Deloitte & Touche Technology Fast 500 Winner Siebel Systems Exceeds 782,000 Percent Growth in Five Years.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 16, 1999--

Fastest Growing Tech Companies in U.S. Average 4,998 Percent

Growth; 69 Percent Higher than 1998 Fast 500 Winners

Siebel Systems Inc. of San Mateo, Calif., with a five-year revenue growth of 782,978 percent, tops the list of the fastest growing technology companies in the United States in the 1999 Deloitte & Touche Technology Fast 500.

Siebel Systems Inc.'s revenues grew from $50,000 in 1994 to $391,539,000 in 1998. This is the greatest percentage revenue growth of any Fast 500 company since the program's inception.

"We are very honored to receive this market recognition," said Thomas M. Siebel, chairman and CEO, Siebel Systems, Inc. "This growth has been a secondary effect of our singular focus upon building great products, ensuring highly satisfied customers and maintaining a great work environment."

Three well-known Internet companies placed second, third, and fourth. Second-ranked Excite Inc. (now Excite@Home) of Redwood City, Calif., had 187,081 percent growth, growing from revenues of $83,000 in 1994 to $155,360,000 in 1998. Third-ranked Earthlink Network, Inc. of Pasadena, Calif., had 158,405 percent growth, with revenues moving from $111,000 in 1994 to $175,941,000 in 1998.

Fourth-ranked Netscape Communications Corp. of Mountain View, Calif., had 64,240 percent growth, with revenues increasing from $696,000 in 1994 to $447,809,000 in 1998.

"It's no surprise that Internet companies have exploded onto the Fast 500," said Mark Evans, managing director of Deloitte & Touche's High Technology Group in San Jose.

"I believe we'll see a dramatic increase in the number of Internet companies on the Fast 500 over the next few years as these young companies finally get five years in business under their belts, which is a qualifying factor for the list."

Ranked fifth is Applied Digital Solutions Inc., a communications company based in Palm Beach, Fla., which had 64,012 percent growth in revenues from $323,000 in 1994 to $207,081,000 in 1998.

Fast 500 Winners Grew 69 Percent Faster than 1998 Fast 500

Winners

Overall growth rates for this year's Fast 500 winners averaged 4,998 percent growth, a figure 69 percent higher than the average growth rate for last year's Fast 500 winners. This year, Fast 500 winners had combined 1998 revenues of $75.9 billion. Five-year growth percentages for Fast 500 winners ranged from 535 to 782,978 percent.

Internet Companies Rocketed to the Top of the Fast 500 for First

Time

"Internet companies are just now old enough to be considered for the Fast 500," Evans said. "And what a showing they have made with three of the five top companies in the Internet business -- and the other two in the top five, Siebel Systems, and Applied Digital Solutions, saying that they consider the Internet to be a central factor in their future growth."

Nearly twice as many Internet companies are on the 1999 Fast 500 compared to last year's list, nine percent versus five percent, respectively.

Interestingly, all three of the top Internet companies on the Fast 500 list have recently merged with other Internet powerhouses. Evans noted, "To be able to aggregate millions of customers and build brand awareness is an expensive proposition. I believe we'll see dramatically more consolidation on the Internet side than we have from other technology segments."

Computer & Communications Companies Dominate the Fast 500

Eighty-three percent of Fast 500 companies are in the Computer and Communications categories.

Within the computer industry, 50 percent of the Fast 500 are in software; 10 percent are in Communications, nine percent are in Internet; seven percent are in Computers and Peripherals; and seven percent are in Semiconductors, Components, and Electronics. Software, as a Fast 500 category, continues to grow, as it's up from 40 percent of the 1998 Fast 500.

Five of the top 10 Fast 500 companies are in Software, three are in Internet, one is in Communications, and one is in Biotechnology. Three of the top four Fast 500 companies are Internet companies, compared to last year when the highest ranked Internet company was number 51-ranked SPYRUS of Santa Clara, Calif.

Biotechnology companies comprised nine percent of the 1999 Fast 500, the same percentage as last year. Medical, Scientific, and Technical Manufacturing comprised six percent, down one percent from last year's seven percent. Two percent of the winners are in other technology-related businesses compared to three percent in 1998.

36 Percent of Fast 500 Companies Based in the Northeast Technology companies based in the Northeast made up 36 percent of the Fast 500 this year, unseating the West as the region with the most Fast 500 winners in 1998. The West is in second place with 30 percent, down from nearly 35 percent in 1998. In third place is the Southeast, with 18 percent.

The area encompassing New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut has the greatest number of Fast 500 companies, beating out traditional high tech centers including Northern California, New England (excluding Connecticut), Virginia/Maryland, and Washington state.

California still has the most Fast 500 winners of all the states, with 21 percent based there (13 percent in Northern Calif. and eight percent in Southern Calif.), down from 26 percent last year. Other states also showed growth, with 30 percent of winners outside traditional high tech capitals.

Northern Calif. Still Home to Fastest Growing Companies

Although Northern California doesn't lead the list for number of companies, it has the fastest growing companies, with three of the top five companies based there.

Overall, the West is still the high tech growth leader with the largest average percent growth rates -- 10,995 percent versus the country's average of 4,998 percent. Companies in the West are growing fast, with the average growth percentage rate nearly quadrupling from last year's average of 2,924 percent.

"Major contributors to this trend are the extraordinary growth of Siebel Systems, Netscape and Excite@Home, which are three of the top five 1999 Fast 500 winners," Evans said. "We also see five of the top ten winners located in Northern California. All this affects the profound increase in this region's 1999 growth rates."

Southeast and Midwest Average Growth Rates also Increased

The average growth rate for the Southeast region increased to 2,652 percent for 1999 Fast 500 winners, up from 2,521 percent last year.

Major contributors for the growth are number five ranked Applied Digital Solutions of Palm Beach, Fla.; number 15 ranked Technology Builders, Incorporated of Atlanta, Ga.; and number 17 ranked Global TeleSystems Group, Inc. of McLean, Va. Together, these three companies are responsible for the majority of the revenue growth for the Southeast region.

The Midwest region's growth rates also increased to 2,707 in 1999 versus last year's 2,671 percent.

Two 1998 Top Ten Winners make 1999 Top Ten

Two of the 1999 Fast 500 top ten companies were also among 1998's top ten -- Applied Digital Technologies Inc. of Palm Beach, Fla., and Incyte Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif. at numbers five and six, respectively.

Forty-six percent of the 1999 Fast 500 winners have made the list for the second time. Just 15 percent rank on the list for the third time, only four percent made the list for the fourth time, and a mere two percent have made an appearance on the Fast 500 for the five years since the program's inception in 1995.

Nine Companies Make Fast 500 for Five Consecutive Years Nine fast-growing companies have proven that not only can they grow at the nation's fastest rates, they can stay there for five years running. Celebrating their fifth consecutive year on the Fast 500 are (in order of 1999 ranking):

Number 80  -- Ascend Communications Inc. of Alameda, Calif.
Number 219 -- MRV Communications Inc. of Chatsworth, Calif.
Number 232 -- VERITAS Software Corp. of Mountain View, Calif.
Number 245 -- Sytel Inc. of Bethesda, Md.
Number 316 -- PLATINUM Technology International Inc. of Oakbrook
              Terrace, Ill.
Number 339 -- Datastream Systems Inc. of Greenville, S.C.
Number 385 -- Dura Pharmaceuticals Inc. of San Diego, Calif.
Number 412 -- C-Cube Microsystems Inc. of Milpitas, Calif.
Number 460 -- Cisco Systems Inc. of San Jose, Calif.

Size is No Barrier to Fast Growth u America's Biggest on the Fast 500 Being among the largest companies in the U.S. hasn't stopped the following companies from experiencing stellar growth. All publicly traded, the five largest companies (by 1998 revenue) are:

Number 409 -- MCI WorldCom Inc. of Jackson, Miss. -- $17,678,000,000
Number 460 -- Cisco Systems of San Jose, Calif. --$8,458,777,000
Number 484 -- 3Com Corp. of Santa Clara, Calif. -- $5,420,367,000
Number 263 -- QUALCOMM Inc. of San Diego, Calif. -- $3,347,870,000
Number 124 -- America Online Inc. of Dulles, Va. -- $2,600,000,000

46 Percent of Fast 500 Winners are Publicly Traded

Forty-six percent of the companies on the Fast 500 list are publicly traded, including nine of the top ten companies. Approximately four percent of the Fast 500 companies have been acquired since Jan. 1, 1999.

Qualifying Criteria for the Fast 500

The Fast 500 list is compiled from three sources: winners of Deloitte & Touche's 19 regional U.S. Fast 50 programs; nominations submitted directly to the Fast 500, and public company database research. To qualify for the Fast 500, entrants must have had revenues of at least $50,000 in 1994.

Entrants are public or private companies headquartered in the United States; and must be a "technology company," specifically defined as a company that produces technology, manufactures a technology-related product, are technologically intensive, uses technology in problem-solving, or devotes a high percentage of effort to research and development of technology.

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Note to Editors: For the complete list of Deloitte & Touche Technology Fast 500 winners, visit www.Fast500.com.