SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Quantum Corp.
(NYSE: QTM) today responded to the notice it received today from
VIEX Capital Advisors, LLC nominating five candidates for election
to Quantum's board of directors at the company's Annual Meeting of
Stockholders:
Quantum is committed to maintaining a highly qualified and
experienced board that is focused on driving value for all
stockholders. We seek at all times to work constructively with our
stockholders and consider their input on our business strategy and
strategic alternatives to create stockholder value.
For the past three years, our nine-member board has included
a large stockholder and four other individuals nominated as part of
a previous agreement with another large stockholder. In addition,
our board and management have engaged in numerous discussions with
VIEX over the past several months and have provided board observer
rights to representatives of VIEX so they could participate in
board meetings and deliberations.
We have also conveyed to VIEX that we are open to making
substantial changes to the composition of the board, so that
representatives designated by VIEX and new, independent directors
would together constitute a majority of the board. VIEX has
rejected these proposals.
Although we are open to VIEX having meaningful representation
on our board, we do not believe it would be in the best interests
of Quantum and its stockholders or consistent with the board's
fiduciary duty to allow VIEX — which owns 11 percent of the
company's shares — to control our board and to dictate our
business strategy without paying a proper premium to all remaining
stockholders.
Quantum is in the midst of executing a well-defined strategic
plan, focused on growing our business in scale-out tiered storage
and data protection solutions. Although we recognize that the
overall storage market continues to present challenges to Quantum
and the industry generally, our momentum has been evident in our
most recent three fiscal quarters, with year-over-year growth in
both revenue and profitability, the $170
million financing package we secured and strong prospects
for continued improvement in our business and financial
performance.
Within the next few days, Quantum intends to file a preliminary
proxy statement with the Securities Exchange Commission and
accompanying WHITE proxy card, which will include the company's
recommended slate of director nominees and more detail on the
board's position on VIEX's proposed nominees. Quantum stockholders
are not required to take any action at this time. The Annual
Meeting is scheduled for March 31,
2017; stockholders of record as of February 1, 2017 will be entitled to vote.
About Quantum
Quantum is a leading expert in scale-out tiered storage, archive
and data protection, providing solutions for capturing, sharing and
preserving digital assets over the entire data lifecycle. From
small businesses to major enterprises, more than 100,000 customers
have trusted Quantum to address their most demanding data workflow
challenges. Quantum's end-to-end, tiered storage foundation enables
customers to maximize the value of their data by making it
accessible whenever and wherever needed, retaining it indefinitely
and reducing total cost and complexity. See how at
www.quantum.com/customerstories.
Quantum and the Quantum logo are either registered trademarks or
trademarks of Quantum Corporation and its affiliates in
the United States and/or other
countries. All other trademarks are the property of their
respective owners.
Important Information
Quantum Corporation (the "Company"), its directors and certain
executive officers will be participants in the solicitation of
proxies from stockholders in connection with the Company's Annual
Meeting of Stockholders for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016 (the "Annual Meeting"). The
Company has received a notice of nominations for the election of
directors from VIEX Capital Advisors, LLC seeking to elect five
directors at the Annual Meeting. The Company will shortly file a
proxy statement (the "Proxy Statement") and accompanying WHITE
proxy card with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC")
in connection with the solicitation of proxies for the Annual
Meeting.
The members of the Board of Directors of the Company and
Fuad Ahmad, Chief Financial Officer,
will be participants in the Company's solicitation of proxies in
connection with the Annual Meeting. Information with respect to the
holdings of the participants in the Company's common stock as of
December 31, 2016 was included in
materials filed with the SEC under Regulation 14A on January 12, 2017. Additional information
regarding such participants, including updated information as to
their direct or indirect interests, by security holdings or
otherwise, will be included in the Proxy Statement and other
relevant documents to be filed with the SEC in connection with the
Annual Meeting. To the extent that holdings of the Company's
securities change from the amounts previously disclosed, such
changes will be reflected on Statements of Change in Ownership on
Form 4 filed with the SEC.
Promptly after filing its definitive Proxy Statement with the
SEC, the Company will mail the definitive Proxy Statement to each
stockholder entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. STOCKHOLDERS
ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT (INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS OR
SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT THE
COMPANY WILL FILE WITH THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE
THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Stockholders may obtain,
free of charge, the Company's preliminary proxy statement, any
amendments or supplements thereto and any other relevant documents
filed by the Company with the SEC in connection with the Annual
Meeting at the SEC's website (http://www.sec.gov). Copies of the
Company's definitive proxy statement, any amendments or supplements
thereto and any other relevant documents filed by the Company with
the SEC in connection with the Annual Meeting will also be
available, free of charge, at the Company's website
(www.quantum.com) or by writing to Investor Relations, Quantum
Corporation, 224 Airport Parkway, Suite 550, San Jose, CA 95110.
Contacts
For Media
Sard Verbinnen &
Co
Steven Goldberg / John Christiansen
+1 (310) 201-2040 / +1 (415) 618-8750
quantum-svc@sardverb.com
Quantum Corp.
Brad Cohen
+1 (408) 944-4044
brad.cohen@quantum.com
For Investors
The Blueshirt Group
Brinlea Johnson / Allise Furlani
+1 (212) 331-8424 / +1 (212) 331-8433
brinlea@blueshirtgroup.com or allise@blueshirtgroup.com
MacKenzie Partners, Inc.
Dan Burch / Bob Marese
+1 (212) 929-5500
dburch@mackenziepartners.com or bmarese@mackenziepartners.com
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SOURCE Quantum Corp.