Redwood City, Calif., February 21, 2001— NetObjects (NASDAQ: NETO) announced today that it has successfully completed the sale of its Enterprise division to MERANT (London Stock Exchange (LSE): MRN; Nasdaq National Market (NNM): MRNT) for $18 million in cash.  Completing the sale of its Enterprise division marks a move for NetObjects into a new era where the company is strategically positioned to focus on solutions for the small business market. 

“With the close of this transaction, we have cleared the way to execute on our vision and sharp focus on the future,” said Samir Arora, chairman and CEO of NetObjects.   We have great momentum as a leader in Web solutions and online services for the small business market that we will now be empowered to leverage to an even greater degree.”

The NetObjects Enterprise division includes NetObjects Collage, NetObjects Authoring Server and professional services for training and support of these products.  The cash obtained from the sale will be used for operating capital.  The sale of the Enterprise division is part of NetObjects’ previously announced transition from a pure play software vendor to a provider of online solutions for small business with focus on NetObjects Fusion and NetObjects Matrix. 

NetObjects is a pioneer of Web technology and has licensed the distribution of more than 10 million copies of its award-winning product NetObjects Fusion.  NetObjects Fusion is a complete Web site building solution designed to provide an easy way to build robust business Web sites.  Moving NetObjects into the future is NetObjects Matrix, a next-generation platform of Web site applications and online services built for Service Providers to empower their small business customers. With NetObjects Matrix, Service Providers can offer the most relevant, easy-to-use online resources to improve customer retention and open a new revenue stream, while helping their small business customers leverage the Internet. NetObjects Matrix provides true integration working with the Service Provider’s business model and technical environment – front-end and back.

About NetObjects

© 2001 NetObjects, Inc. All rights reserved. NetObjects and NetObjects Fusion are registered trademarks, and NetObjects Matrix, NetObjects Collage, NetObjects Authoring Server and GoBizGo are trademarks of NetObjects, Inc. All other brand and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Such statements can be identified by the words "believes", "anticipates", "plans", "expects", and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements about the sale of our enterprise division, market opportunities for web site building software and services, our strategy, and competition. These forward looking statements do not constitute assurances regarding our future operating results, including the operations of our online services business, cash flows, and financial condition. The market for online web-based small business services is new and extremely competitive. We cannot be assured of generating a significant amount of revenue or earning a profit from the sale or license of these services. Our actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements due to various factors, including the risk factors described in our Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and other periodic reports filed with the SEC pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or relevant events occur in the future.