“Atos Origin – 1st Quarter Results 2001- Strong Surge in Profitability”

Atos Origin, a leading European information technology services provider, today announced that revenues for the three months ended 31 March 2001 rose by 6.5 per cent to EUR 757 million, compared with the pro forma results of the newly-merged company in Q1 2000.

Revenue growth in France remained strong during the first quarter of the new financial year and sales in the Netherlands are growing again. However, action to streamline the business and particularly to eliminate loss-making activities, had a disruptive effect on some of the company’s commercial activities in the opening months of 2001.

Corporate and all indirect costs have been reduced and the programme to rationalise premises and data centre capacity is on track and continuing. Germany, the UK and Brazil are operating profitably again, and we expect North America to be profitable by the 4th quarter of this year.

The company’s operating margin is already showing strong growth as a result of the speed with which these actions have been put into effect. The order book has also been building well. Given the current high level of visibility, we expect revenue growth in the second quarter to be close to 10% and because of the high level of recurring business we continue to have confidence in achieving our full year revenue growth target of 10%.

Bernard Bourigeaud, Chief Executive and Chairman of the Management Board commented :

” The decisive actions that we took immediately after the merger in October last year have had a significant impact on our profitability. While the company does not report profits in detail on a quarterly basis, I am pleased to tell you that our operating margin in the first quarter exceeded 8 per cent, compared with just over 6 per cent last year, and we are therefore well on our way to achieving our primary target for this year.

Internally, management attention is now strongly focussed on driving the actions needed to accelerate the expansion of our revenue base, and to achieve our revenue growth targets. “

About Atos Origin
Atos Origin, a leading European information technology services provider, helps clients turn their vision into results through the effective use of e-business solutions and IT. With sales of more than EUR 2.8 billion in 2000, Atos Origin currently operates in more than 30 countries worldwide and has 27,000 employees. Its clients include ABN-Amro, Akzo-Nobel, Aramco, BNP Paribas, Cegetel/Vivendi, Credit Lyonnais, Euronext, Fiat, ICI, Lucent Technologies, Philip Morris, Philips, Unilever and Wolters Kluwer.

Press Contacts:
Marie-Tatiana Collombert
+ 33 (1) 49 00 96 33
marie-tatiana.collombert@atosorigin.com

Investors Contact:
John White
+ 33 (1) 49 00 96 64
john.white@atosorigin.com