Publication of the 5th Edition of The TRUFFLE 100, the Benchmark Ranking of France's Top 100 Software Companies

* the sector is still vibrant and is creating jobs
* market consolidation continues, with 5 acquisitions in 2008
* software seen as an "anticrisis" weapon
* 49% of software company CEOs want to see a European Small Business Act

PARIS--(Business Wire)--
Truffle Capital, the leading European private equity firm, has just published
(in collaboration with analysts CXP and Mar-Tech & Finance with the support of
Syntec Informatique) the 5th edition of its Truffle 100 France ranking of the
country's top 100 software companies. This latest edition underlines the
sector's continuing dynamism (in terms of turnover, R&D investment and job
creation) and market consolidation (initiated in France in 2007). The entire
press release is available on Truffle Capital.

"A true industrial development policy is now essential for this sector and the
implementation of a true 'Small Business Act' for Europe is a measure that
software houses have been demanding for several years now. In the midst of the
current financial crisis, let's not lose sight of the industry's ability to
create jobs and deliver productivity gains to its customers by giving them the
tools and resources they need to innovate, lower their costs and stay sharp and
competitive!" emphasized Bernard-Louis Roques, founder and General Partner at
Truffle Capital.

The industry is still dynamic, even though the aggregate turnover for the top
100 software companies increased slightly from €3.7 billion in 2007 to €3.8
billion in 2008. Nevertheless, 87% of the ranked companies posted an increase in
turnover (versus 84% in 2007). Twenty-seven software companies climbed in the
ranking (versus 29 in 2007), 7 held their position (versus 16 in 2007) and 49
lost at least one place (versus 39 in 2007).

The software industry remains a hotbed of innovation, with €700 million invested
in R&D in 2008 and €4.1 billion invested over the last 5 years; however, there
was a marked 30% drop in R&D investment between 2007 (€1 billion) and 2008 (€700
million).

The great majority of software producers are adopting pro-active, opportunistic
attitudes when faced with the current economic crisis - a context that is
particularly favoring "software as a service" offerings.

Despite sector consolidation, the software industry is still generating
employment in R&D, with the creation of around 4,000 high-added-value jobs in
2008 - even though this represents a 50% year-on-year decrease. This industry is
still creating value and profit but to a lesser extent than in recent years; the
average net profitability of the ranked companies is 7.6% of their
software-related turnover, with €432 million in 2008 versus €483 million in 2007
and €456 million in 2006.

It is noteworthy that 5 French software houses (with an aggregate turnover of
€371 million) were acquired this year (versus 6 in 2007), including 4
acquisitions by non-French companies. These acquisitions show how difficult it
is for French companies to remain independent beyond a certain development
threshold; this could be stemmed by extending the duration of "Young Innovative
Company" fiscal status from 8 to 15 and implementing a true European "Small
Business Act".

ALIZE RP
Caroline Carmagnol, + 33(0)6 64 18 99 59 / + 33(0)1 41 22 07 31
caroline@alizerp.com
or
Juliette Vandenbroucque, + 33(0)1 41 22 07 32
juliette@alizerp.com

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