IDC Reports Open Text's Livelink Intranet Delivers 201 Per Cent Return on Investment for OSRAM

ANAHEIM, CA -- AIIM 98, Booth #1147 - 1998-05-12 - -- Open Text Corporation (NASDAQ: OTEX) today announced the findings of an International Data Corporation (IDC) study which reveal a 201 per cent return on investment from the use of Livelink Intranet at OSRAM GmbH. OSRAM, based in Germany, is a leading international lamp manufacturer and a subsidiary of Siemens AG.

"We are quite impressed with the results of this study, which reinforce the positive impact Livelink continues to deliver in Global 2000 companies," said Abe Kleinfeld, Senior Vice-President, Marketing, Open Text Corporation. "An ROI of 201 per cent is a significant indicator of the benefits that Livelink s industry-leading collaborative knowledge management capabilities can have on a company s bottom line."

OSRAM employed Livelink as the basis of its OSRAM Product Information System (OPIS) in 1996. As a leading supplier of lighting systems to the automotive and photographic industries, as well as other specialized markets, OSRAM was finding that its customers were asking extremely detailed technical questions. Livelink is being used to help the sales force meet those increasing technical demands. With Livelink, OSRAM s sales representatives have immediate access to necessary information for customer inquiries, establishing a more efficient level of response turn-around time and accuracy.

The IDC study found that OSRAM moved from an inefficient paper-based document distribution system to Livelink. It calculated all costs associated with the change, including the time spent by management and IS personnel, additional network upgrades, and recurring outsourcing costs. Savings included increased productivity for sales and marketing staff, and reduced paper, distribution and telephone costs. This, combined with Livelink s low start-up and development costs, provided OSRAM with the 201 per cent return on investment.

"It s evident that Livelink is drastically changing the way companies do business, not only on a communications level but profit-wise as well," said Ian Campbell, Director, Collaborative and Intranet Computing, IDC. "With an ROI of 201 per cent, OSRAM is a great example of why a company should invest in a knowledge management product like Livelink."

"The expertise in OSRAM is no longer spread out among different members of staff and departments but stored centrally. With OPIS, this knowledge in OSRAM can be managed as part of a system," said Peter Niederhoff, General Lighting Marketing and OPIS project leader. "With this new pool of knowledge, we can answer the majority of customer inquiries immediately because every employee can find answers in OPIS."

OSRAM is currently using Livelink countrywide in Germany. As the system is expanded throughout Europe and worldwide, IDC expects the return on investment to increase significantly because almost all costs, including outsourcing and network costs, will remain fixed.

Release Disclaimer

This news release may contain forward-looking statements relating to the future performance of Open Text Corporation. Forward-looking statements, specifically those concerning future performance, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. These risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the final prospectus for the company's initial public offering of common stock in January 1996, Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 1997, and Form 10-Q for the quarters ended September 30, 1997, and December 31, 1997. Note to Editors: Livelink Pinstripe, Livelink 8, Livelink Search, Livelink Library, Livelink Workflow and Livelink Project Collaboration are trademarks of Open Text Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.

For more information, please contact

Margaret E. Dobbin
Director, Industry Analyst Relations
Open Text Corporation
+1-519-888-7111 ext.2410
mdobbin@opentext.com