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MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- SGI (NYSE:SGI) was recognized by VARBusiness magazine as one of North America's top vendors by virtue of the support it provides to the value-added resellers (VARs) of its products. SGI garnered the magazine's coveted five-star rating, the highest possible, for the second consecutive year. Read by solution providers throughout the United States, the VARBusiness "Ninth Annual Partner Programs Guide 2003" recognized the SGI Channel Program with five-star ratings in three distinct categories: systems, storage and peripherals. Winning top honors reflects SGI's continued commitment to its Solution Providers: Of the more than 300 vendor programs reviewed in four categories, only 48 received the coveted five-star rating in the magazine's ninth annual survey. VARBusiness's categories include carrier services, mobile systems, peripherals, software, storage, systems, voice and data networking hardware, and wireless. The Partner Program Guide appears in the March 3, 2003, issue of VARBusiness. Robert C. Demarzo, VARBusiness editorial director, noted that the Solution Providers through which SGI resells its products are critical to providing solutions to real-world problems facing technical and creative customers. "Through their expertise, Solution Providers add value to SGI products, ensuring proper, cost-effective implementation of technologies needed to drive business forward," he added. To determine the top vendor-partner programs and to develop the rankings, VARBusiness polled more than 180 solution providers, representing various business segments and sizes, to assess the importance of key program elements. The programs were rated by 16 critical criteria, including training and certification. Results were tabulated by Answers Research, a Solana Beach, Calif.-based market research and consulting firm. After submitting information about the Channel Program, VARBusiness interviewed SGI Solution Providers to determine how well SGI meets their needs. Their responses were proof positive that SGI has built a responsive and forward-thinking Channel Program. "I can honestly say that SGI has been there for us in numerous and diverse ways and they are a huge value-add to many of our marketing initiatives," said Patty Harrison, marketing director for I/O Partners. "I/O Partners is one of SGI's largest integrators for the post-production and broadcast industries in the U.S. Since our inception nearly five years ago, we have benefited tremendously from SGI's marketing infrastructure and have utilized their resources to improve events, telemarketing initiatives and other marketing efforts. Additionally, when we introduced our latest partner, Rumble Group International, which provides digital file management products and services, SGI allowed us in their NAB booth. This was a fantastic opportunity that really jump-started our sales initiative." "Winning this award is a high honor and validation of the continued commitment of the SGI Channel organization to its partners," said Nancy Pierce, director, North America Channel Marketing at SGI. "Our goal in the past year has been to integrate all initiatives to include the Channel and to provide industry-leading tools to drive revenue. We are committed to enabling our Solution Providers to meet their customers' requirements, and we utilize our Advisory Council and Industry Forums to ensure SGI programs and plans are on the mark with their needs." SGI Channel Momentum Building upon its success with the five-star award for the 2002 Channel Program, SGI further enhanced its program with the implementation of key success tools and demand generation initiatives. Some of these enhancements include: -- SGI PACT University, the university-like, curriculum-based program for training SGI Solution Providers that awards them professional degrees or designations based upon their major areas of study -- A worldwide partner relationship-management database, which allows Solution Providers to access the same quote-configuration tool used by SGI's direct sales force -- Industry-dedicated Channel business development managers who assist Solution Providers in identifying opportunities, creating relationships with developers and developing coordinated sales plans between SGI and the Channel to resell the complete line of SGI(R) products, solutions and services -- The "Got Press?" initiative whereby Solution Providers can work with the SGI corporate press relations team to publicize significant customer wins or customer case studies through appropriate outlets, which in turn helps support Solution Providers and their future sales opportunities In addition to these program elements, SGI continues to augment its partner tools, sales and product training, and demand generation opportunities. From the Solution Provider-only SGI Channel Web site to the weekly HTML newsletter and a rapid-response e-mail service, SGI provides must-know information via user-friendly media, all geared toward facilitating continued Channel success.