berens/partner is one of Germany's pre-eminent concentrated Internet consulting practices, which brings a long list of renowned clients such as Deutsche Bank, Mannesmann, Deutsche Renault, Deutscher Sparkassen- und Giroverband, Henkel and Verlagsgruppe Handelsblatt (DM Online).
The transaction is subject to the approval of the shareholders of the merged Connecta /Information Highway on the first common shareholders' meeting. The purchase price will be paid entirely in the form of 16.3 million newly issued shares in Information Highway, the equivalent of 225 million Euro, based on the closing price Friday 17 March.
Commenting on the acquisition, Göran Wågström, Information Highway's President, said: "We're extremely satisfied with this deal, which confirms our leading position in business-to-business in Europe. berens/partner is the leading Internet consulting practice in Germany-a market we regard as the most exciting in Europe. They are a profitable company and this deal means that we aquire with an essential discount compared to other noted companies in Germany. This gives Information Highway/Connecta the perfect platform for continued expansion in Germany and other German-speaking countries."
berens/partner was founded in 1992 and has 130 employees in Düsseldorf, Hannover and Stuttgart. The company focuses on well known, major clients, particularly in banking and finance, manufacturing and retailing, as well as telecom and media. berens/partner also has prominent clients in the healthcare and training sectors, as well as a number of non-profit organisations and services corporations.
berens/partner's key competencies are within strategy, system development, design and marketing, with the provision of, for example, total concept one-to-one marketing solutions as well as CRM-solutions (Customer Relation Management). berens/partner specialises in interactive business and communication solutions and is renowned for its ability to build critical business on-line platforms for the financial markets. berens/partner has also developed CIPS (Configurable Information and Publishing System), an information and content management system. CIPS offers enterprises without technology competencies the ability to manage and maintain information in a user-friendly manner.
Jörg Berens is berens/partner's Chief Executive Officer, founder and main owner. German branch journal Horizont ranked the company as Germany's sixth largest Internet consulting practice and the largest of the unlisted companies.
Jörg Berens commented: "Information Highway/Connecta is a very attractive partner. This is a strategic merger that gives us the opportunity to satisfy progressively higher and more internationalised client demands within e-commerce. We will consolidate and expand our customer offerings and gain the opportunity to function in an internationalised corporation on pan-European projects. We will open new offices in Berlin and Frankfurt and continue to grow intensely."
Göran Wågström explained that "after screening hundreds of enterprises in Germany, we're very proud and happy that berens/partner has chosen to go ahead alongside Connecta/Information Highway instead of the alternative of its own IPO. berens/partner suits us very well; we share the same strategic view, the same focus and growth-perspectives."
The merged Information Highway/Connecta's ambition is to be Europe's leading business-to-business Internet consulting player. Surveys indicate that 80 to 90 per cent of the total European market for Internet consulting services will be in the business-to-business sector by 2004.
Johan Wieslander, Deputy CEO of Connecta, commented: "We're now creating the platform necessary for ongoing growth consistent with our strategy. Apart from considerable competencies, berens/partner brings a long series of impressive clients with strong brands, which notably, consolidate our leading position in the B2B sector in Europe."
The merged company currently has approximately 200 consultants active within Business Positioning, approximately 400 in Business Launch and approximately 600 concentrated on Digital Platforms. Including the acquisition of berens/partner, Information Highway/Connecta will have 1,350 employees in six countries. The acquisition also means that Information Highway/Connecta will intensify its efforts to seek a double listing.
Pressconference
Further information will be available at a pressconference held on Tuesday, March 21, 10 am at Industrihuset, room "Wallenbergaren", Storgatan 19, Stockholm, Sweden. The pressconference will be broadcasted (in Swedish) live on the web at http://www.kamera.com/cih/start.htm