Trading Update

Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs Tuesday 10th January 2006

                                  SOPHEON PLC                                  

                                  ('Sopheon')                                  

                                TRADING UPDATE                                 

Sopheon plc, the international provider of solutions that improve the return
from innovation and product development, announces that revenues for the second
half of 2005 are expected to be 40% higher than the £1.9m reported for the
first six months of the year. We closed 18 license transactions including
extension orders in the period, taking the total number of licensed customers
to 70. Revenue growth in the US was particularly strong with turnover 60%
higher than in the first half of the year. The revenue increase is expected to
reduce the group's EBITDA losses for the second half of 2005 to under a third
of the £0.8m reported for the first six months. This expectation would have
been for a breakeven second half, but for additional subcontractor costs
incurred to deliver on services business which continued to run ahead of
historic trends.

The above performance does not fully reflect the strength of our underlying
commercial progress. In addition to the business closed last year, we have in
hand conditional contracts and commitments that represent overall sales
potential of the order of £2m, of which approximately half could come through
in the shorter term. Originally targeted for completion in 2005, this business,
together with other opportunities under negotiation, provides a strong position
to start the new year. In addition, our annual maintenance base coming into
2006 has grown to over £1.3m.

Sopheon's strategic partnership with Microsoft is producing tangible business
impact, with three Accolade license sales aided by support from Microsoft's
sales team. Seven new active business opportunities are a direct result of
joint marketing at Microsoft events and such marketing activity will continue
in 2006. Later this month, for example, Sopheon will be among a select group of
partners that will be featured at the Microsoft Office Project 2006 Conference
for end-users and partners in Seattle. During the period we also received fresh
market affirmation from IDC, a global IT research and advisory firm, which
credited Sopheon with first-mover status for our actions to capitalize on the
convergence of the product life cycle management and portfolio management
markets.

On the corporate front, Sopheon recently completed the full conversion of its
convertible loan note, and renewed the group's €10m equity line facility with
GEM Global Yield Fund through December 2007.

Financial expectations noted above are subject to the completion of the
year-end financial close process. Consistent with prior years, Sopheon plans to
issue its 2005 preliminary results in early April. This will be brought forward
depending on the speed with which the conversion to International Financial
Reporting Standards is completed.

Sopheon's Chairman, Barry Mence said:

'While achieving 40% growth compared to the first half of the year is a
considerable improvement, we are disappointed that continued sensitivity to the
timing of individual deals prevented us from exceeding even this performance,
and that we were not able to achieve market expectations for earnings.
Nevertheless, the extent of commercial activity in which we are engaged
underpins our continued confidence in the direction of our business. We look to
further cement our leading position in our target markets as we move towards
the important milestone of 100 licensed customers.'

For further information contact:

Barry Mence, Chairman   Sopheon plc                  Tel : + 44 (0) 1483 685   
                                                     735                       
Arif Karimjee, CFO                                                             
                                                                               
Adam Reynolds           Hansard Communications       Tel : + 44 (0) 207 245    
                                                     1100                      
Andrew Tan                                                                     
                                                     + 44 (0) 7957 203 685     
                                                                               
Floor van Maaren        Citigate First Financial     Tel : + 31 (0) 205 754 010

About Sopheon

Sopheon (LSE:SPE) is an international provider of software and services that
help organizations improve the business impact of product development. The
Sopheon Accolade® product development system automates gate- or phase-based
product development (PD) processes and provides strategic decision support that
allows companies to improve innovation, cut product development spending waste
and shorten time to market. Sopheon is listed on the AIM market of the London
Stock Exchange and on the Euronext in the Netherlands. For more information,
please visit www.sopheon.com.