BURLINGTON, Mass — March 03, 2010— Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AZPN), a leading provider of software and services to the process industries, today announced the signing of new commercial agents in the Middle East – Arabesque Group, in Kuwait, and Independent Technical Services (ITS), in Abu Dhabi. The new agents further expand AspenTech’s Middle East presence, following the recent opening of a regional direct sales office in Manama, Bahrain.

• Led by Ahmed Al-Atheri, Arabesque Group has 17 years of experience serving the process industries in Kuwait, including selling aspenONE process optimization tools.
• Led by Saad Bunni, ITS has 15 years of experience serving the oil, gas and utility industries in the United Arab Emirates, including owner-operators and engineering and construction companies.
• AspenTech’s expanded presence in the Middle East builds on a long history of working with the world’s biggest energy and chemical producers. AspenTech customers in the region include Saudi Aramco, SABIC, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), Abu Dhabi Gas Industries (GASCO), Qatar Gas, and Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC).

Supporting Quote:
Antonio Pietri, Executive Vice President, Field Operations, AspenTech
“For more than a decade, AspenTech solutions have been used by Middle East customers representing some of the largest energy producers in the world. We are growing our Middle East presence as investment continues to be made by process manufacturers across our core industries in energy, chemicals and petrochemicals. We will continue to build up our supporting infrastructure to make it easier for more companies in the region to use the industry’s leading solutions for process optimization.”

BURLINGTON, Mass — February 09, 2010— Aspen Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AZPN, as of February 10, 2010) a leading provider of software and services to the process industries, today announced its financial results for its second quarter of fiscal 2010, ended December 31, 2009.

Mark Fusco, Chief Executive Officer of AspenTech, said, “We are pleased with the company’s performance in the second quarter, as solid transaction flow drove product-related bookings of approximately $95 million. Within product related bookings, the license portion was consistent with the year ago period. Early customer response to our new aspenONE licensing model has been very favorable, which is driving both renewal activity and expanded usage with customers across each of our target markets. As we look to the second half of our fiscal year, customer interest levels remain high and we are encouraged by the positive impact of our new aspenONE licensing model on both our competitive position and long-term market opportunity.”

Fusco added, “After bringing our financial statements current with the filing of our first quarter results and subsequently filing our second quarter results in a timely manner, we have been approved to relist the company‘s common stock on the NASDAQ stock market effective tomorrow morning under the ticker ‘AZPN’. We are excited to complete this process so that investors can focus exclusively on AspenTech’s business performance, strong competitive position and market opportunity.”

AspenTech’s total revenue of $42.7 million decreased from $82.6 million in the second quarter of the prior year, due primarily to the ratable revenue recognition associated with the company’s new aspenONE licensing model.

• Subscription revenue includes all revenue associated with the company’s new aspenONE licensing model. Subscription revenue was approximately $1.2 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010. No subscription revenue was recorded in the year ago period as the company’s new aspenONE licensing model was launched during the first quarter of fiscal 2010. Subscription revenue is recognized over the course of the multiyear agreement, and recognition begins when the first payment is due, which is typically 30 days after the contract is signed.
• Software revenue includes all non-subscription-based license revenue, including term-based contracts for point products as well as perpetual licenses. Software revenue was $9.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010, compared to $47.3 million in the year ago period. In fiscal year 2010, software revenue related to term contracts is recognized over the contract term, generally as payments become due. In prior fiscal year periods, the company predominantly recognized term license revenue on an up-front basis, and what was previously categorized as license revenue typically equaled license bookings. However, in the second quarter of fiscal year 2009, license revenue was approximately $17 million lower than license bookings as a result of certain license bookings not meeting the criteria for up-front revenue recognition.
• Services & other revenue, which includes professional services, maintenance and other revenue, was $32.5 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010, a decrease compared to $35.4 million in the year ago period. The year-over-year decline was primarily a result of the more challenging economic environment compared to the year ago period. Services and other revenue was up sequentially compared to $28.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2010.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2009, AspenTech reported a loss from operations of $29.3 million due primarily to the ratable revenue recognition associated with the company’s new aspenONE licensing model. For the quarter ended December 31, 2008, the company reported income from operations of $18.8 million. Net loss was $30.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010, leading to net loss per basic and diluted share of $0.34 compared to net income per diluted share of $0.25 in the same period last year.

AspenTech had a cash balance of $109.4 million at December 31, 2009, compared to $109.0 million at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2010. The company did not sell any installments receivable to raise cash during the second quarter of fiscal 2010 and it continued to reduce its secured borrowings balance, which was $96.5 million at the end of the quarter, down $12.3 million compared to $108.8 million at the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2010.

Other Second Quarter Business Metrics

- The company closed 18 product-related bookings of over $1 million during the second quarter, and 57 product related bookings between $250,000 and $1 million.

- Average deal size for product-related bookings over $100,000 was $778,000 in the second quarter.

Conference Call and Webcast

AspenTech will host a conference call and webcast today, February 9, at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time), to discuss the company’s financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2010. The live dial-in number is (877) 245-0126, conference ID code 53424224. Interested parties may also listen to a live webcast of the call by logging on to the Investor Relations section of AspenTech’s website, http://www.aspentech.com/corporate/investor.cfm, and clicking on the “webcast” link. A replay of the call will be archived on AspenTech’s website and will also be available via telephone at (800) 642-1687 or (706) 645-9291, conference ID code 53424224 through February 16, 2010.