Leading IT distribution house achieves highest volume sales for ATI Middle East and Africa in 2005

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - 9 May, 2006: Almasa IT Distribution has won the 'Best Distributor 2005' award from ATI Technologies Inc. (TSX: ATY, NASDAQ: ATYT).

A leading IT distribution house in the region with offices across the Middle East, Almasa IT Distribution achieved the highest volume sales for ATI Middle East and Africa (MEA), contributing to a significant share of ATI's overall revenue in the region from the sale of discrete graphics solutions in 2005.

 "We are very proud to receive this award from ATI Technologies as it reflects not only our commitment to channel partners and vendors, but also our continuously approach to drive volume sales through innovative sales and marketing ideas," said Frank Sheu, CEO of Almasa IT Distribution.

Some of the leading-edge performance solutions delivered by Almasa IT Distribution include the Radeon and Imageon line of graphics processors. Almasa IT Distribution also distributes ATI's CrossFire technology, which combines the power of ATI's Radeon Xpress and CrossFire Xpress chipsets for Intel and AMD processors, and ATI's industry-leading Radeon graphics technology to bring massive performance and image quality to regional gaming enthusiasts.

"Almasa IT Distribution has been a premiere partner of ATI's since 2002, and their commitment to enhancing ATI's brand and their consummate professionalism is what we are rewarding them for today," said Rauf Baig, Managing Director Middle East Operations, ATI Technologies. "Almasa IT Distribution's multinational sales team and overall organization also gives ATI's Middle East operations reseller breadth and regional MEA-wide reach, which is crucial for a company looking to maintain its leadership position in the region," he added.

The Middle East region is an important focus area for ATI.  It has the second-highest regional growth rate in the world after China, and has a considerable potential for future growth due to low overall PC penetration rates.  The discrete graphics TAM in the Middle East region is estimated at 1.8 million units per year, and the market for platform technology is estimated at 2.2 million units per year.

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About ATI Technologies
ATI Technologies Inc. is a world leader in the design and manufacture of innovative 3D graphics, PC platform technologies, and digital media silicon solutions. An industry pioneer since 1985, ATI is the world's foremost graphics processor unit (GPU) provider and is dedicated to deliver leading-edge performance solutions for the full range of PC and Mac desktop and notebook platforms, workstation, set-top and digital television, game console and handheld device markets. With fiscal 2005 revenues of US $2.22 billion, ATI has more than 3,400 employees in the Americas, Europe and Asia. ATI common shares trade on NASDAQ (ATYT) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ATY).  

About Almasa IT Distribution:
Founded in 1996, Almasa IT Distribution is today the leading distributor of IT hardware and networking solutions in the Middle East and North Africa. Almasa IT Distribution works closely with the world's leading vendors such as Acer, HP, Intel, Maxtor, Samsung and many more. Almasa Holdings employs over 350 people with some 40 different nationalities across its six member-companies. It operates in more than 60 countries, including the Middle East and North Africa, Asia and Europe. The group has offices in 12 countries, with the biggest being its headquarters in Dubai.

Important Information Regarding Forward-looking Statements

Certain statements in this news release, including but not limited to the anticipated future growth rate in the Middle East region, may be considered "forward-looking".  Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and, accordingly, entail various risks and uncertainties. Risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include demand and acceptance of our products and those of our customers, introduction of new products by our competitors, levels of growth or decline in the PC industry, seasonal and variable demand associated with the PC industry, and rapid and frequent technological change in the PC graphics industry. We therefore cannot provide any assurance that such forward-looking statements will materialize. We assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or any other reason. Additional information concerning risks and uncertainties affecting our business and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement is contained in our filings with Canadian and U.S. securities regulatory authorities, including our 2005 Annual Information Form and 2005 Annual Report filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Our Form 40-F and other filings we make with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are available on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. 

Copyright 2006 ATI Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. ATI and ATI product and product feature names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of ATI Technologies Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Features, pricing, availability and specifications are subject to change without notice.

For media or industry analyst support, visit our Web site at http://www.ati.com

For investor relations support, please contact:
Zev Korman,
Investor Relations,
ATI Technologies Inc., 
(905) 882-2600, Ext. 3670 or zev@ati.com

© Press Release 2006