VIKING                                   Cindy Subido or Erin Lebsack
SYSTEMS                                  Townsend Inc. for Viking
                                         858-457-4888
                                         kpalmatier@townsendinc.com
                                         elebsack@townsendinc.com


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    Viking Systems, Inc. to be traded on the Over The Counter Bulletin Board
        Surgical medical products company upgraded to OTC Bulletin board

October 13, 2004, -- La Jolla, CA -- Viking Systems,  Inc. (VKSY.OB),  a medical
products  company  focused on  integrated  solutions  for the  digital  surgical
environment,  has announced that effective today, Viking Systems Inc. stock will
begin trading on the Over The Counter Bulletin Board under the symbol VKSY.OB.

The OTC Bulletin  Board(R)(OTCBB) is a regulated quotation service that displays
real-time quotes,  last-sale prices, and volume information in  over-the-counter
(OTC) securities.  The NASD (the National  Association of Securities Dealers), a
self-regulatory  organization of the securities industry oversees both the OTCBB
and the NASDAQ stock market.

"We  believe  that the  quotation  of our stock on the OTC  Bulletin  Board will
provide access to an increased number of institutional and retail investors.  We
believe this is an important  milestone which will assist us in making investors
aware of Viking Systems financial  progress and growth plans",  stated Thomas B.
Marsh, President and Chief Executive Officer.

About Viking Systems, Inc.

Viking Systems,  Inc. is actively  positioning to be a market leader in bringing
integrated  solutions  to the  digital  surgical  environment.  The  Company  is
developing a portfolio of targeted medical  technologies and services that serve
the current and emerging needs of the digital  healthcare  network The Company's
mission  is  to  deliver  integrated  information,  visualization,  and  control
solutions to the surgical team,  enhancing  their  capability and performance in
minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and complex surgical procedures.

Viking  Systems is further  building its  solutions  portfolio  through  product
development  and  targeted  acquisitions.  The  Company  established  the Vision
Systems Group in Westborough,  MA with it's proprietary  3-dimensional  surgical
visualization  business and digital platform for surgical  information  delivery
(Infomatix(TM)).  Other acquisition  targets  currently include optics,  digital
imaging, sensors, surgical robotics, and image management products or companies.





The Company is headquartered in La Jolla, CA. For more information, please visit
the company's website at http://www.vikingsystems.com.


Forward-Looking Statements

This  current  report  contains  certain  forward-looking   statements  and  any
statements  contained  in  this  current  report  that  are  not  statements  of
historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Without limiting
the foregoing,  words such as "may," "will," "expect," "believe,"  "anticipate,"
"estimate"  or "continue"  or  comparable  terminology  are intended to identify
forward-looking statements. These statements by their nature involve substantial
risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially depending on a
variety of factors, many of which are not within Viking's control. These factors
include,  but are not  limited  to,  economic  conditions  generally  and in the
markets in which Viking may participate, competition within Viking's markets and
failure by Viking to successfully develop business relationships.



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