Hong Kong – 8 March 2012 – In a concerted effort to fuel channel growth within the increasingly competitive campus LAN market, Brocade (NASDAQ: BRCD) announced the rollout of several new channel programmes to help partners better capitalise on sales opportunities. These programmes include deal registration and demo programme discounts, as well as a global Brocade ICX switch seed unit initiative, which allows qualified partners to "test drive" the new products to gain valuable hands-on experience. In addition, these channel programmes support "The Effortless Network" vision for delivering new levels of automation and simplification to the campus LAN environment.

The new initiatives are part of the Brocade Alliance Partner Network (APN) programme, and are specifically designed to reward existing partners that currently offer campus LAN solutions, as well as attracting new channel partners. Combined with the latest additions to the Brocade campus LAN product portfolio -- notably, the Brocade ICX 6430 and Brocade ICX 6450 switches with HyperEdge technology -- these new campus-focused channel initiatives present partners with a compelling value proposition aimed at increasing their profitability.

"At the heart of most campus implementations is an IT organisation that must respond to ever-changing business needs while reducing the cost of deploying and maintaining their networks," said Julio Sanchez, vice president of Business Development, National Infrastructure Team at FishNet Security. "Our customers continually turn to us to provide the guidance and technical expertise necessary for a successful implementation. With Brocade, we get the most innovative campus LAN products on the market today and the right programmes to help us compete and win."

Increased Deal Registration Discounts
The Brocade ICX switch family is purpose-built for enterprise-class networks -- yet priced to fit any budget. This new level of flexibility and investment protection translates into tangible growth opportunities for the channel, especially as end-user customers are increasingly compelled to achieve business objectives while operating under constrained IT budgets. Under this new deal registration programme, qualified APN partners are eligible to receive additional discounts -- above and beyond existing deal registration discounts -- on secured deals that include Brocade ICX products. Through this programme, Brocade is enabling APN partners to offer cutting-edge technologies and solutions to their customers, without sacrificing profitability.

Enhanced Demo and Rewards Programmes
Brocade APN partners can acquire campus networking equipment for sales presentations or to equip their lab environments at significantly reduced rates. APN partners may use marketing development funds (MDF) to cover certain out-of-pocket expenses, allowing them to acquire demo gear, including new Brocade ICX products, at little to no cost.

In concert with the additions to the Brocade ICX product family, Brocade has heavily invested in a major channel seeding initiative that enables partners to "test drive" the products in advance to gain hands-on product experience. Acquiring a true working knowledge with the products enables partners to provide their customers with educated guidance and advice when implementing their campus networking strategy. Brocade has allocated hundreds of units to partners worldwide to drive increased engagement with customers.

Brocade will also broaden the scope of the Brocade Rewards programme, a global programme that rewards reseller sales representatives for their efforts in selling Brocade solutions, to include all Brocade Ethernet networking products. To further entice resellers, Brocade will also introduce specific accelerators throughout the year to drive additional rewards and highlight key products and solutions, such as the newly introduced products within the Brocade ICX switch family.

Channel Education and Training
Brocade also enhanced its training resources with the launch of a completely new APN Training site on MyBrocade, including course material on the Brocade campus LAN portfolio. The online training site serves as a comprehensive resource for partners seeking a wide range of education, certification and sales information in an easy-to-navigate format. In direct response to partner requests for more sales-ready tools and information to drive sales enablement, Brocade now offers complete specialised sales training courses that deliver targeted information to support partners throughout all stages of the sales cycle.

A new technical accreditation, the Brocade Accredited Campus Networking Specialist, is also now available to those partners looking to acquire knowledge and expertise about Brocade Layer 2/3 Ethernet products for campus networks.

"With the introductions of the Brocade ICX product portfolio and the new campus-focused APN initiatives, Brocade is delivering on its promise of leveraging the strength of the channel to bring about IT transformation -- while empowering our partners to be more competitive," said Barbara Spicek, vice president of Global Channels at Brocade. "We are focused on building technology solutions around the vision of 'The Effortless Network,' and extending that focus to our go-to-market strategy to help partners deliver radically simplified solutions that dramatically reduce network complexity and operational overhead."

The new Brocade APN programme initiatives are available now. To learn more, visit www.brocade.com/apn.

Additional Resources

·                Video - Brocade's Barbara Spicek on new campus-focused APN initiatives: http://bit.ly/z4Fk3M

·                Video - Dave Norwood of Trusted Network Solutions talks about channel profitability via the Brocade APN programme: http://bit.ly/woelne

·                Press release - Brocade Unveils "The Effortless Network": http://newsroom.brocade.com

About Brocade

Brocade (Nasdaq: BRCD) networking solutions help the world's leading organisations transition smoothly to a world where applications and information reside anywhere. (www.brocade.com)

Brocade, the B-wing symbol, DCX, Fabric OS, and SAN Health are registered trademarks, and Brocade Assurance, Brocade NET Health, Brocade One, CloudPlex, MLX, VCS, VDX, and When the Mission Is Critical, the Network Is Brocade are trademarks of Brocade Communications Systems, Inc., in the United States and/or in other countries. Other brands, products, or service names mentioned are or may be trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.

Issued on behalf of Brocade

by EBA Communications

For further information please contact:

Brian Paterson (EBA): (852) 2537 8022

Email: brian.paterson@ebacomms.com

Note to editors: this release can be found on the EBA website at www.ebacomms.com. It is also available by email. Call Ivy Chong at (852) 2537 8022 (email: ivy.chong@ebacomms.com) if you wish to make use of this service.