SANTA CLARA, Calif. �� April 5, 2004 �� Following the appointment last week of Jonathan Schwartz to the position of president and Chief Operating Officer of Sun Microsystems, Inc., the company today announced that John Loiacono, 43, has been named executive vice president of software. Effective immediately, Loiacono will lead the division responsible for delivering on Sun's network computing strategy with a portfolio of highly integrated, affordable, open, interoperable, end-to-end software systems.

"I am thrilled to announce that John will lead the software organization," Schwartz said. "John has the right energy and aggressiveness to take Sun's software to the next level, building on our most recent successes with alternative desktops, the dramatic growth and acceptance of the Java platform, the Solaris Operating System, developer tools and initiatives, and the Java Enterprise System, while creating new opportunities and innovations in the marketplace. I have tremendous confidence in his vision and ability to lead through change. His passion is contagious and his commitment unquestionable."

"Under Jonathan's leadership, Sun's disruptive actions are shattering conventional wisdom within the software industry," Loiacono said. "I look forward to building upon our disruptive success and leading this talented group as we continue to find new ways to extend Sun's software reach. We will build on our new collaboration with Microsoft and plans to provide the most Microsoft-interoperable software available, while continuing to focus on delivering end-to-end network solutions - from the data center and desktop environments, to mobile devices and smart cards."

Prior to his new role, Loiacono was senior vice president of Sun's operating platforms group and was responsible for the strategic direction of the Solaris and Linux platforms, as well as the Java Enterprise System. He was instrumental in delivering the Solaris OS on all relevant platforms, including SPARC(R), AMD Opteron and Intel/Xeon processors. Before that, Loiacono held the position of Chief Marketing Officer at Sun where he managed Sun's overall brand, marketing and marketing communications strategy. Loiacono has been with Sun since 1987 and was instrumental in establishing the company as a pioneer in the area of enterprise network computing. He holds a B.A. in communications from Fresno State University.

About Sun Microsystems, Inc.

Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer" -- has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW) to its position as a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that make the Net work. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the World Wide Web at http://sun.com

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