IBS comments on first quarter development

IBS will report weaker than expected license sales in the first quarter. In the US and European markets, the total signed contract value for IBS Enterprise software has been lower than for the same period last year.

IBS license sales normally have a seasonal cycle and the majority of sales is expected in the fourth quarter. This means that it is too early to say if this will have a full-year effect on IBS license sales, compared with last year. IBS market areas report that the sales prospect lists have not been affected negatively.

As IBS has stated earlier, the developed methodology in 2008 of measuring product development cost will mean that the product development cost reported in the Profit and Loss statement will go up during the quarter and during the whole year. Depreciations due to earlier product development activities are higher than last year.

The result in the first quarter will also be affected negatively by currency exchange difference from the operating transactions and from additional redundancy cost.

This means that IBS will report lower Operational Result (EBIT), than the same period last year.