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IMATION TO PURCHASE DATA STO MEDIA ASSETS OF EMTEC MAGNETICS

Imation Corp, a worldwide leader in removable data storage media, announced that it has entered an agreement, subject to regulatory approval, to purchase certain assets and intellectual property relating to removable data storage tape media from EMTEC Magnetics GmbH, a German-based manufacturing subsidiary of EMTEC International Holding GmbH. Since April 1, 2003, a court-appointed Insolvency Administrator under Germany's Insolvency Act has managed the affairs of EMTEC Magnetics GmbH. Financial details of the agreement between Imation and EMTEC were not disclosed.

The agreement will enable Imation to ensure worldwide availability of half-inch legacy tape products, such as 3480, 3490E and 9490EE tape cartridges, to data center customers.

"As a result of EMTEC's insolvency filing, there have been some limitations in the availability of raw materials which has caused temporary supply restrictions of legacy products to the market," said Ron Zinke, vice president and general manager, Imation's Data Storage Media and Services business. "There is a large base of customers who rely on these legacy products for storage of their mission-critical data and this supply interruption has caused problems in their data center operations. By making this investment, Imation will be able to expedite the resumption of supply and ensure long-term availability of these legacy products to our global customers."

"Our agreement to purchase certain assets and intellectual property from EMTEC demonstrates Imation's commitment to provide superior service and support to our data center customers and to invest in our core removable media business. At Imation, our goal is, and has always been, to help customers better manage their data center operations, and we believe this agreement will provide significant value to our customers by ensuring the continued availability of legacy tape products in the foreseeable future," added Zinke.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, as well as other customary conditions. Subject to these approvals, Imation expects the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of 2003.