Cray/Media: Mardi Larson, 612/683-3538 Oxford Molecular/U.S.:George Purvis, 503/526-5000 or Charles Versaggi, 415/547-1320 Oxford Molecular/UK: Tony Marchington, 011.44.1865.784600 CRAY RESEARCH COMPLETES UNICHEM SOFTWARE AND TECHNOLOGY SALE TO OXFORD MOLECULAR GROUP Sale is part of Cray's New Application Strategy; Oxford Molecular to Increase Competitiveness in Important Quantum Chemistry Sector EAGAN, Minn., May 24, 1996 - Cray Research, Inc. (NYSE:CYR) and Oxford Molecular Group PLC (OMG:London Stock Exchange) today announced that they have reached a definitive agreement for Oxford Molecular to acquire Cray's UniChem software package for computational chemistry applications. Cray said the agreement confirms its strategy of working primarily through independent software vendors for applications on Cray supercomputers. The acquisition of Unichem enables Oxford Molecular to increase its competitiveness in the quantum chemistry sector and add supercomputing capabilities to its range of software solutions for integrated molecular design. The agreement includes transfer of technology and software licenses, the companies said. Terms were not disclosed. Cray officials supported the acquisition of the Unichem technology recognizing the strong fit for the software within Oxford Molecular's future business and product development strategy. As part of the agreement, Cray will become a distributor of UniChem for Cray supercomputers. All future versions of the software will be developed by Oxford Molecular and a comprehensive licensing and support transition plan is in place that will minimize the impact on current customers, now at about 75 licensed sites. "We are happy to see our innovative UniChem technology go into the hands of a premier-quality firm like Oxford Molecular," said Mike Booth, vice president of Cray's Applications and Software Divisions. "We saw a great deal of interest from software vendors in this technology. Oxford Molecular will continue UniChem's success and broaden its use in the marketplace." "This acquisition will complement Oxford Molecular Group's portfolio of integrated molecular design products, from gene sequencing to preclinical drug development, and continues our aggressive strategy to provide our customers with a comprehensive line of software and services to meet the needs of the multimillion-dollar drug design market," said Tony F. Marchington, D. Phil., chief executive officer of Oxford Molecular Group. "We are committed to support and optimize the software for a wide range of computers, including the Cray supercomputers." UniChem is an established computational chemistry software package that has been used by industry and research organizations, such as DuPont, Exxon Research & Engineering, and Phillips Petroleum, to speed the development of pharmaceuticals, materials and other chemicals. UniChem complements existing quantum mechanics solutions which are available from Oxford Molecular Group, giving customers greater choice in the quantum chemistry sector. Following Cray's realignment of its applications strategy last year, Cray will focus future development efforts on building unique capabilities and applications technology for Cray supercomputers, but discontinue its business of maintaining well-established software like UniChem, which can be effectively managed by an external independent software vendor that can extend the use of the software to other computer platforms as well. "We have always worked closely with ISVs for mainstream applications optimized on our supercomputers," said Booth. "However, our high performance computing leadership and our partnership approach with our high-end industrial customers often places us in a position to developed unique applications technologies for problems that don't have solutions today. This was the case with UniChem." Cray Research, a subsidiary of Silicon Graphics, Inc., provides the leading supercomputing tools and services to help solve customers' most challenging problems. Oxford Molecular Group develops and markets solutions for integrated molecular design to companies and universities engaged in chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology research. In addition to a wide range of computer-aided molecular design software (CAMD), the company offers advanced bioinformatics tools as well as contract research for pharmaceutical drug discovery and design. Headquartered in Oxford, England, the company conducts U.S. operations in Campbell, Calif.; Beaverton, Ore.; Rochester, N.Y.; and Baltimore, M.D.; and European operations from Oxford; Erlangen, (Germany); and Paris. Oxford Molecular Group is the largest supplier of CAMD software in Japan through its distributor Sony/Tektronix. # # #