Waterloo, ON - 2002-10-24 - Open Text™ Corporation (Nasdaq:OTEX)(TSX:OTC), provider of Livelink®, the leading collaboration and knowledge management software for the global enterprise, today announced financial results for its first quarter ended September 30, 2002.(1)

Financial Highlights

Revenue, adjusted net income and cash flow all represented the highest first quarter results ever reported in the Company's history. Total revenue for the quarter was $37.7 million, an increase of 5% from the same quarter in the prior year. This increase was driven by strong license and networking revenue of $15.5 million. Open Text reported adjusted net income(2) for the first quarter of $5.2 million. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.25 (diluted) was up 67% from the first quarter a year ago. Cash flow from operations for the first quarter was $9.6 million. Net income (GAAP) for the quarter was $5.4 million.

"We are pleased with the Company's continued strong financial performance, as demonstrated by our profitable growth and significant cash flow from operations," said Tom Jenkins, CEO of Open Text. "The Livelink product family continues to demonstrate a rapid return on investment for our global 2000 customers, which is even more relevant in this difficult economic climate. Livelink has earned its leadership position in collaboration and knowledge management by successfully improving an organization's productivity and profitability."

Revenue results for the quarter were broadly based globally. For the quarter, 59% of the Company's revenue originated from North America, while 41% came from Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Accounts receivable as of September 30, 2002 was $29.6 million, resulting in days sales outstanding (DSO) of 71 days. As of September 30, 2002, cash was $103 million or $5.34 per share. Working capital was $94 million with no debt. Deferred revenue was $24.7 million, an increase of $6.3 million from the same quarter a year ago.

Also during the quarter, the Company completed its Normal Course Issuer Bid program. The Company repurchased a total of 712,200 common shares in the quarter, representing a total cost of $16.2 million. Within the last 12 months, Open Text has repurchased 983,700 shares for cancellation under the current Normal Course Issuer Bid filing. The Company plans to renew this program for the upcoming 12 month period, starting on November 6th, 2002.

Open Text also announced it has been ranked by Business 2.0 magazine as one of the 100 fastest growing technology companies world-wide, based on stock performance, growth in revenues, earnings and operating cash flow.

The Company reaffirms guidance of $1.20 adjusted EPS and $167M of revenues for FY03, and $1.50 adjusted EPS and 20% revenue growth to $200M for FY04.

New Accounts and Large Deals Drive License Revenue

During the first quarter there were 5 transactions over 1 million dollars. New name accounts buying in the quarter included Aerospace Corporation and Boeing. Open Text's largest customers also drove the financial results by continued enterprise-wide adoptions. Repeat customers buying in the quarter included: Audi AG, Britannia Airways, Chiron Corporation, and T-Systems.

First Quarter in Review

1. Open Text And Centrinity Announce Acquisition Agreement

On September 19, 2002, Open Text and Centrinity, Inc., (TSX:CTI) announced that they had entered into a definitive acquisition agreement in which Open Text will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Centrinity, Inc., for cash consideration of CDN $1.26 per share. The companies expect the transaction to close in the second quarter of FY03. The closing of the transaction is subject to conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approval and Centrinity shareholder approval.

For more information please see the press release at: opentext.com/news/pr.asp?id=1277

Open Text provided an investor briefing and presentation available at: opentext.com/investor/investor_events/Analyst_Call_Sep-19-2002.html

2. Open Text introduces Livelink for Content Management

During the quarter the Company extended Livelink to offer integrated Web content management. The new offering ties content management into Livelink's extensive knowledge management and collaborative capabilities.

Many Open Text customers, including Unilever Bestfoods and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Central Secretariat, already use content management features in Livelink, which allow them to preview and publish content. Content Management for Livelink combines these features with new capabilities to give customers a complete Web content management solution.

For more information please see the press release at: opentext.com/news/pr.asp?id=1275

3. Open Text Users Access Content in Other Repositories

During the quarter the Company released Livelink Doorways, a new product offering that provides integration that brings together all of a customer's content in other repositories, making it available to users collaborating in Livelink. The first release of Livelink Doorways offers access to Documentum 4i and a variety of file systems, including Microsoft Windows, UNIX NFS and Oracle iFS. In later releases, Open Text expects to add connectors for Hummingbird DM andDOCS Open, Lotus Notes and Domino, and other repositories.

For more information please see the press release at: opentext.com/news/pr.asp?id=1278

4. Financial Analyst Day

There will be a Financial Analyst Day conducted on November 7, 2002 during LivelinkUp, the Company's annual North American User Conference. The Conference will be held November 4-8, 2002 at Navy Pier in Chicago. Open Text customers and partners will highlight successes in improving organizational productivity and profitability through the use of Livelink. More information can be found at the corporate Web site, and analysts can e-mail analystday@opentext.com to register for attendance.

5. Upcoming Investor Events

Open Text announced that it plans to participate in the following financial events and hosted by the respective brokerage firm. Note that event dates and times are subject to change. To confirm a date or learn about Web cast availability, visit the Company's Web site closer to event date at www.opentext.com/investor.

October 29 RBC Capital Markets Software Conference
Time: TBD San Francisco

November 4,5 AEA Conference
Time: 9 am PT San Diego

November 7 Analyst Day at Live LinkUp 2002
Time: 9 am CT Chicago

November 25 Scotia Capital Technology Conference
Time: TBA Montreal

December 12 Annual General Meeting for FY02
Time: 10am ET Toronto

February 28, 2003 CIBC Institutional Investor Conference
Time: 11:20am PT Whistler, B.C.

Open Text invites the public to listen in on the Company's teleconference call discussing financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2003 at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT on Thursday, October 24th.

When: Thursday, October 24th, 2002 - 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT
Where: 416-640-4127

Please dial the above number approximately 10 minutes before the teleconference is scheduled to begin. The operator will take your name and connect your line with the meeting. For more information and playback instructions, please visit: opentext.com/investor/investor_events/Q1-2003_Earnings_Call_Oct-24-2002.html

(1) Reported under U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles GAAP). All amounts are in US Dollars.

(2) Adjusted net income is calculated as net income, excluding the amortization of acquired intangible assets, other income (expense), gain (loss) on investments and income taxes on equity gain. Adjusted net income does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP, and therefore it is unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Adjusted net income is presented in an effort to measure Open Text's profitability from recurring operations. The items excluded from the computation of adjusted net income, which are otherwise included in the determination of net income prepared in accordance with GAAP, are items that Open Text considers capable of potentially hindering a comparison of its period-to-period profitability.

Livelink is the leader in collaboration and knowledge management for the global enterprise. Its richly-featured enterprise services include virtual team collaboration, business process automation, enterprise group scheduling and information retrieval services, all tightly integrated into a solution that is easily customized and extended. Livelink is essential to the effective management and development of communities of interest that span organizations and industries. For everything from the creation of complex e-community relationships to the automation of simple e-business processes, Livelink delivers true dynamic collaboration between individuals, organizations and large trading communities. Livelink servers are fully Web-based and open-architected to ensure rapid deployment and easy access to its full functionality through a standard Web browser. For more information, visit www.opentext.com/livelink/

Since 1991, Open Text Corporation has delivered innovative software that brings people together to share knowledge, achieve excellence, deliver innovation, and enhance processes. Its legacy of innovation began with the successful deployment of the world's first search engine technology for the Internet. Today, as the leading global supplier of collaboration and knowledge management software for the enterprise, Open Text supports 6 million seats across 4,500 corporations in 31 countries and 12 languages throughout the world. As a publicly traded company, Open Text manages and maximizes its resources and relationships to ensure the success of great minds working together. For more information, visit www.opentext.com

Copyright (c) 2002 by Open Text Corporation. LIVELINK, LIVELINK MEETINGZONE, and OPEN TEXT are trademarks or registered trademarks of Open Text Corporation in the United States of America, Canada, the European Union and/or other countries. This list of trademarks is not exhaustive. Other trademarks, registered trademarks, product names, company names, brands and service names mentioned herein are property of Open Text Corporation or other respective owners.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements relating to the deployment of Livelink and Livelink MeetingZone by customers, and future performance of Open Text Corporation. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, risks involved in the completion and integration of acquisitions, the possibility of technical, logistical or planning issues in connection with deployments, the continuous commitment of the Company's customers and other risks 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 years ended June 30, 1996, June 30, 1997, June 30, 1998, June 30, 1999, June 30, 2000, June 30, 2001, and June 30, 2002. Forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs and opinions at the time the statements are made, and the Company does not undertake any obligations to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's beliefs or opinions change.

Alan Hoverd
Chief Financial Officer
Open Text Corporation
+1-519-888-7111 ext. 2480
ahoverd@opentext.com

Greg Secord
Open Text Corporation
+1-519-888-7111 ext.2408
gsecord@opentext.com