Seagate Licenses Overland's VR2 Technology for Next-Generation Tape Drives

Strategic Insights -

Seagate Technology Inc. and Overland Data Inc. have announced a licensing agreement where Seagate will integrate Overland's patented Variable Rate Randomizer (VR2) technology into its future tape drive products. The VR2 technology has shown unprecedented efficiency, with a code rate of over 99 percent, making it one of the most efficient PRML implementations ever developed. This agreement is seen as a strategic move by Seagate to enhance its competitive product line and satisfy customer demands for increased capacity and performance.

Key Takeaways:

  • Seagate has licensed Overland's VR2 technology, a patented innovation that achieves code rate efficiency of over 99 percent.
  • VR2 technology is the first successful implementation of Path-through compression, enabling improved code rate efficiency.
  • The agreement is expected to contribute to the development of the next generation of Seagate's competitive tape drive products.
  • VR2 technology is seen as a natural fit for Seagate's tape drives, leveraging its existing product line to meet customer requirements for increased capacity and performance.
  • The adoption of VR2 encoding technology by Seagate is considered a strong endorsement by an acknowledged leader in tape drive technologies.
  • Overland's VR2 technology in Seagate's products will allow customers to surpass the critical requirements of high-braryXpress SmartScale Storage(R) architecture.
  • The agreement consists of forward-looking statements that are subject to certain conditions and are not guarantees of performance.

Statistics:

  • Over 99 percent code rate efficiency achieved by VR2 technology.
  • VR2 technology is the first successful implementation of Path-through compression.
  • Seagate's adoption of VR2 encoding technology is expected to enhance its competitive product line.
  • Overland's VR2 technology will be integrated into Seagate's future tape drive offerings.

Sources:

  • "Seagate Licenses Overland's VR2™ Technology" (Business Wire, November 8, 1999)