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Red Hat and SuperH Develop Open Source Tools for New 64 Bit Processors

GNUPro Developer Tools Developed for SuperH SH-5 Architecture

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 13, 2002--Red Hat, Inc. (Nasdaq:RHAT - news), the world's premier open source and Linux provider, and SuperH, Inc., the developer of RISC microprocessor cores, today announced that they are working together on a compiler for the new 64 bit SuperH SH-5 processor. The Red Hat GNUPro compiler is a commercial software development suite of tools built around the open source GNU standard. The joint work with Red Hat is part of SuperH's commitment to using, and making available, open source software for the SuperH architecture.

The SuperH architecture is ideally suited to digital consumer convergence products and targeted at service providers, system manufacturers and semiconductor suppliers. Red Hat is working with SuperH to develop open source solutions across the SuperH architecture to deliver powerful, reliable and affordable solutions ideal for the mass consumer device market. The SuperH architecture, including the new 64 bit SH-5 core architecture, will be supported by the Red Hat Embedded Linux Developer Suite enabling developers to gain access to the latest software upgrades as they become available and to Red Hat Open Source Support.

``When designing consumer devices, getting the embedded technology right is critical -- it must be able to support feature rich applications but also come in at the right price point for the mass consumer market,'' said Jon Frosdick, software director of SuperH, Inc. ``Open source software is an important part of our strategy for ensuring that the SuperH architecture is designed to deliver the highest price performance ratio. We're delighted to be working with Red Hat to develop open source solutions for the new SuperH SH-5 architecture.''

``It is vital that new chip architectures are able to draw upon an established developer community to accelerate their adoption into new products and devices,'' said James Prasad, vice president EMEA, Red Hat. ``The GNU project is the heart of open source development. When you combine this with Red Hat's Embedded Linux Developer Suite, there is a fully supported cast of thousands all contributing to its continued development and success. This joint project with SuperH is a great endorsement of Red Hat's GNUPro toolsuite as a standard reference base for next-generation processor platforms based around the new 64 bit SH-5 core.''

The SuperH architecture is designed for digital consumer applications such as set-top boxes, portable multimedia appliances, games consoles, and many other 'infotainment' products. Automotive applications include car information systems, motor control systems and satellite navigation products. Telecoms applications include video telephones, home gateway systems and smart phone applications.

GNU is a wide-range of open source-based, freely downloadable software programs that are licensed under the terms of the General Public License (GPL). A subset of GNU is its development tools, which include command-line-based compiler and debugger technology. The source code for these tools, while freely available, generally does not include pre-built binaries. It has not been subjected to formal testing, nor is there a guaranteed mechanism for new platform support.

Red Hat GNUPro provides a commercial grade toolsuite based on the GNU standard. This toolsuite is built on a standard reference base and delivered with pre-configured binaries. GNUPro features include a graphical interface, compiler, debugger, linker, loader and utilities. The development of extensions and enhancements to GNUPro are driven by Red Hat engineers and customers, then put through a rigorous test and release process. Through collaboration between Red Hat and its partners, GNUPro is extended to support next-generation processor platforms ensuring that Red Hat supports customers' long-term product or application development plans. With real-time response and on-going maintenance, Red Hat ensures that its customers' engineering teams aren't forced to lose development time because of tool-related issues.

About SuperH, Inc.

SuperH, Inc. was established as an independent company in July 2001 following an agreement between STMicroelectronics and Hitachi to create an independently managed entity to develop processor cores for the open market.

Currently SuperH, Inc. is seeking partners to license its high-performance, low-cost, power efficient SH-4 core, which is targeted at the next generation PDA market, the set-top-box sector, the games console sector and the automotive sector. Looking to the future SuperH, Inc. will develop all subsequent SuperH cores to the open market, including the development of the soon to be launched 64-bit SH-5 processor as well as future SH-6 and SH-7 cores, due to be unveiled over the next two years.

About SuperH, Inc. Processor Cores

The SuperH family of high-performance 32-bit and 64-bit processor cores is ideally suited for digital consumer, automotive and telecommunications applications. These applications typically require a highly integrated system-on-chip solution that includes a powerful embedded processing engine and can run a wide variety of application software on industry-standard operating systems and middleware.

SuperH is a RISC microprocessor technology based on an original Hitachi architecture. To date, six cores have been released: the SH-1, SH-2, SH-3, SH2-DSP, SH-DSP and SH-4. SuperH processors are used in many fields of industry including information systems and digital consumer products such as set-top boxes, factory automation systems and digital cameras. Further information about SuperH products can be found on www.superh.com.

About Red Hat, Inc.

Red Hat is the world's premier open source and Linux provider. Red Hat is headquartered in Research Triangle Park, N.C., and has offices worldwide. Please visit Red Hat on the Web at www.redhat.com. For investor inquiries, contact Gabriel Szulik at Red Hat, 919/547-0012.

LINUX is a trademark of Linus Torvalds. RED HAT is a registered trademark of Red Hat, Inc. All other names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: Forward-looking statements in this press release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Investors are cautioned that statements in this press release that are not strictly historical statements, including, without limitation, management's plans and objectives for future operations, and management's assessment of market factors, constitute forward-looking statements which involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, reliance upon strategic relationships, management of growth, the possibility of undetected software errors, the risks of economic downturns generally, and in Red Hat's industry specifically, the risks associated with competition and competitive pricing pressures, the viability of the Internet, and other risks detailed in Red Hat's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, copies of which may be accessed through the SEC's Web site at http://www.sec.gov.

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