BEA Systems Acquires SolarMetric, Inc

BEA Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: BEAS) announced it has acquired the object persistence company, SolarMetric, Inc., today in a move that will give it an early lead in the race towards Enterprise JavaBeans(TM) (EJB) 3.0 and Java(TM) EE 5 compatibility, ahead of competitors like IBM. SolarMetric, a privately-held company based in Austin, Texas, is known for its Kodo(TM) persistence engine, and supports both EJB 3.0 and Java Data Objects (JDO) programming models.

The draft EJB 3.0 standard focuses on persisting in-memory objects in relational databases. This means transient objects like shopping carts or ticket reservations can be stored over time. The JDO specification allows for persisting the objects in other ways as well -- the Kodo persistence engine has developer bindings for both EJB 3.0 and JDO, which allows developers to blend either standard in the same application. Customers have the choice to either use the proven JDO standard, get an early start on EJB 3.0 or add in EJB 3 .0 over time, as the specification is being finalized.

SolarMetric's O/R (Object/Relational) mapping layer is one of the fastest in the industry. All existing products, including the Kodo persistence engine and the Kodo Development Workbench, will be available and supported by BEA. Additionally, the Kodo engine will be integrated into an updated version of the BEA WebLogic Server(R) release, currently planned for the second half of 2006. A technology preview of BEA WebLogic Server 9 will be available in the first half of 2006. BEA will also provide developer support for EJB 3.0 shortly via its BEA WebLogic Workshop(TM) product line.

"The Kodo best-in-class persistence-engine firmly positions BEA as a market leader," said Wai Wong, executive vice president, products, BEA Systems, Inc. "Offering JDO within WebLogic via SolarMetric's Kodo will allow us to provide a richer experience and enhanced productivity to our extensive WebLogic customer user-base."

The acquisition of SolarMetric gives BEA a leadership position in the race towards advanced implementation of Java(TM) EE 5, and will reinforce BEA's decade-long track record of successful technology acquisition, integration, enhancement and innovation. SolarMetric, widely respected for its persistence technology around JDO, will help BEA achieve faster time to market with its flagship WebLogic Server product.

"This technology provides full EJB 3.0 support, delivering on BEA's drive to simplify Enterprise Java Development and the support for blended development and deployment," said Franz Aman, vice president of developer relations, BEA Systems, Inc. "In keeping with our "Think liquid" vision, we enable programmers to build Java programs regardless of the underlying database or preferred programming models, and share business objects effortlessly across the network. This is another critical piece of the BEA SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture) vision by unlocking IT assets and extending those assets into reusable services and objects."

BEA's unique "blended" development and deployment model seeks to provide customers with the ability to mix and match Open Source and commercial software and programming models while helping to minimize integration and testing headaches. Additionally BEA provides support services for non-BEA November 2005 has been acquired by components like Apache Beehive and Spring, plus tooling for blending other environments via its BEA WebLogic Workshop for Java product line. BEA also recently announced plans to offer blended BEA WebLogic management and deployment technologies designed to provide automated management and production-level support for customers using Apache Tomcat, [see BEA WebLogic Teams with Apache Tomcat; Company Blending Leading Commercial and Open Source Software, 10/19/05].

About BEA
BEA Systems, Inc. is a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software, providing standards-based platforms to accelerate the secure flow of information and services. BEA product lines -- WebLogic(R), Tuxedo(R), JRockit(R) and the new AquaLogic(TM) family of Service Infrastructure -- help customers reduce IT complexity and successfully deploy Service-Oriented Architectures to improve business agility and efficiency. For more information please visit bea.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Some of the statements in this press release are forward-looking, including the statements regarding the helping BEA achieve faster time to market and leadership in EJB 3.0 and Java(TM) EE 5 compatibility. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties that could cause results to differ materially include risks associated with: any unforeseen changes in the technology, standards or marketplace for enterprise information integration software; and any unforeseen technical difficulties related to the development BEA's solutions. Readers should also refer to the risk disclosures set forth in BEA's 10-Q for the quarter ended July 31, 2005, as filed with the SEC and subsequent reports filed thereafter by BEA from time-to-time with the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are made as of the date hereof, and BEA does not assume any obligation to update such statements nor the reasons why actual results could differ materially from those projected in such statements.

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