DBAs facing the problem of corporate data explosion have an excellent new tool to help them in the MySQL 5.0 Archive storage engine. Whether it’s a data warehousing, data archiving, or data auditing situation, MySQL Archive tables can be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to maintaining large amounts of standard or sensitive information, while keeping storage costs at a bare-bones minimum.
via MySQL :: The MySQL 5.0 Archive Storage Engine.
Should probably investigate using ARCHIVE storage for the multi-year history tables