Easy to use analytic reporting solution delivers broad enterprise data connectivity and increased usability for organizations

PALO ALTO, CALIF -- July 9, 2002 -- Crystal Decisions, a world leader in information management, today announced the general availability of Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5, the newest of its enterprise reporting, analysis and information delivery solutions. Crystal Analysis Professional is an analytic reporting solution that builds upon the power of Crystal Enterprise to share analytic reports, guided analysis and strategic business information throughout the organization in a secure environment. 

Leveraging more than fifteen years of experience, Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5 delivers a complete suite of analytics for business analysts. The combination of information delivery and reporting with analytics provides a powerful and more effective solution than most traditional business intelligence tools. The new version provides powerful, guided analysis to empower less technical business users with the ability to explore data interactively in an easy-to-use "drag and drop" design environment. Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5 enables employees, customers, and suppliers, to answer specific business questions and make more intelligent decisions.

"Crystal Analysis Professional provides real value for people who need to quickly navigate complex multidimensional databases to identify important business trends and gain a coordinated view of the organization," said Andrew Handford, vice president of product, Crystal Decisions. "When combined with the proven scalability and information delivery capabilities of Crystal Enterprise, Crystal Analysis Professional enables users - from line of business managers to decision makers - across an organization to make better, faster decisions for improved business performance."

Delivering powerful insight into business data, patterns and trends, Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5 includes:

• Broader availability and support for multiple enterprise data sources including: Microsoft SQL Server 7 OLAP Services, Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services, SAP™ Business Information Warehouse™ and Crystal Analysis Holos
•  Tight integration with Microsoft Excel to enable users to conduct analysis within their familiar Excel environment, and improve the validity of data within business users' spreadsheets
• Rich client for Intranet deployments of analytics
• Crystal Enterprise Standard (five-user concurrent access license) for Web publishing of reports

"With this latest release of Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5, power users within an organization are now able to build and deploy analytic reports faster and more effectively through a single, reliable customized interface without seeking help from IT," continued Handford.

With more than 11 million licenses of Crystal Decisions' products in the market, and more than 305 OEM partners including Microsoft, SAP, IBM, PeopleSoft, Siebel, Baan and Lawson, most companies are already using Crystal Decisions products throughout their organizations. By leveraging their existing reports, and delivering them with Crystal Enterprise, Crystal Decisions provides one of the fastest ways to standardize information access across the organization.

Pricing and Availability

Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5 supports a wide range of platforms including Microsoft Windows ME, XP, 2000, and NT; and is currently available and is sold directly through the Crystal Decisions sales force and global distribution channel. The company is currently accepting orders for the new version. Crystal Analysis Professional 8.5 also comes with a special offer of a five-user license of Crystal Enterprise Standard.  For additional information, phone 1-800-877-2340 (North America) or 1-604-681-3435 (International), or visit the Crystal Decisions Web site at www.crystaldecisions.com.

About Crystal Decisions

Crystal Decisions is one of the world's leading information management software companies with more than 11 million licenses shipped. Since 1984, Crystal Decisions has powered winning organizations with one of the fastest ways for employees, partners and customers to access the information they need to make the best decisions and ultimately, reduce costs and increase productivity. The Crystal brand is among the most trusted names in enterprise reporting and more than 305 Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) have standardized on Crystal Decisions' solutions. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., Crystal Decisions can be found in more than 20 countries and on the Web at www.crystaldecisions.com.

Crystal Decisions, Crystal Reports, Crystal Enterprise, Crystal Analysis and Holos are either a registered trademark or trademark of Crystal Decisions Inc., in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

For further information, contact:
Ian Galbraith
Public Relations, 604-974-2370
ian.galbraith@crystaldecisions.com