Rorke Data Revamps Select Partner Program for Resellers in the U.S. and Canada

April 2, 2012 - Rorke Data Revamps Select Partner Program for Resellers in the U.S. and Canada

Channel Program Increases Support for Training, Demand Generation, Demo Equipment and Co-Branded Marketing

Eden Prairie, Minn. -- Rorke Data, an Avnet Company (NYSE: AVT) and a data storage solutions provider, today announced expanded support for its reseller partners in the U.S. and Canada through itsSelect Partner Program. The Select Partner Program is designed to assist Rorke Data's business partners in building new relationships and expanding their revenue streams through training, demand generation activities, demonstration equipment and co-branded marketing activities.

"Rorke Data has always been a channel-centric company and our revamped Select Partner Program will provide our partners with additional resources, tools and marketing support to address the needs of their customers more effectively and profitably," said Joe Swanson, group executive vice president, general manager sales and marketing at Rorke Data. "The Rorke Data Select Partner Program is designed to create greater engagement and loyalty with our top resellers by rewarding joint sales activities. Collaboration is key to success in the channel, and we want to help our partners better leverage our expertise and resources in the markets they serve."

Participants in Rorke Data's Select Partner Program must have a qualified, outbound sales team that focuses on value-added sales of data storage systems or other complementary products. Rorke Data offers two levels of partnership for its resellers: Authorized Reseller and Premier Reseller. Authorized Resellers will benefit from deal registration, comprehensive free training, sales promotions and world-class support. In addition to the benefits of being an Authorized Reseller, Premier Resellers gain additional support such as market development funds, joint marketing opportunities, lead generation, deeper discounts on demo equipment and a dedicated account manager. All partners will be able to access the program's benefits through an online partner portal, which will provide regular communication from Rorke Data on sales and marketing activities.

"The opportunity for increased sales growth with new customers into vertical markets with Rorke Data's high-performance storage solutions is unlimited," said Michael Flanigan, managing partner at Oceana Digital, a systems provider for high-end digital production and a Rorke Data reseller. "The Select Partner Program gives us the support we need to identify and approach customers who want reliable storage solutions at a low cost-per-gigabyte price point."

Rorke Data's Select Partner Program is ideal for partners looking to expand into high-growth market opportunities. Rorke Data is at the forefront of data image management and continues to provide partners new and creative solutions for media and entertainment, healthcare, surveillance, print media and IT storage markets. Resellers have helped Rorke Data reach more than 15,000 installations worldwide for RAID, NAS, SAN, archive and other complex life cycle data management hardware and software solutions. Resellers also benefit from access to Rorke Data's professional services, ranging from data migration, installation, remote monitoring, data recovery and help desk services.

For more information about Rorke Data's Select Partner Program or to receive an application, please visit http://rorke.com/partners/select-partner-program/

About Rorke Data
Rorke Data is an ISO 9001:2000 and 13485:2003 certified data storage-centric, end-to-end solutions provider with expertise in primary and tiered storage architecture, integrating RAID, NAS, SAN, tape, and optical libraries with software and support. Rorke Data leverages certified expertise in Linux, Windows and Mac platforms delivering high bandwidth storage and network solutions for fixed content and rich media application environments and can provide custom integration outsourcing capabilities. Founded in 1985, Rorke Data is an Avnet, Inc. (NYSE: AVT) company, composed of five divisions: Healthcare & Life Sciences, Media & Entertainment, Digital Surveillance, Digital Prepress & Publishing, and Professional Services & Engineering. More information about Rorke Data can be found at www.rorke.com.

About Avnet Technology Solutions
As a global IT solutions distributor, Avnet Technology Solutions collaborates with its customers and suppliers to create and deliver services, software and hardware solutions that address the business needs of their end-user customers locally and around the world. For fiscal year 2011, the group served customers in more than 70 countries and generated US $11.5 billion in annual revenue. Avnet Technology Solutions (www.ats.avnet.com) is an operating group of Avnet, Inc.

About Avnet
Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT), a Fortune 500 company, is one of the largest distributors of electronic components, computer products and embedded technology serving customers in more than 70 countries worldwide. Avnet accelerates its partners' success by connecting the world's leading technology suppliers with a broad base of more than 100,000 customers by providing cost-effective, value-added services and solutions. For the fiscal year ended July 2, 2011, Avnet generated revenue of $26.5 billion. For more information, visit www.avnet.com.