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OCZ Reaches Agreement With Toshiba to Acquire Solid State Drive Business

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that the Company has signed an asset purchase agreement with Toshiba Corporation, a global technology leader and manufacturer of NAND flash memory, to acquire substantially all of OCZ's assets in a chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding for $35M.

Under this agreement Toshiba will acquire OCZ's client and enterprise solid state drive business. OCZ will continue to operate and serve existing and future customers during this process. Toshiba has agreed to provide the Company with DIP (Debtor-in-Possession) financing to ensure that there is adequate capital and flash supply to support the business during the contemplated sale period. The consummation of the asset purchase agreement is subject to an auction and approval by the bankruptcy court in the Company's bankruptcy case.

OCZ Filing for Bankruptcy, Announces Offer from Toshiba to Purchase Assets

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that on November 25, 2013, it received notices that Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. ("Hercules") took exclusive control of the Company's depository accounts at Silicon Valley Bank and Wells Fargo Bank, National Association. As set forth in the Company's recent SEC filings, Hercules and the Company are parties to a loan and security agreement. As previously reported, the Company is not in compliance with certain of the operating ratios and covenants in the loan agreement. As a result of such action and pursuant to Hercules' written instruction, the depository institutions disbursed the cash in the Company's respective accounts to accounts under the control of Hercules.

The Company has received an offer from Toshiba Corporation to acquire substantially all of the Company's assets in a bankruptcy proceeding. The parties have substantially completed negotiations on an asset purchase agreement and OCZ believes that all the material terms have been agreed to.

OCZ Announces New Vector 150 Solid State Drive Series

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced its new Vector 150 SATA III SSD Series that utilizes the latest cutting-edge 19 nanometer (nm) NAND flash process geometry and an in-house controller design that shatters barriers by delivering OCZ's highest performing SATA III solid state drive series to date. At the forefront of Vector 150 innovation is OCZ's proprietary Barefoot 3 controller which was designed completely in-house by the Company's hardware and firmware teams to enable full design control over the product roadmap while delivering high performance flash-based storage, enhanced endurance, and a host of differentiated features for laptop, desktop and workstation applications.

Building off the success of the original Vector SSD Series, the Vector 150 SSD Series implements industry-leading performance by delivering consistent, sustained speeds over time regardless of whether the data is in compressed or uncompressed formats. It provides superior speeds across all capacities to dramatically accelerate gaming, content creation, and multimedia applications, supporting read bandwidth of up to 550 MB/s, write bandwidth of up to 530 MB/s, 4K random read speed of up to 100,000 input/output operations per second (IOPS), 4K random write speed up to 95,000 IOPS and sustained 4K random write performance of 26,000 IOPS.

OCZ Technology Introduces StoragePro XL 1.1 Central Management System

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today introduced an SSD management application that centrally monitors and manages OCZ enterprise drives connected to network servers, storage arrays or appliances. Developed as a network-accessible management system, OCZ's new StoragePro XL 1.1 provides IT managers with a cross-platform view of their enterprise flash resources for centralized management, monitoring, maintenance and reporting.

StoragePro XL securely connects to multiple host systems across the network and allows IT managers to centrally monitor and administer their enterprise flash resources from a web-based management interface. Supporting enterprise hosts running Linux and Windows operating systems, and featuring an easy-to-use web-based centralized GUI (graphical user interface), IT managers are afforded specific drive details on performance, reliability and operation. Along with the monitoring functionality, a user configurable alerting systems is provided that enables identification of any potential system and/or storage issues in advance enabling corrective actions to be initiated at an early stage.

OCZ Technology Group Reports Results for Its Second Quarter of Fiscal 2014

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, reports its second quarter (Q2'14) results which ended on August 31, 2013.

"Revenue and gross margins declined in the second quarter as revenue for our client SSD products continued to be impacted by our challenges in procuring flash. Revenue from our enterprise solutions accounted for roughly half of our SSD revenue, compared to about 60% in the first quarter, as a major data center customer completed its installation during the quarter," said Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology. "This has been a difficult quarter as demand for our products continues to be greater than our ability to supply, given our capital constraints."

Toshiba Looking to Buy-out OCZ's Consumer SSD Business

Once a leading SSD vendor, OCZ is finding itself in trouble from two fronts, an increasingly competitive market landscape with the entry of big names such as Samsung, Seagate, and WD; and legal irritants with the SEO. The company is reportedly putting its consumer SSD business up for sale, and Toshiba is emerging to be a front-runner for buying it out. Such a deal could see Toshiba acquiring OCZ's consumer SSD division, and the various brands associated with it, including its Indilinx-Barefoot derived SSD controllers, which are still quite competitive. SSDs could proliferate further with the upcoming SATA-Express standards.

OCZ Technology Reports Results for Its First Quarter of Fiscal 2014

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, reports its first quarter (Q1'14) results which ended on May 31, 2013. "Revenue generated from our enterprise solutions for the first quarter more than doubled compared to the last quarter, and drove the sequential gross margin increase. Overall revenue declined about 20% sequentially, primarily due to the lack of NAND flash supply for our client SSD products," said Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology.

"Over the past year we have restructured the Company, which included the appointment of new leadership, reduced operating expenses, streamlined our product offerings, realigned our engineering talent, and introduced new controller silicon and firmware, new higher-end SSDs for the client market and new storage solutions for the enterprise market," added Schmitt. "Fiscal Q1 is the first quarter in which the company operated with all these particular restructuring and restatement adjustments behind us."

OCZ to Showcase Enterprise Storage Solutions at Gartner's Symposium/ITXpo 2013

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that it will showcase its leading enterprise storage solutions at the Gartner Symposium/ITXpo, Booth #219, Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, October 6th through 10th. As an annual gathering of CIOs and senior IT executives seeking the latest tools, technologies, and information to improve IT capabilities and data center effectiveness, the ITXpo is an excellent opportunity for OCZ to present its leading portfolio of enterprise storage solutions to this targeted audience.

Headlining OCZ's product presentations at ITXpo is the award-winning ZD-XL SQL Accelerator that delivers the convergence of hardware and software as one tightly integrated, optimized plug-and-play storage solution. This innovative solution accelerates and optimizes Microsoft SQL Server database applications and its high-performance flash-based PCI Express (PCIe) solid-state drive works in combination with intelligent acceleration and caching software to deliver the right and relevant database data when the application needs it.

OCZ Announces Settlement of Consolidated Shareholder Class Action Litigation

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, today announced that it has reached a settlement in principle in the federal shareholder class action litigation filed in connection with the Company's financial restatement.

The settlement is subject to negotiation of final documentation and court approval. Subject to Court approval, the settlement of $7.5 million will be funded by the Company's D&O liability insurance. The settlement may include an additional payment of the lesser of $6M or 4% of the net proceeds in the event that the company or any portion of it is sold within six months of the executed settlement agreement. This settlement would resolve the consolidated shareholder class actions pending in connection with the restatement.

OCZ Technology Announces New Fatal1ty 550 W and 750 W Power Supplies

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, today announced the availability of its new Fatal1ty Series power supply products, first unveiled at Computex 2013. This refreshed lineup for gamers features high efficiency, a fully modular cable design, and a robust feature-set to meet the demanding needs of multi-GPU systems and provide exceptional system stability.

The latest enthusiast-grade series from OCZ, these new Fatal1ty PSUs were co-developed with twelve-time world champion Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel to meet the specific needs of fellow gamers, and will be available in 550 W and 750 W models designed to offer performance and reliability coupled with an updated feature set. With up to 85% energy efficiency at typical loads, the Fatal1ty series features an excellent 80-Plus Bronze rating. Both models feature a powerful single +12V rail for exceptional power distribution, along with 135 mm temperature and load-controlled fans with trademark glowing red LEDs for stylish and silent operation for high-end gaming rigs.

OCZ Technology Introduces New Deneva 2 Series Enterprise SSDs

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced the latest addition to the popular Deneva 2 Series which now utilizes 19 nanometer (nm) NAND flash. The new models are 2.5-inch, 6 Gbps SATA III-based Multi-Level Cell (MLC) drives that implement the Deneva 2 SSD Series feature-set and are built around a smaller NAND flash process geometry. This cutting-edge drive solution also features a completely new power architecture that was designed from the ground up to optimize server back plane functionality, providing enhanced management of in-rush current and power fluctuation. The result is an advanced SSD series that delivers superior storage performance, enterprise-class endurance, reliability and quality, and excellent total cost of ownership for customers.

"Our Deneva 2 has been a popular SSD series among IT professionals not only as an HDD replacement but to dramatically accelerate I/O access of such popular enterprise applications as OnLine Transaction Processing, database warehousing, read intensive data caching and server boot-ups," said Daryl Lang, SVP of Product Management for OCZ Technology. "By implementing new features and the latest NAND flash process geometry we are able to deliver an optimal balance of I/O performance and cost-efficiency to our customers."

OCZ Technology Receives Extension From NASDAQ

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that as a result of the ongoing restatement process, the Company will not meet the previously disclosed September 16, 2013 NASDAQ extension date for becoming current with its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company notified the NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Panel (the "NASDAQ Panel") of this delay. On September 12, 2013, the NASDAQ Panel granted the Company's request to remain listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market, subject to the condition that the Company becomes current in the filings of its periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission by October 7, 2013.

"We are delighted that NASDAQ has given us this extension as it gives us the additional time we need to complete the restatement. The Company has been working to complete the comprehensive audit and restatement work that was expanded to cover three additional years, subsequent to the issuance of the NASDAQ Panel's hearing decision," stated Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology. "We have completed most of the work required to regain compliance and the team is diligently driving this to closure."

OCZ Technology Expands Research & Development Center in Orange County, California

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that it will expand its Research & Development (R&D) Center in Orange County, California which is focused on enterprise development for the company's next-generation SSDs. The company has a current presence in the area and is moving to a new expanded Irvine R&D location.

"Orange County, California has a rich base of engineering talent covering semiconductors and storage that makes it a viable location for us to expand our design center," said James Tout, SVP of Global Engineering for OCZ Technology. "With a leading and widely recognized portfolio of SATA, SAS and PCIe-based solid-state solutions, we believe that the opening of our new OC-based design center will attract the professional resources and talent we need to create leading-edge, next-generation enterprise products for the storage industry."

OCZ to Showcase New Compact Z-Drive R4 PCIe SSD at Intel Developer Forum

OCZ Technology Group, a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, will showcase its latest solid state drive storage products at the 2013 Intel Developer Forum (IDF), September 10th through September 12th at Moscone Center, San Francisco. This event is an excellent opportunity for OCZ to connect with customers and partners using the latest Intel technology by demonstrating its complete portfolio of SSD solutions tailored for big data, cloud computing, and other enterprise applications.

Offering solutions for applications including virtualization, database, and cloud management, OCZ will display a comprehensive lineup of innovative products designed to solve performance, availability, and reliability roadblocks in IT infrastructures. OCZ will unveil the upcoming smaller form factor Z-Drive R4 PCIe SSD, featuring the same exceptional performance but with the ability to be deployed in a much greater range of platforms, including support for the Open Compute Project (OCP). The OCP Foundation is a growing community of engineers around the world whose mission is to design and enable the delivery of the most efficient server, storage, and data center hardware designs for scalable computing, and provides a structure in which individuals and organizations can share their intellectual property.

OCZ to Showcase NVM Aeon Series 3.5" SSD Next Week at HPC for Wall Street Show

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, will showcase the company's latest enterprise storage and acceleration solutions at the 2013 High Performance Computing (HPC) for Wall Street Show in booth 201 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City on September 9. One of the largest shows catering to the HPC market, it is an ideal venue for OCZ to showcase solid state storage products designed for addressing big data performance and low latency for financial applications.

OCZ will unveil the upcoming Aeon Series 3.5" SSD, a Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) SAS drive specifically targeted to meet the stringent requirements of latency sensitive applications currently being mired by legacy hard-disk drive (HDD) infrastructures. Designed for demanding transactional environments such as high-frequency trading (HFT), Aeon delivers the speed and ultra low latency read and writes of DRAM with the persistence and scalability of storage. Aeon reduces file system overhead in enterprise appliances while accelerating applications and improving overall I/O efficiency, along with providing unlimited endurance supporting an infinite number of drive writes per day without wearing out or slowing down.

OCZ Technology Signs Joint Harvest to Distribute in China

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power supply units (PSUs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that Joint Harvest, a leading distributor of IT and computer technology products in China, is now authorized to distribute OCZ's complete line of SSDs and PSUs. With deep roots in China's IT market, Joint Harvest has extensive expertise in promoting products and servicing local customers through the region's retail channels. This new partnership with OCZ will strengthen the commitment to provide consumers access to the latest products for high-performance systems and workstations.

"We are pleased to partner with Joint Harvest to support the growing high performance computing market in China," said Wayne Eisenberg, Senior Vice President of Global Sales, OCZ. "Joint Harvest shares our commitment to provide customers with leading-edge solutions along with comprehensive support services, and we look forward to making our solid state drive and power management products more readily available to customers in this important region."

OCZ Technology Group Raises $13 Million in Private Placement

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ) (the "Company"), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, today announced that it has signed definitive agreements with various institutional and accredited investors to raise gross proceeds of approximately $13 million in a private placement of Senior Secured Convertible Debentures and Warrants. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. The Senior Secured Convertible Debentures are secured by a lien on all of the assets of OCZ Technology Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries, and are subordinate to the Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. ("Hercules") Loan and Security Agreement. The debentures carry a 9 percent interest rate per year, payable in cash, and will mature on the one year anniversary of the closing date. The debentures are convertible into shares of OCZ Technology common stock at a conversion price of $1.70 per share.

In connection with the offering of the debentures, warrants will also be issued at closing that provide investors the opportunity to purchase common stock equal to 75 percent of the number of shares into which the debentures will be convertible, and at a strike price of $0.75 per share. The warrants will have a 5 year term from the closing date. Both the conversion price of the debentures and the exercise price of the warrants are subject to price adjustments in relation to anti-dilution events. "This new financing provides OCZ with additional capital to continue the transformation of our business as the Company continues to focus on delivering high performance, client and enterprise solid state storage solutions," stated Rafael Torres, CFO of OCZ Technology. In addition, OCZ Technology also announced that it has retained Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. as financial advisor to assist the board of directors in evaluating various strategic alternatives available to the Company.

OCZ Technology Delivers ZDrive-XL SQL Accelerator

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced the general availability of its ZD-XL SQL Accelerator which was first showcased live at Interop 2013 and won the Best of Show Award in the Data Center and Storage category. This award-winning product is a tightly integrated hardware/software storage solution that accelerates and optimizes Microsoft SQL Server database applications in enterprise environments.

ZD-XL SQL Accelerator includes a high-performance flash-based PCIe solid-state drive working in combination with innovative acceleration and caching software to deliver the right and relevant SQL Server data when the application needs it. Through a user-friendly advanced graphical user interface, ZD-XL provides simple step-by-step implementation wizards that guide database administrators (DBAs) through best practice models of its flash-based resources to deliver easy and efficient deployment into SQL Server environments.

OCZ Announces Preliminary 1Q14 Financials

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems today announces selected preliminary financial results for the first quarter ended May 31, 2013, subject to customary closing and audit procedures.
Preliminary revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2014 is estimated to be between $50 and $55 million. The sequential decrease in revenue was primarily due to the continued tight supply of NAND flash. The Company's revenue mix continued to shift towards the mainstream and higher-end client markets, as well as enterprise and OEM solutions as the Company continued to focus on these end markets. At the end of the quarter there was an additional $23 million of shippable backlog that was unrealized in the quarter due to supply constraints.

Gross margin continued to improve and is estimated to be between 17% and 20% for the first fiscal quarter as revenue generated from our Enterprise solutions increased sequentially. The Company continued to reduce its operating expenses by further reducing non critical spending. The Company's break-even level continues to improve due to these actions. Operating expenses for the first quarter are estimated to be between $20 and $22 million, which include restatement related expenses of approximately $1.5 million and stock compensation charges of approximately $2 million. Cash flow improved as we reduced our quarterly cash usage to approximately $6 million in the quarter. Cash ended the quarter between $6 and $7 million with total debt outstanding of $10 million. The Company expects that it will require access to additional capital which it is currently in the process of securing.

OCZ Technology Group Updates Investors on Restatement Progress

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, is updating investors on its restatement process.

"We know that our restatement efforts are top of mind for all investors. This process has taken longer than we expected due to a number of items. Complexity of the transactions, as well as resource issues, were the main drivers for the additional time needed. Rafael Torres, our new CFO, joined us in late March with significant restatement experience and has filled key financial leadership positions and improved the technical depth of the finance organization," stated Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology. "Through these improvements, we have implemented a more rigorous review process that has also resulted in the identification of additional restatement items that have taken some time to review, document and conclude on. Taking these items into account, we believe that we are on track to becoming current with our SEC filings before the end of August."

OCZ Announces Settlement of Shareholder Derivative Litigation

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) and power management solutions for computing devices and systems, today announces that it has reached a settlement in principle of federal shareholder derivative litigation filed in connection with the Company's previously announced financial restatement.

The settlement is subject to negotiation of final documentation. It is also subject to court approval. The settlement will be funded by the Company's D&O liability insurance and will not require any payments by the Company. This settlement does not resolve separate consolidated shareholder class actions pending in connection with the restatement.

OCZ Technology Obtains Favorable NASDAQ Listing Determination

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that on May 28, 2013 the Company received a determination from the NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Panel (the "Panel") indicating that the Panel had granted the Company's request to remain listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market, subject to the condition that the Company is current in the filing of its periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission by September 16, 2013. The Company is required to promptly notify NASDAQ of significant events that occur during the exception period. The Panel reserves the right to reconsider the terms of the exception if it believes that the continued listing of the Company's common stock on The NASDAQ Stock Market is inadvisable or unwarranted.

The determination follows the Company's hearing before the Panel on May 16, 2013, at which the Panel considered the Company's plan to regain compliance with NASDAQ's filing requirement. The Company is working to timely satisfy the terms of the Panel's decision; however, there can be no assurance that it will be able to do so.
"We are delighted that NASDAQ has granted us this extension. As recognized by this extension, the Company has made substantial progress in becoming current with our filings and we look forward to completing this as soon as possible," said Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology Group.

OCZ Launches the Vertex 450 Series Solid State Drives

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced the release of the Vertex 450 SATA III SSD Series featuring the company's proprietary Indilinx Barefoot 3 M10 Series controller. As part of the leading-edge Vertex series, Vertex 450 lives up to its name and bridges the gap between high performance and mainstream solid-state storage. With advanced storage performance, reliability, and quality, the Vertex 450 utilizes 20 nm process geometry NAND flash to meet the needs of today's high-end consumer and client applications.

"As one of the industry's most highly awarded SSD Series to date, the Vertex name has become synonymous with the latest and greatest in flash-based storage providing an exceptional balance of performance and cost efficiency," said Daryl Lang, Senior Vice President of Product Management for OCZ Technology. "The Vertex 450 marks the first time this popular OCZ series utilizes in-house ASIC technology delivering an even greater level of speed, reliability and value for our customers."

OCZ Technology Issues Update for Investors

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ), a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, provides business update for the fourth quarter of 2013.

The Company is disclosing certain preliminary information about its fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 that ended on February 28, 2013, subject to certain closing procedures and further review by the Company and its auditors. As previously reported the Company estimated that revenue in each of the unreported quarters ending August 31, 2012 and November 30, 2012 is in the range of $65 million to $85 million. This range takes into effect the impact of the reclassification of certain customer costs from operating expenses to revenue, the significant reduction in channel inventory, the timing of revenue recognition and reserves for product returns. The preliminary revenue range for the unreported fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 is estimated to be between $65 million and $70 million.

OCZ Vertex 5 SSD Series Detailed

OCZ is reportedly readying the 5th generation of its Vertex line of high-performance consumer SSDs. Vertex 5, as it's being called, could retake market positioning of being the company's flagship product, from its Vector series. The new lineup, which could consist of 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB models, could be launched towards the end of May, 2013.

OCZ could use Vertex 5 to strengthen its lineup against Samsung, which appears to have captured the performance segment with its 840 and 840 Pro series, using aggressive pricing, particularly with 840 (non-Pro). Vertex 5 could be based on the same Barefoot 3 platform as Vector, with a few tweaks. It could integrate 20 nm MLC NAND flash. With the company engaged in legal tussles with some of its former investors, it could be interesting to see how the company competes with Samsung's pricing.
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