SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549 ------------------------ FORM 8-K CURRENT REPORT Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 7, 1998 Data I/O Corporation (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) Washington (State of other jurisdiction of incorporation) 0-10394 91-0864123 (Commission File Number) (IRS Employer Identification No.) 10525 Willows Road N.E., Redmond, WA 98073-9746 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code) Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (425) 881-6444 Not Applicable (Former name or former address, if changed since last report) Page 1 of 3 Pages 1 ITEM 5. OTHER EVENTS See the following press release, dated April 7, 1998, announcing the selection of a new Chief Executive Officer and President starting May 1, 1998. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact: Frances M. Conley Joel S. Hatlen Chairman, Data I/O Vice President/CFO, Data I/O (206)447-8909 (425)881-6444 DATA I/O ANNOUNCES NEW CEO REDMOND, WASHINGTON -- April 7, 1998 -- Data I/O-Registered Trademark- Corporation (NASDAQ: DAIO) announced today that David C. Bullis has been selected as the new chief executive officer and president of Data I/O Corporation starting May 1, 1998. Dave Bullis is currently senior vice president of Synopsys, Inc., where he has been responsible for the company's electronic design automation ("EDA") modeling and verification businesses. He has also held positions of senior vice president and general manager, vice president engineering, vice president of sales and marketing and president/chief executive officer at various companies in EDA and electronic instrumentation during his career. Prior to Synopsys, he was vice president and general manager for Logic Modeling and was a founder of Summation, Inc. Dave holds a BSEE from Iowa State University and an MSEE from Colorado State University. "Data I/O Corporation is fortunate to have found a leader with Dave's range of relevant experience," said Fran Conley, chairman of the board of directors. "The board of directors has done a comprehensive search, and we are confident that Dave will lead the company to new levels of success." CORPORATE INFORMATION Data I/O Corporation, which celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1997, is the world leader in device programming and handling solutions, providing the most comprehensive product offering from design through manufacturing of programmable integrated circuits. It is the first and only device programming systems supplier to receive ISO 9001 certification. The company, which is publicly traded (NASDAQ: DAIO), is headquartered in Redmond, Wash., and has sales and service offices worldwide. The company's worldwide web address is http://www.data-io.com. 2 SIGNATURES Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized. Data I/O Corporation April 10, 1998 By /s/Joel S. Hatlen ----------------------- Joel S. Hatlen Vice President - Finance Chief Financial Officer Secretary and Treasurer 3