VERITAS Software Corporation (Nasdaq: VRTS) today announced that The Renault F1 Team, LandAmerica Financial Group, The Weather Channel and SMART Communications, Inc. rely on VERITAS NetBackup software, the industry's preeminent enterprise data protection and recovery software, to protect their critical business data and provide fast restores, helping to ensure consistent protection of their most valuable data assets. VERITAS today announced NetBackup 6.0, with enhanced functionality for central management of backups, snapshots and images to assure the rapid recovery of data and systems (See related press release issued today).

Renault: Protecting Critical Data for Formula One Performance

Renault first entered Formula One (F1) racing in 1977 and after returning to the sport with a full operation in 2001, Renault has rapidly established itself as a top team, regularly qualifying at the front of the field and racing to podium finishes and victories. Renault F1 Team has been using NetBackup software for more than nine years to maximize the availability and manageability of critical statistical and engineering performance data from their racing car, gathered during test sessions and Formula One races and stored on a portable server at the track. VERITAS NetBackup software protects up to 24 terabytes of data each month, including track performance measurements as well as design, aerodynamic and stress analysis information, which is used to develop, manufacture and test the Renault F1 Team's racing engines.
"The data we get directly from the race track is vital for our teams and helps us make key decisions regarding our car," explains Graeme Hackland, IT manager, Renault F1 Team. "VERITAS NetBackup provides us with a serious competitive advantage because it helps ensure that this critical data is backed up and available to us at all times, from any location, allowing us to make quick and effective decisions on and off the track."

The Renault F1 Team also depends on VERITAS Services as a powerful component of their IT operation. "VERITAS not only provides technology, they deliver critical expertise to our teams," said Graeme Hackland, IT manager, Renault F1 Team. "The Renault F1 Team counts on VERITAS Business Critical Services and 'Fly to Site' Engineers to help us with our disaster recovery strategy and testing. And we count on them for 24x7 support to help ensure we are able to retrieve critical data when we need it, across all our sites."

LandAmerica: Centralized Protection for Customer Data

Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, LandAmerica Financial Group, Inc. is a leading provider of title insurance and real estate transaction services, with more than 800 offices and a network of 10,000 active agents globally. A VERITAS customer since 1998, LandAmerica is using VERITAS NetBackup software to protect and restore business-critical customer data, such as customer title applications and commercial property assessments. VERITAS NetBackup software provides centralized data protection for all LandAmerica offices, helping the company manage explosive data growth—from 5 terabytes in 2001 to nearly 70 terabytes in 2005—without additional backup administration staff.

"At LandAmerica, our customers are the driving force behind everything we do. VERITAS NetBackup protects all our vital customer data in a central location, providing our employees with the up-to-the-minute information they need to help customers close real estate transactions," says Jack Kinsey, enterprise services manager, LandAmerica Financial Group. "At the same time, the centralized management capabilities in NetBackup software eliminate the need for additional IT staff to manage backups, allowing us to protect our rapidly growing data stores without additional human capital costs."

The Weather Channel: 24/7 Weather Information to 88 Million Households

The Weather Channel is the pre-eminent provider of weather information in the United States, providing continuous national, regional and local weather-related programming to 88.5 million households. VERITAS NetBackup software helps The Weather Channel ensure its 58 terabytes of critical weather data and satellite images are protected and available 24/7. Using VERITAS software, The Weather Channel has achieved a 20 percent improvement in the performance of its WeatherPro application, which provides meteorologists with the weather information they need to analyze and publish weather forecasts for on-air broadcasts.

"Millions of people depend on The Weather Channel to provide constantly-updated information to stay informed as dangerous weather conditions approach. Ensuring that our critical weather data and core applications are constantly available is vital to our success," says Kevin Gungiah, director of systems administration, The Weather Channel. "We began using VERITAS NetBackup software in 1998 and we've had nothing but success with the product. With NetBackup, we've reduced data recovery time from more than 24 hours to less than three hours, helping to ensure that we can deliver up-to-the minute reports to our viewers without interruption."

SMART Communications, Inc.: Data Availability Helps Assure 24/7 Customer Service

SMART Communications, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, is the Philippines' leading wireless services provider with 20.4 million subscribers on its GSM network. SMART uses VERITAS NetBackup software to protect more than 100 terabytes of critical information -- including all of its customer account and invoice information -- as the backbone of its business and customer service operations. With a data growth rate of 40 percent annually, availability of customer information is critical to the company's success. VERITAS NetBackup software helps ensure that SMART's customer service agents are armed with the most up-to-date account information to effectively respond to customer inquires and resolve billing disputes.

"SMART is a 24/7 operation. We cannot afford to do anything that might degrade our system performance because that translates directly into decreased customer satisfaction and lost revenue," says Wilma Cruz, CIO, SMART Communications, Inc. "With VERITAS NetBackup, we can successfully backup and restore critical customer data from any of our four data centers with virtually no impact on our systems, allowing our subscribers to use our network and our service agents can continue to help customers around the clock."