Automated Trading Desk Selects RTI's Messaging Middleware for High-Performance Market Data Distribution


SANTA CLARA, CA-March 27, 2007-Real-Time Innovations (RTI), The Real-Time Middleware Experts, announced today that its high-performance messaging middleware has been selected by Automated Trading Desk, LLC (ATD), as the foundation of its market-data distribution infrastructure. ATD will be using RTI's middleware to distribute real-time data from direct-exchange and Electronic Communication Network (ECN) feeds to its price-prediction engines, automated trading applications and order-management system.

ATD is updating its market data infrastructure to more cost-effectively cope with data volumes that are currently growing 50 percent annually. This challenge is made more acute by ATD's expansion from equities to options trading, which increases by a factor of 10 the amount of data that must be distributed. RTI's highly scalable throughput supports this explosion in volume while eliminating the substantial investment in additional hardware that would have been required with ATD's existing messaging technology. Just as importantly, RTI accomplishes this while still providing ATD with the low latency it needs for high-speed automated trading.

"ATD conducted extensive in-house testing of the leading messaging products targeted at market data distribution," commented Dr. Carlos O'Ryan, chief technology officer at ATD. "We found that RTI provided the most consistent performance, with no latency spikes even under times of peak volume. RTI also had the most full-featured product, with more comprehensive control over performance tuning and built-in support for marshalling data into an efficient binary format that reduces network overhead. In addition, we liked the fact that RTI was able to deliver the throughput and latency we needed with standards-compliant interfaces."

"RTI has provided ATD with phenomenal support, both during our original testing and subsequently," added O'Ryan.

"ATD has a long tradition of being at the forefront of trading technology," said Dr. Gerardo Pardo-Castellote, chief technology officer at RTI. "Their focus on speed was evident during their deep evaluation, which was one of the most comprehensive we have seen. Consequently, we are delighted that ATD validated RTI's messaging technology as exhibiting the best real-time performance characteristics. Moreover, ATD's engineers have provided us with invaluable input that we are leveraging to further optimize our solution for high-performance data distribution requirements."

About RTI's Messaging Middleware

RTI's messaging middleware features latency as low as 65 microseconds and throughput as high as 3,000,000 point-to-point messages per second over Gigabit Ethernet. RTI's middleware provides extensive Quality-of-Service (QoS) controls that allow systems to be tuned for the optimal balance of latency, throughput and resource consumption. This ensures that network and computing infrastructures are optimally applied to deliver performance where and when it is most critical.

RTI provides interfaces that comply with the Object Management Group (OMG) Data Distribution Service for Real-Time Systems (DDS) standard. RTI is the world's leading supplier of DDS-related software and services, with more than four times the market share of all other DDS suppliers combined.

About ATD

ATD is a technology company specializing in the creation of systems for automated trading and customized equity execution solutions through its broker-dealer subsidiaries. ATD offers automated execution solutions in all domestic equity markets, including the listed, over-the-counter, exchange traded fund and bulletin board marketplaces.

ATD's automated systems strive to deliver superior execution, realizing significant time and cost savings. ATD's systems execute orders from buy-side institutions, retail order-sending firms, and sell-side broker/dealers, handling orders ranging in size from odd lots to institutional size blocks. In the fourth quarter of 2006, ATD accounted for approximately 7% of all NYSE volume and 6% of all NASDAQ volume. ATD is the sole owner of Automated Trading Desk Financial Services, LLC and Automated Trading Desk Brokerage Services, LLC, both members NASD/SIPC.

About RTI

Real-Time Innovations (RTI) helps customers successfully develop and integrate the world's most demanding real-time applications. By coupling RTI's deep expertise in real-time communications with the highest-performance messaging middleware, RTI takes the risk out of distributed application development and system integration. The company's software and services have been leveraged in a broad range of industries including defense, intelligence, simulation, industrial control, transportation, finance and communications. Founded in 1991, RTI is privately held and headquartered in Santa Clara, CA. For more information, please visit www.rti.com

The URL for this release is located at: www.rti.com/corporate/news/ATD.html

RTI North American Sales Contact:
Real-Time Innovations,
3975 Freedom Circle,
Santa Clara, CA 95054
Tel: 408-200-4700,
Website: www.rti.com

RTI European Office:
Real-Time Innovations,
P.O. Box 7302,
Milton Keynes, MK13 0XL,
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8133 9240

RTI Media Contacts:

Melanie Gill,

Real-Time Innovations,

408-200-4760,

melanie@rti.com

Barbara Stewart,

Patterson & Associates,

480-488-6909,

barbara@patterson.com

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