Business 2.0 Magazine Announces Second Annual 'B2 100' Ranking of the Fastest-Growing Technology Companies; UTStarcom Claims Top Spot; eBay Second on List.

Business Editors

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 9, 2003

Business 2.0 magazine has unveiled its second annual B2 100 ranking of the fastest-growing technology companies. The complete list is available in the October 2003 issue of the magazine, on newsstands Sept. 22.

The following is a list of the top 10 companies in the 2003 B2 100:

1. UTStarcom (UTSI), Alameda, Calif., maker of wireless phone

systems

2. eBay (EBAY), San Jose, Calif., online auction house

3. Talx (TALX), St. Louis, Mo., service provider for the human

resources, payroll, and benefits markets

4. Nvidia (NVDA), Santa Clara, Calif., producer of graphics

processors and media and communications devices

5. Amdocs (DOX), Chesterfield, Mo., provider of billing and

CRM 

6. Electronic Arts (ERTS), Redwood City, Calif., videogame

producer

7. Take-Two Interactive Software (TTWO), New York, N.Y.,

videogame producer

8. ViaSat (VSAT), Carlsbad, Calif., builder of digital

satellite telecommunications for military and commercial

use

9. Quality Systems (QSII), Irvine, Calif., maker of software

for medical and dental scheduling and record keeping

10. RSA Security (RSAS), Bedford, Mass., producer of

encryption software and security devices

This year 60 new companies made the list, including top-ranked UTStarcom. Amdocs was the biggest gainer, rising from last place on the 2002 list to No. 5. Logitech, last year's leader, fell to No. 30. The biggest drop was last year's No. 2 company, broadband transceiver producer California Amplifier, which fell off the list entirely.

California claims the most companies on the list, with 27. The remainder of the U.S. regional breakdown is as follows: Colorado and Pennsylvania: 7; Georgia, Massachusetts, and Texas: 5; Arizona: 4; Maryland: 3; Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, and Wisconsin: 2; Alabama, Florida, Kansas, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Washington: 1.

Seven international companies made the list. Of those, three are from Israel and one each is from Canada, France, Germany, and Switzerland.

To make the B2 100, companies had to meet rigorous financial requirements. The list of 100 was winnowed down from an original group of 2,000 publicly traded tech firms. Criteria for making the final list included at least three years of trading on a major U.S. stock exchange, at least $50 million in annual revenue, and positive cash flow over the most recently reported 12 months. Business 2.0 editors then ranked the companies with the help of Zacks Investment Research of Chicago, using a combination of four financial criteria: growth in revenue, profit, and operating cash flow during the past three years, and the 12-month stock return. Cash flow growth counted for 40 percent of a company's ranking; each of the other criteria counted for 20 percent.

"Companies on the 2003 B2 100 have shown remarkable results in a most challenging business environment. But what the list shows is who to watch, who to watch out for, and what we can learn from the leaders," said Josh Quittner, editor of Business 2.0. "Technology is alive and well, as proven by the performance of these companies."

A complete copy of the list is available upon request.

ABOUT BUSINESS 2.0:

Business 2.0, a monthly magazine about business, technology, and innovation, is published out of The FORTUNE Group at Time Inc., an AOL Time Warner company. For more information, visit its website at www.business2.com.