SPE.L Regulatory News (SPE)

4 Nov 2008 07:00

Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs, Tuesday 4th November 2008

SOPHEON PLC ("Sopheon" or the "Company") INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT

Sopheon plc, the international provider of software and services that improve the financial return from innovation and product development investments, issues its interim management statement for the period since 1 July 2008 to the date of this announcement, in line with the requirements of the EU Transparency Directive.

Sopheon's revenues in the third quarter were 60% higher than those recorded in the same period in 2007. This progress has raised revenue visibility* for the year to ‚£8.1m, compared to ‚£5.8m at this time last year. Although the overall transaction count during the statement period was down compared to a year ago, two of the orders were substantial, and our services business remains strong.

We have been encouraged by feedback from recently signed customers suggesting that, as companies are forced by recessionary pressures to reduce headcount and other types of resources, they are motivated to find more effective ways of prioritising innovation initiatives and ensuring that remaining resources are aligned with the best product opportunities. Such imperatives are well matched with the capabilities of our solutions. Activity in the sales pipeline continues to be high, including several opportunities which we expect to close by year-end that would add to the current visibility of ‚£8.1m noted above.

Despite these positive indicators, we believe that the emerging economic climate is likely to cause prospective clients to become more deliberate and rigorous in their buying decisions, potentially delaying the signing of some contracts. This consideration compounds our usual cautionary concern over the fact that, due to the nature of our business, reported results in a particular period will be affected by the timing and size of individual sales.

Sopheon continues to benefit from the strong market position of its principal offerings. Our Accolade system leads the product portfolio management category of software solutions both in terms of functional richness and market penetration. In a report issued in July 2008, AMR Research noted that Sopheon's software has the greatest traction among all best-of-breed product portfolio management offerings in the marketplace. We believe that it is important for us to maintain the current momentum in our growth and maturation as a business and we have therefore added staff in select, key areas. Our initial planning for 2009 calls for this to continue; nevertheless we are well aware of the global economic situation and will remain measured and thorough in our approach to spending, weighing each investment decision carefully.

* A definition of how visibility is calculated was provided in our announcement of 25 June 2008.

For further information contact:

Barry Mence, Chairman Sopheon plc Tel : + 44 (0) 1483 685 735 Arif Karimjee, CFO Vikki Krause Hansard Communications Tel : + 44 (0) 207 245 1100 Paul Davies Seymour Pierce Tel : + 44 (0) 20 7107 8000 Parimal Kumar Corporate Finance Claire Verhagen Citigate First Financial Tel : + 31 (0) 205 754 010About Sopheon

Sopheon is an international provider of software and services that help organisations improve the business impact of products innovation. Sopheon's Accolade‚® solution automates the product innovation process and provides decision support for the management of product portfolios. Its Vision Strategist¢â€ž¢ offering automates the strategic product roadmapping process, allowing users to visualise and forecast the future of products, markets and technologies. Sopheon is listed on the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange and on the Euronext in the Netherlands. For more information, please visit www.sopheon.com.