Mentor Graphics Appoints New General Manager for Ready-to-Use PCB Design Products

WILSONVILLE, Ore., April 16, 2004 - Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT), the market leader in printed circuit board (PCB) design software, has appointed Syed Gilani as general manager of its newly formed PADS business unit.

As general manager, Gilani's responsibilities include defining the business strategy and leading the marketing and engineering efforts of the strategic business unit.  Gilani has a proven track record of enhancing company performance through marketing initiatives and business engineering programs.

The 2002 acquisition of Innoveda was a strategic move to grow Mentor's PCB business.  Through the acquisition, Mentor Graphics extended its PCB design tools product offering for the ready-to-use (RTU) market with the PADS? front-to-back, Windows-based PCB system design flow.  According to Dataquest, the RTU market represents 78 percent of PCB/FPGA design seats.

"We are excited to have Syed Gilani in the SDD team," said Henry Potts, vice president and general manager, systems design division, Mentor Graphics.  "We are confident Syed will help Mentor Graphics continue to offer our customers a high level of technology for the ready-to-use PCB market, at the same time effectively implementing successful marketing strategies to increase its market share."

Gilani has held various management positions with the embedded systems division of Mentor Graphics.  Most recently he served as director for its San Jose, Calif. operations, responsible for leading product development and sales, as well as spearheading Mentor Graphics research and development operations in Pakistan.

Gilani brings a unique and worldwide perspective of the software industry.  His experience in leading multi-cultural teams in diverse locations strengthens Mentor's strategy of expansion into emerging worldwide PCB design markets.

Gilani holds a BSEE and master's degree in business administration from the University of South Alabama.

About Mentor Graphics
Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT) is a world leader in electronic hardware and software design solutions, providing products, consulting services and award-winning support for the world's most successful electronics and semiconductor companies. Established in 1981, the company reported revenues over the last 12 months of about $675 million and employs approximately 3,700 people worldwide.  Corporate headquarters are located at 8005 S.W. Boeckman Road, Wilsonville, Oregon 97070-7777; Silicon Valley headquarters are located at 1001 Ridder Park Drive, San Jose, California 95131-2314. World Wide Web site: www.mentor.com.

Mentor Graphics and PADS are registered trademarks of Mentor Graphics Corporation. All other company or product names are the registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners.

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