3/5/2003 , Washington, D.C. - Blackboard Inc., a leading enterprise software company for e-Education, announced its highest revenue to date for the fourth quarter and year-ended December 31, 2002. Blackboard Inc. is a privately held company.

For the year ending December 31, 2002, Blackboard’s revenues were $69.2 million, a 49% increase over year 2001 revenues of $46.5 million. Of the Company’s $69.2 million in 2002 revenue, product revenue accounted for $61.4 million or 89%, while services revenue was $7.8 million or 11% of total revenue.

“The year 2002, marking Blackboard’s five year anniversary, was an important one for the industry and Blackboard,” said Michael L. Chasen, CEO of Blackboard. “Our clients used Blackboard solutions every day to achieve measurable improvements in teaching and learning, and to broaden the student experience. At the same time, Blackboard as a business achieved EBITDA profitability in the second half of 2002, solidifying our own position as a long term research and development leader in what is still a nascent and dynamic market.”

In the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2002, Blackboard’s total revenues were $19.1 million, representing a 36% increase year-over-year. Product revenue accounted for $17.6 million or 92% of total revenue, while services revenue was $1.5 million, or 8% of total revenue.

Blackboard~s fourth quarter 2002 EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) was positive $0.8 million compared to negative EBITDA of $4.2 million for the same period last year. Additionally, Blackboard ended the fourth quarter of 2002 with $20.4 million in cash and cash equivalents. As of December 31, 2002, Blackboard’s deferred revenue balance was $40.5 million.

“Blackboard continues to focus on business fundamentals and is executing well in a challenging environment,” said Peter Q. Repetti, CFO of Blackboard Inc. “Operating a cash flow positive business enables Blackboard to plan and execute a long-term vision for our clients which few of our competitors can do today.”

Summary of Blackboard Revenues by Quarter:

Q1 2002 - $14,729,000; Q2 2002 -  $16,400,000 ; Q3 2002  - $19,006,000; Q4 2002 - $19,100,000; FY 2002  -  $69,235,000

Key Highlights from the Fourth Quarter & Year 2002
Key client wins across Blackboard’s primary markets:

U.S. Higher Education Market: In the U.S. higher education market, new Blackboard clients included Colgate University, Montclair State University, Pace University, Sonoma State University, Southern Utah University, Syracuse University, and University of Memphis.

International Markets: Blackboard added 235 international clients in 2002 and now serves more than 780 international clients in total. New clients included University of Cattolica (Italy), University of Gavale (Sweden), and University of Liverpool (U.K.). 

K-12 Market: In the K-12 market, new Blackboard clients included Broward County Public Schools (FL), Fairfax County Public Schools (VA), the Michigan Virtual High School, and Orange Unified School District (CA). 

Corporate & Government Markets: Blackboard’s new corporate and government clients included the California Library Association, Education America, and Spectrum Pacific Learning/National University.

Blackboard announced the general availability of major new releases in the Blackboard e-Education Suite, including Release 6 of the Blackboard Learning System TM and Blackboard Portal System TM, and Releases 2.0/8.2 of the Windows and Unix editions of the Blackboard Transaction System TM.

The Company also launched the Blackboard Learning System ML™ – the multi-language edition of its award winning course management system, which is now available in Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish. 

Blackboard’s products and services won several important industry awards in 2002, including SIIA’s prestigious Codie Award for Best Postsecondary Instructional Solution.

In January 2002, Blackboard acquired Prometheus, a leading course management system, from The George Washington University.

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