SPSS MR Customers Choosing to Standardize Globally

Capitalizing on the trend toward globalization in market research, SPSS MR customers are choosing to standardize on SPSS MR software across all their offices worldwide. Seeking a more streamlined approach to coordinating international offices, companies such as Research International, Millward Brown and Taylor Nelson Sofres have reinforced SPSS MR's leading position worldwide.

"These global agreements enable us to develop a closer working relationship with our customers," said Ian Durrell, managing director of SPSS MR. "This is incredibly beneficial because we are not working with off-the-shelf software packages that are incidental to our customers' businesses, but customizable technologies that are part of their life blood. We serve customers far better if we develop a close and long-term relationship because it gives us a better understanding of their individual needs and drivers for success. The fact that many of our customers have committed to us for three years shows a real vote of confidence for our new Dimensions range, particularly since we hadn't even released any of the Dimensions products at the time the deals were signed.

"This is all part of an ongoing strategy: to have the world's leading market research agencies standardize on SPSS MR software," continued Durrell. "By enabling these organizations to streamline their operations on a global level, we open up opportunities for additional SPSS MR installations, not only within these market research agencies, but also with their clients and vendors."

"We have offices in over 50 countries, so if every country reinvented the wheel every time they needed to implement some software it would cost us millions," said Michael Curth, operations director at Research International, UK. "An integrated platform enables us to focus on streamlining the process between designing the questionnaire and collecting the data. Because it is the most error-prone part of the process and comes so early on in a project, this will have a heavy impact on the quality of our studies. SPSS is the only company with the resources to provide an integrated platform, so it made sense for us to have a strategic partnership."

Recent global deals include:

• Millward Brown -- A third quarter 2000 agreement with this leading market research agency resulted in a three-year license for all SPSS MR software held across the Millward Brown Group.
• Research International (RI) -- As of June 30, 2000, RI committed to using SPSS MR software worldwide for 3 years. The agreement covers In2quest, Quancept CATI, Quancept Web, Surveycraft, Quantum, Quanvert and SPSS.
• Temo Group -- This key player in marketing and market research in Scandinavia bought QTS dialers for each of their three call centers in the third quarter 2000. They are using QTS to increase productivity on their CATI research and found that having a standard IT backbone helps them expand more easily and ensure that all of their offices can work together smoothly.
• Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS Group) -- In late March 2000, the TNS Group signed a Global Software Agreement with SPSS MR to supply their offices with Quantum, Quanvert and Quancept CATI around the world, and Surveycraft in the Pacific Rim region. They are taking steps to standardize their various software and hardware operations and SPSS MR developments were able to mirror their needs.
• ACNielsen -- This third quarter 2000 deal enabled the Pac Rim business of AC Nielsen to coordinate their offices for the first time in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. This new standardized approach enables AC Nielsen to streamline their administration and for each office to benefit from regional pricing and consistency of products across the region.
• Ipsos -- A December 1999 deal helped Ipsos to deploy the same software in all offices and avoid the potential pitfalls associated with managing international projects. Standardizing on SPSS MR technologies helps them provide reliable marketing information and ensure that observed differences in the data between countries reflect real differences between markets and are not a function of inconsistencies in the survey process.

About SPSS MR

Businesses of all sizes drive their success using SPSS MR software and expertise for data collection, data management and insightful analysis and reporting. With a background in market research and business intelligence, SPSS MR offers an extensive technology suite with unrivalled breadth and depth, proven consulting skills and a truly global service through our international network of offices.

About SPSS Inc

SPSS Inc enables organizations to develop more profitable customer relationships by providing analytical solutions that discover what customers want and predict what they will do. The company delivers analytical solutions at the intersection of customer relationship management and business intelligence. SPSS analytical solutions integrate and analyze market, customer and operational data in key vertical markets worldwide including: telecommunications, health care, banking, finance, insurance, manufacturing, retail, consumer packaged goods, market research and the public sector.

Headquartered in Chicago, SPSS has more than 40 offices, over 900 employees and 1999 revenues of $142 million. The company also has won the following awards: No. 77 on Forbes 2000 list of the "200 best small companies" and as the 22nd most profitable company on the Nasdaq exchange by Equities magazine; 1999 World Class Solution award in business intelligence and named "best decision support system for business intelligence" in the 1999 RealWare award competition; No. 14 in DM Review's 1999 Data Warehouse Top 100; placed No. 16 on the 2000 Soft-letter 100, a ranking of the top 100 personal computer software companies in the United States; and No. 115 in the 2000 Software 500, a ranking of the world's largest software vendors by Software Magazine; listed on Working Mother magazine's 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers for 2000. For more information, visit www.spss.com.

Contact SPSS, Chicago, Susan Kalell, 800-525-4980, pr@spss.com.