
New mobile division and acquisition
January 5, 2009January 2009
?
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | 5 January 2009 |
Globo plc
FORMATION OF NEW MOBILE BUSINESS
UNIT
and
ACQUISITION
Globo plc ("Globo" or
"the Group"; LSE-AIM: GBO; www.globoplc.com),
a leader in the Information and Communications Technology
market in Greece and a SaaS (Software
as a Service) solutions provider, announces
that it has formed a new operating business unit, GLOBO Mobile S.A., to deliver
its mobile communications strategy. As part of this development, Globo has
acquired a 35% equity interest
in and full management control
of ReachFurther Communications Limited ("ReachFurther"), a
Cyprus-based mobile value-added service ("VAS") provider
and content aggregator.
GLOBO Mobile will
assume responsibility for the commercial launch and development of CitronGO!™,
Globo’s mobile communication software solution that aims
to provide personal and professional users with true, ubiquitous
computing on a single screen on any mobile phone or laptop – regardless of
manufacturer, vendor or network. Announced in October
2008, CitronGO! is expected to be released to the market in February 2009.
ReachFurther has established a strong position
in the Greek market as a VAS provider
and aggregator of mobile entertainment and mobile marketing services.
Its customers include:
Vodafone, Wind and OTE in Greece,
as well as Cyta in Cyprus.
Under the terms
of the acquisition agreement, Globo has agreed to pay a
maximum of €0.65 million for
the 35% equity interest. An
initial payment of €0.45 million will be
paid in cash, with the balance to be satisfied 50% in cash and
50% in cash or new Globo ordinary shares at
the discretion of Globo,
subject to ReachFurther achieving certain profitability
targets in 2009 and 2010. Any
new Globo ordinary shares which may become payable under
the acquisition agreement will be issued at the
mid-market closing price on
the day before being issued, subject
to a minimum price of 11.5 pence
per new ordinary share. Unaudited
management accounts indicate that ReachFurther is
expected to achieve revenues of approximately €0.5 million and
net profits of approximately €0.2 million in 2008. Nikos
Giannakakos has been appointed Managing Director of ReachFurther. Mr Giannakakos
joined Globo in September 2008,
previously having been Group Brand Manager for VAS
Marketing in the Commercial Division of Vodafone Greece. ReachFurther’s
founder, John Sfinias, will remain with the Group for a minimum of two years.
The formation of GLOBO
Mobile and the acquisition of control of ReachFurther is expected to contribute significantly
to a strengthening of the Group’s position in the mobile arena.
CitronGO! seeks to redefine
mobility in communication by uniquely integrating onto the screen of a device
(mobile handset, PDA, or PC) communication and social networking services,
covering personal and professional daily needs. GLOBO Mobile will
position itself amongst international players like
Google (Android), Apple (MobileMe), Yahoo! (Yahoo!Go) and RIM
(Blackberry) in the global arena for ubiquitous
computing.
As
part of GLOBO Mobile, in
addition to the local market initiatives, ReachFurther
plans to launch
content and mobile marketing services in other geographic markets and sectors.
Collaboration between Globo
and ReachFurther will enable
the Group to use convergent
technologies (mobile and fixed line) to
extend content delivery, based on existing content
supply agreements, to geographic areas outside
the local market using the SaaS business
model. ReachFurther will offer CitronGO!TM through its
own sales and distribution
channels with mobile and fixed operators in order to promote a rapid service
uptake.
Costis Papadimitrakopoulos, Globo’s CEO,
commented: "Today, with more
than three billion mobile
subscriptions globally, the mobile handset is becoming the ultimate personal
device of ubiquitous computing. We
plan to exploit this market by offering Value
Added Services to the mobile arena
with the establishment of GLOBO Mobile as a
vehicle to deliver our mobile
strategy and CitronGO!TM product
offering internationally. The
mobile sector is expected to become
one of the Group’s key markets. We
see these developments as a natural evolution of our
existing activities in the e-Business and
SaaS. markets. The
collaboration with ReachFurther provides
us with a significant
footprint in the mobile arena and helps us build upon
a successful clientele which spans from mobile network
operators to retail customers."
END
CONTACTS
Globo plc | |
Costis Papadimitrakopoulos, Managing Director | +30 210-646-6008 |
Dimitris Gryparis, Finance Director | +30 210-646-6008 |
NCB Stockbrokers Limited (Nomad & Joint Broker) | +44 20-7071-5200 |
Christopher Caldwell or Jonathan Gray | |
Bankside | +44 20-7367-8888 |
Steve Liebmann, Simon | |
St Helen’s Capital Plc (Joint Broker) | |
Ruari McGirr | +44 20-7628-5582 |
About Globo
GLOBO plc was admitted to AIM in December
2007. Founded in 1997 by
Konstantinos Papadimitrakopoulos and headquartered in Halandri (a suburb of Athens),
Globo has established itself as one of the market leaders in the Greek ICT
market. It provides
e-business and telecom software products and related services to the private and
governmental sectors in Greece as
well as developing and operating broadband wired and wireless networks. It has
developed to become one of the largest e-business software and
S.a.a.S. vendors in Greece.
For further information please go to www.globoplc.com.
END
ACQILFSTLIIFIIA