San Jose, California, October 20, 2004 — Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) is the fastest growing technology company in North America and tops among the 2004 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America, a regional ranking of the fastest growing technology companies based on percentage revenue growth for the past five fiscal year period (1999 to 2003). The research is conducted by Deloitte & Touche USA LLP.

Google, an Internet search engine firm, recorded a revenue growth rate over five years of 437,115 percent, moving from US$220,000 in 1999 to $961,874,000 in 2003. From its humble beginnings in Menlo Park, California, Google is now a household name. This is its first appearance in the global Deloitte Technology Fast 500 program.

"Google tops a list of companies that are proving the resilience of the technology sector," said Mark Evans, managing partner of Deloitte's Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT) Group in the U.S. "With growth percentages ranging from 329 to 437,115 percent, the [Technology] Fast 500 winners have demonstrated an ability to perform in difficult conditions."

The Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America Top Five
In addition to top-ranked Google, the remaining top five Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America winners include:

#2.  TheraSense (ABT), an Alameda, California-based life sciences company, came in second on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America. Now a part of Abbott Laboratories, TheraSense develops and sells glucose self-monitoring systems that reduce the pain of testing for those with diabetes. It reported revenues of $211,854,000 in 2003, a leap of 249,140 percent over five years from 1999 revenues of $85,000. TheraSense topped the list last year.

#3.  STSN Inc., a Salt Lake City-based privately held Internet company that provides high-speed Internet access to the hospitality industry, ranks third. STSN posted $60,591,000 in revenues in 2003, 118,706 percent higher than its 1999 revenues of $51,000. This is its first appearance on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America ranking.

#4.  Cardiac Science Inc. (NASDAQ:DFIB), a life sciences company that develops and manufactures cardiac defibrillators, came in fourth. The Irvine, California-based company reported revenues of $61,982,000 in 2003, jumping 60,077 percent from 1999 revenues of $103,000. Cardiac Science ranked 107^th in 2003 and 417^th in 2002.

#5.  Pricegrabber.com, a privately held Internet company that provides online comparison shopping, came in fifth with 2003 revenues of $26,909,000, 51,648 percent higher than its $52,000 in revenues in 1999. PriceGrabber.com is based in Culver City, California. This is its first appearance on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America ranking.

Top five winners average 183,337 percent growth; overall winners 4,109 percent
Combined, the 2004 top five winners' growth rate averages 183,337 percent, up from the 2003 top winners' average of 177,851 percent but down from 2002's 196,762 percent. It is still up from the averages of 93,496 percent and 59,367 percent recorded in 2001 and 2000, respectively.

Overall average percentage growth for all 500 winners was 4,109 percent, down from last year's 5,493 percent and 6,772 percent for 2002. The average in 2001 was 6,184 percent and 3,956 percent for 2000.

Percentages for the 2004 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America winners range from 329 percent to 437,115 percent, compared with 469 percent to 296,080 percent for 2003 winners; 614 percent to 293,493 percent for 2002 winners; 824 percent to 115,874 percent for 2001 winners; and 593 percent to 71,257 percent for 2000 winners.

Majority of winners from Western United States
The Western United States claims the greatest number of companies on the ranking, with 34 percent (167 companies) this year. The percentage of winners based in the West has been fairly consistent for the past four years, with 32 percent in 2003, 36 percent in 2002, and 32 percent in 2001.

The West also claims the highest percentage of growth (8,790 percent); is home to all of the top 10 winners; and is also home to the ranking's largest companies, with five of the seven companies on the list with revenues over $1 billion based there. Here is how other parts of North America fared:

Northeastern United States  Home to 22 percent (110 companies) of the winners, holding steady from 23 percent (113 companies) in 2003, 23 percent (114 companies) in 2002, 23 percent (115 companies) in 2001, and 25 percent (125 companies) in 2000.

Southeastern United States  Claims 16 percent (80 companies) of the winners, consistent with 16 percent (82 companies) in 2003 and 16 percent (82 companies) in 2002, but down from 19 percent (97 companies) in 2001 and 21 percent (105 companies) in 2000.

Canada  Boasts 11 percent of the winners with 55 companies located there, down from 14 percent (68 companies) in 2003, but up from 10 percent (52 companies) in 2002, 9 percent (47 companies) for 2001 and 2000 (9 percent or 46 companies). This is the fifth year Canadian companies were eligible for the ranking.

Midwestern United States  Home to 10 percent (51 companies) of the winners, holding steady with 9 percent (44 companies) in 2003, 10 percent (49 companies) in 2002, and 11 percent (54 companies) in 2001 but down from 14 percent (68 companies) in 2000.

Southwestern United States  Claims 7 percent (37 companies) of the winners, holding steady from 6 percent (31 companies) in 2003, 5 percent (23 companies) in 2002, 6 percent (29 companies) in 2001 and up from 4 percent (21 companies) in 2000.

California home to 26 percent of all winners, including eight of top 10
California retains its title as home to more Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America companies than any other state, with 26 percent (130 companies) based there — up from 25 percent (126 companies) in 2003, but down from 30 percent (149 companies) in 2002. It also had 26 percent (132 companies) of the 2001 Technology Fast 500 winners in the region.

Northern California is home to 79 companies, while Southern California has 51 companies. This year, eight of the top 10 winners are based in California, six in Northern California and two in Southern California. Other U.S. regions with a large number of winners include:

• New York Tri-State (New Jersey, New York and Connecticut combined) — 12 percent (58 companies)
• Greater Washington D.C. Area (Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C. combined) — 10 percent (51 companies)

Canada home to 11 percent of the winners in North America
Canada accounts for 11 percent (55 companies) on this year's Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America ranking, down from 14 percent (68 companies) in 2003, but up slightly from 10 percent in 2002 and 9 percent in 2001.

The highest ranked Canadian Technology Fast 500 winner for 2004 is 26^th-ranked Rutter Inc., a software company based in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Its revenues increased 11,662 percent from C$168,000 in 1999 to C$19,760,000 in 2003.

Canadian Technology Fast 500 winners have an average percentage revenue growth of 1,597 for 2004, down from 1,809 percent in 2003, 2,019 percent in 2002 and 6,426 percent in 2001. This is the fifth year Canadian companies were eligible for the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America. Their revenues were calculated in Canadian dollars.

Western Technology Fast 500 winners claim highest average growth percentage
Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America winners in the West claim the highest average percentage of growth (8,790 percent); up from 7,427 percent in 2003, down from 9,730 percent in 2002 and up slightly from 8,777 percent in 2001. Other regions included:

Southeastern United States  Winners grew by 1,886 percent, down from 9,209 percent in 2003, 2,325 percent in 2002 and 5,094 percent in 2001.

Northeastern United States  Winners had an average percentage growth of 1,864 percent, down from 3,862 percent in 2003, 8,574 percent in 2002, and 4,244 percent in 2001.

Southwestern United States  Winners had an average percentage growth of 1,727 percent this year, down from 4,195 percent, 3,988 percent in 2002, and 5,770 percent in 2001.

Midwestern United States  Winners had an average percentage growth of 1,408 percent, down from 2,241 percent in 2003, 5,629 percent in 2002, and 4,702 percent in 2001.

Software companies account for more than one-third of all winners
Software industry companies account for 38 percent (192 companies) of the 2004 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America winners — fairly consistent with 39 percent (196 companies) in 2003, but down from 48 percent in 2002 and 57 percent in 2001. Other industry segments included:

Life Sciences companies represents 22 percent (108 companies), up from 19 percent (94 companies) in 2003, 16 percent in 2002 and 15 percent in 2001.

Internet companies represent 14 percent (70 companies), down from 18 percent (89 companies) in 2003, but up from 10 percent in 2002 and 15 percent in 2001.

Communications and networking companies account for 14 percent (72 companies) of winners, down slightly from 16 percent (78 companies) in 2003, and fairly consistent with 15 percent in 2002 and 13 percent in 2001.

Semiconductor and equipment companies represented 6 percent (31 companies), up from 4 percent (22 companies) in 2003, and fairly consistent with 7 percent in 2002 and 6 percent in 2001.

Computer and peripheral companies represented 6 percent (27 companies), up from 4 percent (21 companies) in 2003, 4 percent in 2002 and consistent with 6 percent in 2001.

US$1 billion companies in the rankings
Being multi-billion dollar companies in North America hasn't stopped the following companies from experiencing stellar growth and making the list. There are seven companies whose 2003 revenues exceed US$1 billion. The three largest companies, in order of revenue, are:

#273.  Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM), a semiconductor company based in San Jose, California, with 2003 revenues of $10.4 billion. It ranked 344^th in 2003.

#294.  Level 3 Communications (NASDAQ: LVLT), a communications/networking company based in Broomfield, Colorado, with 2003 revenues of $4.0 billion. It ranked 371^st in 2003.

#229.  UTStarcom Inc. (NASDAQ: UTSI), a communications/networking company based in Alameda, California, with 2003 revenues of $2.0 billion. It ranked 324 in 2003.

More than half of the winners are publicly traded
Fifty-nine percent of the companies on the 2004 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America are publicly traded, down slightly from 62 percent in 2003. Forty-one percent of the winners are privately held, up from 38 percent in 2003. Six of the top 20 companies are privately held.

Rising Stars: 25 fast-growth companies less than five years old
As an accompaniment to the Technology Fast 500 program in North America, Deloitte also honors 25 "Rising Star" companies. These winners have accomplished fast growth and meet the criteria of being a technology company based in North America. They have been in business less than five years but at least three years. Rankings are based on their percentage growth in revenues from 2001 to 2003. Topping Deloitte's "Rising Stars” ranking are:

#1.  TRIRIGA, a privately held software company based in Las Vegas, with 8,247 percentage growth over three years.

#2.  Sourcefire Inc., a privately held software company based in Columbia, Maryland, with 5,884 percentage growth over three years.

#3.  Access Integrated Technologies Inc., a public software company based in Morristown, New Jersey, with 5,855 percentage growth over three years.

About the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America
The Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America is a regional ranking of the fastest growing technology companies. It is compiled from 19 area Deloitte Technology Fast 50 programs, nominations submitted directly to the Deloitte TMT Industry Group and public company database research. Winners are selected based on the percentage of growth in revenues from 1999 to 2003. Learn more about eligibility and nomination requirements for companies based in North America. Or, learn about the two other major regional rankings, the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 EMEA and the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 Asia Pacific.

About the rankings and data
The Deloitte Technology Fast 500 North America contains general information only, and Deloitte is not, by means of this program, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services. The Technology Fast 500 is not a substitute for such professional advice or services, nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect you or your business. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. In addition, prediction of future events is inherently subject to both known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to vary materially. Before making any decision or taking any action that may affect you or your business, you should consult a qualified professional advisor. Deloitte shall not be responsible for any loss sustained by any person or entity that relies on this program. All names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies and are used for information purposes only.

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