomega Automatic
Backup software and Norton Ghost™ disaster recovery software and are
preformatted for ease of use. The drives are host powered, so they can be
used without needing a separate power supply.
Iomega Mini and Micro Mini USB Drives
Introduced during the fourth quarter of 2002, the Iomega Mini and Micro Mini
USB drives are portable, easy-to-use secure devices for transporting and
sharing data. They are as small as a car key and plug into any computer’s
USB port. Active Disk applications can launch and run directly from the
drives. The drives have capacities ranging from 64MB to 512MB and offer Mini
Lock software (PC only) to password protect the data on the drive. Iomega
Mini USB drives come in both USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 interfaces. During the
first quarter of 2004, the Company began shipping the Iomega Micro Mini™ USB
drives with USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 interfaces. Micro Mini USB drives are
smaller than Iomega Mini USB drives and have capacities ranging from 64MB to
128MB.
Iomega Floppy USB Drive
Iomega Floppy USB drive is a host-powered external drive, so it can be used
without needing a separate power supply. The Floppy USB drive reads and
writes to all formatted floppy disks.
Software
HotBurn® CD/DVD Writer Software. HotBurn and HotBurn Pro software are
designed to simplify the process of creating CDs and DVDs. HotBurn Pro
software is an advanced version of HotBurn software that gives the user
greater control over CD/DVD burning options. HotBurn and HotBurn Pro
software include CD and DVD mastering, packet writing and cover editing.
HotBurn Pro software is included with the Company’s CD-RW and DVD rewritable
drives. Both HotBurn and HotBurn Pro software can be downloaded from the
Iomega website. HotBurn software has been licensed to ValuSoft, Inc., under
the Burn & Go Gold CD/DVD label, while HotBurn Pro software has been
licensed to ValuSoft, Inc., under the Burn & Go Professional label.
Iomega Active Disk™ Software. Iomega Active Disk software, which
incorporates patented technology developed by Iomega, allows users to
automatically launch and run software applications directly from their
removable storage devices. Users simply connect their device or insert their
disk in the drive and the Active Disk enabled application launches and runs
automatically. When finished, users simply close their application,
disconnect their device and the software along with all of the related work
is saved to the secure, removable storage device. Active Disk software
allows the user to stay mobile and organized.
Iomega Automatic Backup™ Software. Iomega Automatic Backup software
(“Automatic Backup”) is designed to maintain copies of important files
safely and automatically. Users select the folders on any storage device
(e.g., hard drives, network drives or other storage devices) that they want
to protect. Then, every time users save a file to one of these folders,
Automatic Backup automatically makes a backup copy to the storage device
selected by the user. Automatic Backup can also store multiple file
revisions, so users can recover earlier versions of important files if the
current version is damaged. Automatic Backup is bundled with many of the
Company’s products and can be downloaded from the Iomega website.
Iomega Sync™ Software. Iomega Sync software keeps files on multiple
computers synchronized. Active Disk powered Iomega Sync software launches
and runs from a storage device, such as a Zip disk, USB Flash drive or
external hard disk drive. As files are changed and saved, Iomega Sync
software automatically synchronizes the selected data on the computer
system’s hard drive with the data on the targeted storage device, so that
the latest file revisions are always on the targeted storage device.
Peerless Products
The Peerless drive and disk systems began shipping during the second quarter
of 2001 in 10GB and 20GB configurations. During 2002, with the launch of
Iomega HDD drives, the Company began to discontinue the Peerless drives and
related Peerless disks. The Company continues to sell Peerless products from
existing inventory.
Jaz® Products
During the first quarter of 2002, the Company discontinued its Jaz drive
products. However, the Company currently sells Jaz disks to support the
installed base of Jaz drives.
Jaz products, which were first introduced in December 1995, addressed the
high-performance needs of computer users in several areas including graphics
and desktop publishing, software development, CAD/CAM, web authoring, audio
and video development, corporate backup and personal use. Jaz drives use
proprietary Iomega Jaz disks.
PocketZip™ Products
During the first quarter of 2002, the Company discontinued its PocketZip
drive and HipZip™ digital audio player (“HipZip”) products. However, the
Company currently sells PocketZip disks to support the installed base of
PocketZip drives and HipZip players, which play music stored on Iomega’s
PocketZip 40MB disks.
PocketZip drives, which were first introduced in December 1998, were
miniaturized removable-media storage devices designed for use in a variety
of handheld consumer electronics devices and notebook computers. PocketZip
40MB disks are flexible magnetic disks in a 2” by 2” metal jacket. PocketZip
drives and HipZip players use proprietary Iomega PocketZip disks.
Network Storage Systems Products
Iomega Network Attached Storage
During 2003, the Company focused on the NAS target market under $25,000,
which may be further divided into three categories, entry level (prices less
than $2,000), mid-range (prices from $2,000 to $5,000) and high-end (prices
$5,000 and greater). The Company shipped NAS servers with capacities of up
to 2TB, with most servers featuring hot swappable drives (drives that can be
changed without rebooting the server) and RAID (redundant array of
independent disks) technology for increased security. Iomega NAS servers use
Microsoft® Windows® as the operating system.
During the fourth quarter of 2003, the Company decided to focus its NAS
strategy on the low end and certain models of the mid-range of the target
market and is in the process of exiting the high-end (products costing
$5,000 to $25,000 per unit) of the target market. During 2004, the Company
plans to focus on the sales of servers with capacities ranging from 160GB to
1TB. By focusing on the low end of the target market, the Company expects to
better leverage its small- to medium-sized business customer base and
channel customers, including existing VARs already addressing these
customers. Despite significant efforts and spending on marketing and product
introductions during 2002 and 2003, the Company was not successful in
penetrating the high-end of the target market and first tier corporate
reseller channels and thus made the decision to exit this part of the NAS
market. The Company will continue to support all products that have been
sold.
Aftermarket service plans for Iomega NAS servers are available either
separately or bundled with NAS servers depending upon the NAS server model
and may include, among other options, on-site repair, extended warranties
and 24-hour phone support.
New Technologies and Products
During 2003, the Company’s research and development efforts were focused
primarily on two new high-capacity removable storage devices, a removable
hard disk storage system, REVTM, that is expected to have a native capacity
of approximately 35GB and a compressed capacity of up to 90GB and a
small-form factor removable flexible magnetic storage device, DCT, that is
expected to have a capacity of about 1.2 to 1.5GB. REV product sales are
expected to begin in April 2004. The initial versions of the REV drive will
be in USB and Atapi interfaces, with Firewire, SCSI and S-ATA interfaces
planned for later in 2004. DCT sales are expected to begin during the summer
of 2004. Like any new development, these two technologies, DCT in
particular, are subject to significant technical, manufacturing and market
adoption risks. The Company anticipates that it will continue to incur
significant research and development expenses in 2004 on these two projects.
REV products are designed for backup and high-capacity portable storage for
small- and medium-sized businesses and enterprise workgroups. Compared to
traditional tape systems, REV drives and disks are expected to be faster,
more durable, easier to maintain and provide random access to data. They are
anticipated to cost significantly less than most tape alternatives,
including DDS, DAT-72, VXA®, AIT-1, DLT® and DLT VS80.
DCT is designed as a low-cost, high-capacity portable storage platform for
consumer electronics devices. With the 1.2 to 1.5GB capacity of DCT disks,
consumers will be able to transfer video clips, audio tracks and photos
between supported devices; store data permanently on secure low-cost media;
erase and reuse disks as needed and carry workplace files wherever they are
needed. Camcorders, motion video digital still cameras, audio and video
players, PC Card enabled flat panel televisions and personal video recorders
are among the target applications of this new platform. The Company believes
that the success of DCT is dependent upon significant adoption by consumer
electronics OEMs of this product during the later part of 2004 and early
2005.
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