Sony AIT (Advanced Intelligent Tape) format is intelligently engineered to stand apart - no other tape cartridge features both an MIC chip (the brains) and a pure metal magnetic layer designed for maximum capacity and longevity (the brawn). You work hard to collect or create critical data and files. Why not let your storage system work hard for you? The MIC chip brain stores directory information so it can go right to the data you need. Other formats have to search for your file, wasting valuable time and needless wear. Application software from The AIT Forum members gives you even more advantages for intelligent storage solutions. Forget about slow tapes that wear out. Not only is the AIT magnetic layer pure metal (instead of a metallic oxide) but it's protected by patented technology on both the front and back. Sony's Diamond Like Carbon coating is 20 times harder than oxide, and so smooth that head wear and cleaning requirements are minimized. Sony's AIT cartridges will still be here, thanks to their 30-year archival life. If you plan on upgrades before then, Sony is committed to supporting future evolution of this powerful format. Don't trust your data to a dead-end format - choose AIT.