Global Technology Distribution Council (GTDC) Honors Red Hat for Fourth Consecutive Year

RALEIGH, N.C. – October 04, 2012 – Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT), the world’s leading provider of open source solutions, today announced that the Global Technology Distribution Council (GTDC) has awarded them with one of the technology industry’s most reputable honors – a United States “Rising Star” award. This is the fourth consecutive year Red Hat has been honored, a distinction enjoyed by no other company to date. The GTDC Rising Star awards recognize technology companies for exceptional regional sales growth over the past year through their distribution partners. GTDC members include many of the world’s most successful technology distributors, driving more than $100 billion in product sales across the globe.

Red Hat received the organization’s U.S. Bronze Rising Star in the category for software revenue of at least $20 million. Red Hat was among only 12 overall U.S. winners chosen from hundreds of manufacturers and publishers who rely on distributors to meet the product and service requirements of technology solution providers nationwide. The GTDC’s 7th U.S. Rising Star awards were presented in early September in Newport Beach, Calif. The GTDC’s U.S. Gold, Silver and Bronze Rising Star winners were selected based on year-over-year sales growth rates within the NPD Group’s Distributor Track®.

“Red Hat is focused on creating an ecosystem of partners, communities, and customers that through collaboration, creates more relevant and innovative technologies that enterprises can use to meet current and future IT demands,” said Mark Enzweiler, vice president of Global Channel Sales, Red Hat. “We’re honored to be recognized by GTDC for the fourth consecutive year and will continue to improve and increase our channel investments to provide our partners with the tools and resources they need to satisfy and meet their customer needs.”

“Red Hat consistently stands out for generating strong growth through distribution,” said GTDC CEO Tim Curran. “It’s impressive to see tech channel success at the rate Red Hat has driven with their distribution partners – not just over the past year but also over the past several years.”

GTDC is a worldwide industry association dedicated to defining and promoting the role of wholesale distribution in a successful and healthy information technology channel. The Council is comprised of the computer industry’s top wholesale distributors dedicated to serving “the channel,” a network of skilled value-added resellers and retail stores focused on providing hardware, software, and services to businesses and consumers around the globe.

Rising Star Awards Methodology
Sales results for U.S. Rising Star award winners are based on regional sales growth over the past year, as reported by industry research organization The NPD Group using its Distributor Track® service. Available by subscription, the Distributor Track aggregates actual distributor sell-through data to enable sharp insight into channel sales and pricing trends with the ability to drill down into specific product subcategories, including detailed attributes based on specific areas of interest. To be eligible for a Rising Star award, companies are required to have sold corresponding products through technology distributors for a minimum of one year.

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About Red Hat, Inc.
Red Hat is the world's leading provider of open source software solutions, using a community-powered approach to reliable and high-performing cloud, Linux, middleware, storage and virtualization technologies. Red Hat also offers award-winning support, training, and consulting services. As the connective hub in a global network of enterprises, partners, and open source communities, Red Hat helps create relevant, innovative technologies that liberate resources for growth and prepare customers for the future of IT. Learn more at http://www.redhat.com.

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