Irvine, Calif. - March 16, 2005 - The Sage Group plc (”Sage”) announced today that, after a three-year hiatus, it intends to resume use of the Sage name and mark in North America, enabling Sage to better leverage its worldwide strengths. Sage is the global leader in delivering business management software for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), with worldwide revenue of $US 1.238 billion (£687.6 million) in the most recent fiscal year.
Sage has been operating under the name Best Software in North America since 2001. In connection with its resumption of use of the Sage name and mark, Best Software has acquired the rights of Quick Technologies Inc. (“Quick”) of Dallas, Texas, U.S.A. in the Sage mark, which rights date back to the early 1990's. Sage plans to fully adopt the Sage brand for its North American business by March 2006.

Paul Walker, Sage Chief Executive, commented, “The Sage brand is synonymous with excellence in accounting and business management software for millions of SMBs around the globe. The strength of Sage as a global software leader will now stand clearly behind our more than 2.3 million SMB customers in North America.”

Best Software sells such market-leading U.S. and Canadian brands as ACT!, Peachtree, MAS 90, SalesLogix, and Simply Accounting. In the fiscal year ended September 30, 2004, Best Software reported revenue of $US 516.6 million, representing 42% of Sage’s global business. In addition to its North American leadership, Sage is the leading provider of accounting software for SMBs in the U.K., Spain, France, Germany, and South Africa. Sage is the only technology stock on the FTSE 100 index for the London Stock Exchange.

About Best Software/The Sage Group plc
Best Software offers leading business management products and services that support the needs, challenges and dreams of more than 2.3 million small and mid-sized customers in North America. Its parent company, The Sage Group plc (London: SGE.L), supports 4.4 million customers worldwide. For more than 25 years, Best Software has delivered easy-to-use, scalable and customizable applications through its portfolio of leading brands, including Abra®, ACCPAC®, ACT!®, BusinessVision®, CPASoftware®, FAS®, MAS 90®, MAS 200®, MAS 500®, MIP®, Peachtree®, SalesLogix®, and Timberline® Office, among many others. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.bestsoftware.com/moreinfo or call (866) 308-BEST.