LOS GATOS, Calif., July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Red Brick(R) Systems, Inc.
(Nasdaq: REDB), The Data Warehouse Company(TM), today announced that its Board
of Directors has adopted a Stockholder Rights Plan, effective immediately, and
declared a dividend distribution of one preferred share purchase right on each
outstanding share of Red Brick's common stock.
    To date, stockholder rights plans have been adopted by over 1,800 publicly
held corporations in the U.S., including the majority of the Fortune 500
companies.
    "Implementation of the Rights Plan is designed to ensure that all of Red
Brick's stockholders receive fair and equal treatment by protecting them from
abusive takeover tactics and attempts to acquire control of the company at an
inadequate price," said Christopher G. Erickson, Red Brick's chairman of the
board, president and chief executive officer.  "Establishing a Stockholder
Rights Plan will not prevent take-overs, but will encourage individuals
interested in acquiring the company to first negotiate with the Board."  The
Rights Plan is not being established in response to any known effort to
acquire control of the company.
    In connection with the adoption of the Rights Plan, the Board declared a
dividend of one preferred share purchase right for each outstanding share of
the company's common stock.  The rights will not become exercisable, and will
continue to trade with the common stock, unless a person or group acquires
15 percent or more of Red Brick's common stock or announces a tender offer,
the consummation of which would result in ownership by a person or group of
15 percent or more of the company's common stock.  Each right entitles the
holder to purchase one one-thousandth of a share of the company's newly
created Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock at an exercise price of
$65.00 per one one-thousandth of a share.
    In the event that any person acquires 15 percent or more of Red Brick's
outstanding common stock or the announcement of a tender offer, each holder of
a right (other than the acquiring person or group), will be entitled to
receive, upon payment of the exercise price, that number of shares of common
stock having a market value equal to twice the exercise price.  In addition,
if Red Brick is acquired in a merger or other business combination transaction
after a person has acquired 15 percent or more of Red Brick's outstanding
common stock, each right will entitle its holder to purchase, at the right's
then-current exercise price, a number of the acquiring company's common shares
having a market value of twice that price.  The rights may be redeemed for
one-tenth of a cent per right at the option of the Board of Directors prior to
the acquisition by a person or group of beneficial ownership of 15 percent or
more of Red Brick's common stock.
    The non-taxable dividend distribution will be made on August 25, 1997,
payable to stockholders of record on that date.  After the record date, the
company will mail to all stockholders a summary of the Rights Plan.  The
rights will expire on July 20, 2007.

    About the Company
    Red Brick Systems, Inc., based in Los Gatos, Calif., is a leading provider
of high-performance relational database products for data warehousing.  Its
flagship product, Red Brick Warehouse 5.0, is the world's fastest and most
scalable relational database for data warehousing, including data marts,
online analytical processing (OLAP), and data mining.  Red Brick customers are
successful because the company's high-performance products and service enable
more users to analyze more data and make better decisions faster.
    Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters
discussed in this press release contain forward-looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties, as detailed from time to time in the
company's SEC reports, including the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 1996 and the company's Report on Form 10-Q for the
three-month period ended March 31, 1997.
    NOTE:  Red Brick and Red Brick logo are registered trademarks, and The
Data Warehouse Company is a trademark of Red Brick Systems, Inc.  All other
trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective
holders.

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