PEABODY, Mass., - February 27, 2001 -ScanSoft, Inc. (NASDAQ: SSFT), a leading provider of paper-to-digital solutions for desktop, network and corporate workgroups, today announced three promotions within its senior management team. Rick Broyles has been named Vice President of Operations, Lewis Costas has been promoted to Vice President of Applications Development and Steve Martin will be taking on the role of Vice President, New Product Development. These executives will be critical in continuing ScanSoft's current growth and expansion into new markets, as well as solidifying the company's position as the worldwide leader in paper-to-digital solutions.

"We need strong leadership to continue to build upon our foundation of strength in the paper-to-digital market," said ScanSoft Chief Executive Officer Paul Ricci. "Each of these individuals has demonstrated that they have the experience, vision and drive to take ScanSoft into new market segments and expand into next generation areas of the business."

Rick Broyles, promoted to Vice President of Operations, will have worldwide responsibility for program management, manufacturing, customer service, technical support, purchasing, and facilities. Since rejoining the ScanSoft team in May of last year, Broyles has played a lead role in reorganizing and streamlining the company's operational units, including upgrading the customer service organization, resourcing worldwide manufacturing, right-sizing facilities, and relocating first line technical support.

Lewis Costas, the new Vice President of Applications Development, will lead product development for ScanSoft's award-winning core products. In his previous role as director, Costas was well known for his tremendous leadership role, responsible for OEM development, release engineering, and software quality assurance. Costas has over 23 years of applications development experience.

Steve Martin, Vice President of New Product Development, will assume responsibility for key product development, patents, and the R&D facet of relationships with ScanSoft's strategic partners, including HP and Microsoft. He will also be responsible for the R&D aspect of certain acquisition opportunities and new product explorations. In his previous role as director, Martin led the development of paper management products and services, and was recognized for his extremely creative new product vision.

About ScanSoft, Inc.

Headquartered in Peabody, MA with European headquarters in the Netherlands, ScanSoft, Inc. (NASDAQ: SSFT) is the leading developer of paper-to-digital solutions that enable users to leverage the power of their scanners, digital cameras and other electronic devices. ScanSoft's award-winning product line - PaperPort Deluxe, Pagis Pro, TextBridge Pro, OmniPage Pro, OmniPage Pro Scan Suite Plus, OmniForm, eOmniForm, Paper Converter, Kai's PhotoSoap2, Kai's SuperGoo, Kai's PowerShow, PhotoFactory, and numerous software developer's kits - enables users to capture, recognize, edit, manage and share documents and photos electronically by taking advantage of ScanSoft's cutting-edge technology.

ScanSoft has established numerous strategic partnerships with the industry's leading scanner and multifunction vendors to deliver the most comprehensive and cost-effective solutions for its customers. Vendors who have chosen ScanSoft's cutting-edge technologies include Brother, Canon, Epson, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, IBM/Lotus, Mustek, Primax, Sharp, Symantec Corporation, Visioneer, Xerox and others. ScanSoft's leading technologies have been licensed by Microsoft for use in Office 10 and other future products. ScanSoft continues to cultivate and develop strategic partnerships to deliver the most comprehensive and cost-effective solutions for its customers.

ScanSoft software is sold, marketed and supported worldwide through retail, dealer and OEM channels and the Internet, capturing the small to medium size business and corporate markets. There are more than 6.5 million registered users of ScanSoft products. ScanSoft can be found on the Web at www.scansoft.com.

Trademark reference: ScanSoft, PaperPort Deluxe, Pagis, TextBridge, OmniPage, OmniPage Pro Scan Suite Plus, OmniForm, eOmniForm, Paper Converter, Scanner Suite, PageKeeper, PhotoFactory, Kai's PhotoSoap2, Kai's SuperGoo, and Kai's PowerShow are registered trademarks or trademarks of ScanSoft, Inc., in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks and trade names are hereby recognized and may be registered to their respective holders.

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