Brocade Bolsters Investment in Asia Pacific with Opening of New Regional Briefing Center

The APAC facility joins the growing, global network of executive briefing centers to support customer visits in key markets

SINGAPORE – Feb. 28, 2012 – Brocade (NASDAQ: BRCD), the leader in fabric-based networking solutions, today expanded its investment in the vibrant Asia Pacific region with the opening of a regional briefing center (RBC) located in Singapore. The new networking-solutions center will showcase leading-edge product demonstrations and facilitate discussions for enterprise, campus and service provider customers throughout the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.

Brocade opened the RBC in a formal ceremony hosted by Brocade CEO Mike Klayko and a number of VIP guests including customers and partners.Brocade RBC in APAC is the newest facility in a global network of briefing centers that Brocade maintains to support customer visits in key markets. It is important to showcase Brocade’s product features and functionalities in the region as many of the key decision makers operate locally. Brocade at present operates an award-winning, world-class facility at its headquarters in San Jose, Calif. that hosts thousands of customers per year.

The opening of its RBC in APAC is a strategic initiative for Brocade as it is directly correlated to the opportunities available in the region. According to Forrester Research*, the APAC market for information technologies purchased by government and business was more than $460 billion in 2011, making it the third largest regional market after the US and Western and Central Europe. Further, Forrester expects total IT investments to exceed $500 billion in 2012, growing nearly 10 percent, “even in the face of economic weakness in other parts of the global economy.”

“These investments are aimed at achieving our company’s goal of constantly enhancing our ability to serve the needs of our customers worldwide,” said Michael Klayko, CEO of Brocade. “While we are justifiably proud of our world-class executive briefing center facility at our corporate headquarters, these regional briefing centers make it easier for our Asia Pacific customers to do business with us by enabling them to access Brocade resources, explore solution options, and interact with our staff in their home region.”

The RBC strengthens the company’s presence and investments in APAC over its 16-year history. Highlights include:

• Brocade maintains a direct presence through sales and R&D facilities throughout the region spanning Greater China, Japan, Korea, India, Singapore, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand;
• Brocade serves regional customers across numerous industries including Telecommunications & Mobile, Media & Entertainment Manufacturing, High-Performance Computing, and Healthcare
• China and India represent two of the fastest growing countries for Brocade in terms of revenue;
• Brocade has a loyal installed base for its core SAN switching solutions and commands approximately 80 percent market share in the region;
• About 12 percent of the total global Brocade workforce is based in Asia Pacific with the company having doubled its headcount in the last year;
• APAC offers Brocade unique routes-to-market through strategic partnerships and alliances

The APAC RBC in Singapore will have both logistic and technical staff to coordinate briefings and seminars with Brocade sales teams, partners and customers to brief them on the latest solutions, roadmaps and demonstrate solutions spanning service provider, enterprise data center and campus LAN environments. To schedule a briefing, please contact your local Brocade sales representative.

*Source: “Asia Pacific Tech Market Outlook for 2012”, Forrester Research