adidas Takes Performance to the Next Level with Business Objects; Leading Sporting Goods Company to Monitor Sales and Customer Preferences with Business Intelligence

Business Wire, May 17, 2006

SAN JOSE, Calif. & PARIS -- Performance -- it matters on the field, and it matters in business. To achieve top performance, adidas Group, a global leader in the sporting goods industry, uses Business Objects to provide its sales force with a software infrastructure that improves customer service to accounts and ensures consistent global tracking of the company's overall performance. The adidas Group has also selected Business Objects (Nasdaq:BOBJ) (Euronext Paris ISIN code: FR0004026250 - BOB), the world's leading provider of business intelligence (BI) solutions, as its business intelligence standard in the United States.

"In the sporting world, the winner is the one who crosses the finish line first or scores the most points," said Juliette Sultan, vice president of worldwide marketing at Business Objects. "The same is true in business. The company who increases the value of its customer relationships, and improves its overall efficiency and operations, wins in terms of profitability and overall customer satisfaction. The adidas Group is achieving this goal and much more with business intelligence from Business Objects."

Business Objects software provides information at the fingertips of adidas salespeople who are on the road. With the software, the sales team has the ability to track immediate information on product movement within the stores. Standardized reporting from Business Objects helps adidas stay on top of trends and close the sale. In addition to setting the bar as one of the first to implement this innovation in the sporting goods industry, the benefits of information accessibility will be realized across adidas' sales, marketing, finance, accounting, customer service, IT and inventory management departments.

"Business Objects has made our sales force, and our entire business, much more agile," said Tim R. Oligmueller, sales automation manager for adidas Group. "With the business intelligence infrastructure, we can be confident we have consistent, accurate information when we walk into the board room. We will continue to upgrade and explore opportunities that will give us even faster access to the information that matters most to our business."

The business intelligence solution allows the marketing department to monitor trends and inform customers while they are stocking products, and provides accurate information to deliver reliable forecasts for potential demand and prediction of future sales. The finance department monitors commission payments to its sales force, making the latest commission numbers available via an intranet powered by BusinessObjects(TM) Web Intelligence. Traveling account managers also have access via wireless PDA's to commission reports, critical account and sales data, as well as immediate and accurate information on product availability.

Business Objects recently launched a global print advertising campaign that showcases industry leading companies that have successfully integrated business intelligence solutions from Business Objects into their companies. Starting this month, the third in the series of testimonial ads will feature adidas -- a strong, innovative brand that provides an example of business intelligence used properly and successfully to stay ahead of the competition and define its category leadership. The advertising campaign will run in the U.S., UK, Germany, Italy, Brazil, and France among other countries.

About the adidas Group

The adidas Group is one of the global leaders within the sporting goods industry, offering a broad range of products with brands such as adidas, Reebok and TaylorMade-adidas Golf in its portfolio. Headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany, the Group has more than 25,000 employees and sales of around 9.5 billion Euros.

About Business Objects

Business Objects is the world's leading business intelligence (BI) software company, with more than 35,000 customers worldwide, including over 80 percent of the Fortune 500. Business Objects helps organizations of all sizes create a trusted foundation for decision making, gain better insight into their business, and optimize performance. The company's innovative business intelligence suite, BusinessObjects(TM) XI, offers the BI industry's most advanced and complete solution for performance management, planning, reporting, query and analysis, and enterprise information management. BusinessObjects XI includes the award-winning Crystal line of reporting and data visualization software. Business Objects has also built the industry's strongest and most diverse partner community, and offers consulting and education services to help customers effectively deploy their business intelligence projects.

Business Objects has dual headquarters in San Jose, Calif., and Paris, France. The company's stock is traded on both the Nasdaq (BOBJ) and Euronext Paris (ISIN: FR0004026250 - BOB) stock exchanges. More information about Business Objects can be found at www.businessobjects.com.

The Business Objects logo, BusinessObjects, Crystal Reports, Intelligent Question, and Xcelsius are trademarks or registered trademarks of Business Objects in the United States and/or other countries. All other names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.