SAP records outstanding performance in 2005

During the year, SAP won 20 new clients and tapped into five new industry sectors across the region. The company also announced five client win-backs from its closest competitor and was ranked number one in the MENA region by IDC in their latest report on the software solutions market.

Mr. Phil Blower, Sales Director, SAP Arabia, said:

"2005 has been a fantastic year overall. We have secured some exciting new deals, tapped into diverse businesses including some very large-scale enterprises and also mid-size businesses, and demonstrated our expertise in verticalisation with scalable solutions thus providing our clients the competitive advantage and agility to respond to changing business realities."

SAP penetrated key accounts in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Egypt offering industry-specific solutions and configurations to suit business needs. Within the UAE software solutions market, SAP saw a strong demand for its CRM, SCM and ERP business solutions. The company added new clients to its existing portfolio including Oman Polypropylene, EMKE Group, Al Gurg, ETA Ascon, Islamic Development Bank, Mobica, JASCO, SAPHAD, SMSA FedEx amongst others.

SAP penetrated five new key industry segments - namely Banking, Logistics, Media, Construction and Utilities. Five key win-backs for the company in the last year included Islamic Development Bank, Gulf News, Al Gurg, Magrabi and Talaat Mostafa.

The company also leads the MENA Region in Enterprise Application Suites (EAS), Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Supply Chain Management (SCM) sales (license and

maintenance revenues), according to IDC's latest report for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region. SAP has a market share of 30% compared to its nearest competitor's share, which is 9% lower.

Phil further added: "The latest study by IDC on the software solutions market ranked SAP number one in the MENA region. We are very optimistic for 2006 and plan to deliver an even bigger success story. There will be an increased focus on the SME space and on demonstrating our continued leadership and specialization across the industry verticals in the coming year. Our single-minded objective remains enabling every customer to become a 'best-run' business."

The IDC study for 2004 covering the MENA software solutions market gives a detailed overview for high-end integrated package software products. The study confirmed that SAP generated revenues of approximately $50 million in the EAS sales and lead the CRM sales in the region. SAP gained 78% of the 2004 market share in SCM, almost four times more than its nearest competitor. The IDC Study for 2005 is expected to come out later this year.

2005 has been a great year for SAP world wide. Total revenues exceeded $10 billion, an increase of 13% compared to 2004, with product sales up 18%. SAP's worldwide market share against its peer group based on software revenues was 62% at the end of 2005. This represents a gain seven percentage points compared to 2004.