KDS strenghtens Ariba's travel spend management solution

KDS to power best-selling U.S. procurement management system

SUNNYVALE, Calif. - Paris, France, July 23, 2007 – KDS, European leader in on-demand travel and expense, is joining forces with Ariba, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARBA), the leading U.S. spend management solutions provider, to deliver the first truly integrated solution for managing travel spend from end-to-end. The news came during the National Business Travel Association International Conference & Exposition being held this week in Boston.

Through the new partnership, KDS’s travel booking functionality will be integrated into the Travel and Expense™ module of Ariba’s Procure-to-Pay™ and Invoice Presentment and Payment™ spend management solutions, which are widely used by companies in the United States and internationally.

“Companies are increasingly turning to integrated solutions offering complete sourcing and procurement offering and until now travel was not available in these systems,” said Annicka Lofstrand, Business Development Director EMEA, KDS. “By teaming with Ariba, we can provide an industry-leading end-to-end offering that enables corporate travel managers and procurement managers to achieve these goals and measure them on the same platform as all other spend categories.”

“Corporate travel procurement executives are under increasing pressure to implement processes and solutions that deliver savings and efficiencies,” said Charles Brossman, Solution Line Manager, Ariba Travel and Expense. “In order to do this, they must look beyond point solutions that focus exclusively on travel and leverage offerings that allow them to manage their spend in a more comprehensive way.”

In joining forces with KDS, Ariba will enable companies to combine travel with other spend categories and drive everything from sourcing, procurement, invoicing, expense, reimbursement and analysis using a single solution. An industry first, the new offering will allow travel procurement executives to improve cost control efforts, create process efficiencies, drive compliance with managed travel programs and deliver greater results and ROI.

Ariba® Travel and Expense™ – On-Demand Key Features:

Ariba Travel and Expense combines proven technology with spend management best practices to help companies better manage their travel-related spend. With the integration of KDS travel services, companies can manage online, offline and webform travel booking right from their procurement system, creating a closed-loop system and policy compliant process that drives savings more quickly to the bottom line. Leveraging the new features, companies can:

• Drive compliance with corporate travel policies and curb maverick spend
  
• Increase accuracy of expense data and improve audit and regulatory reporting processes
  
• Enhance visibility into spend and drive more optimal sourcing
  
• Better manage supplier relationships
  
• Perform more detailed travel commodity reporting

“Spend management is a critical driver of effective corporate travel strategies,” Brossman said. “With our closed loop system, corporate travel professionals can move beyond managing routine processes and engage in strategic activities such as evaluating new global and domestic sources of supply, managing existing relationships, negotiating optimal contracts and analyzing spend at granular levels to drive better business decisions and bottom-line improvements.”

Availability

Ariba’s on-demand Travel and Expense solution is available and in use by customers today. During the fourth quarter of 2007, integrated KDS functionality will be delivered in the Ariba Travel and Expense module of Ariba’s spend management solutions, including Ariba Procure-to-Pay™ and Ariba Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment™.

About Ariba, Inc.

Ariba, Inc. is the leading provider of spend management solutions to help companies realize rapid and sustainable bottom line results. Successful companies around the world in every industry use Ariba Spend Management software and services. Ariba can be contacted in the U.S. at 1.650.390.1000 or at www.ariba.com.