Arc International Standardizes on Business Objects; The World Leader in Tableware Extends the Use of BusinessObjects Across the Enterprise.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Business Objects (Nasdaq:BOBJ)(Euronext Paris ISIN code FR0004026250 -- BOB), the world's leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions, today announced that Arc International has made BusinessObjects(TM) its enterprise business intelligence standard. European-based Arc International is the world leader in tableware with more than US$1.5 billion in revenue and 17,000 employees worldwide.

Arc International is pursuing a growth strategy through the acquisition of an international network of production facilities, and by integrating European and North American wholesalers as subsidiaries. Arc International has standardized on BusinessObjects to support this expansion.

"We are now faced with an increasingly competitive environment," said Jean-Michel Clerget, IT Director at Arc International. "This means identifying the most profitable places to invest and reacting quickly. We need a fully integrated business intelligence tool capable of covering all our needs, from operational reporting to strategic management dashboards. It was in this context that we opted to use BusinessObjects as a corporate standard for all our business intelligence projects in all our departments and subsidiaries. The first 600 users took to the software immediately and we have saved nearly a month on our information distribution process."

User independence and satisfaction were among the main reasons Arc International chose to standardize on Business Objects solutions. Today, Business Objects solutions are used by all of the Group's business functions, including sales & logistics, human resources, senior management finance, marketing, technical services, and production. The management team at Arc International also uses BusinessObjects(TM) Dashboard Manager to access key performance indicators such as turnover, tonnage, and order book status.

About Arc International

Founded in 1825, the small traditional glassworks in Arques in the north of France has been gradually developed over the years. In 2000, it became the Arc International Group, the world leader in tableware. In 2002, the group generated worldwide turnover of US$1.5 billion. It now employs a worldwide workforce of 17,000 in production and distribution subsidiaries in France, Spain, the USA, Italy, the UK and China. Arc International produces 6 million items every day and creates 800 new designs every year for items including plates, dishes, glasses, crystalware and vases. To appeal to consumers throughout the world, Arc International has built up and continues to develop a portfolio that includes the Luminarc, Cristal d'Arques, Studio Nova, Mikasa, Salviati and Arcoroc brands.

About Business Objects

Business Objects is the world's leading business intelligence (BI) software company. Business intelligence enables organizations to track, understand and manage enterprise performance. The company's solutions leverage the information that is stored in an array of corporate databases, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Popular uses of BI include enterprise reporting, management dashboards and scorecards, customer intelligence applications, financial reporting, and both customer and partner extranets. These solutions enable companies to gain visibility into their business, acquire and retain profitable customers, reduce costs, optimize the supply chain, increase productivity, and improve financial performance.

In December 2003, Business Objects completed the acquisition of Crystal Decisions, the leader in enterprise reporting. The combined product line includes software for reporting, query and analysis, performance management, analytic applications, and data integration. In addition, Business Objects offers consulting and education services to help customers effectively deploy their business intelligence projects.

Business Objects has more than 24,000 customers in over 80 countries. The company's stock is traded under the ticker symbols NASDAQ: BOBJ and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250 -- BOB). It is included in the SBF 120 and IT CAC 50 French stock market indexes. Business Objects can be reached at 408-953-6000 and http://www.businessobjects.com/.

Business Objects, the Business Objects logo, Crystal Reports, and Crystal Enterprise are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects SA or its affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. Other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.