12/21/2010

QSC's IT competence strengthened by new acquisition

• QSC acquires IP Partner, a fast-growing provider of hosting and IT outsourcing services
• New subsidiary has two data centers and more than 1,000 enterprise customers
• Acquisition to accelerate transformation process from a telco provider to an ICT service provider

Cologne/Nuremberg, December 21, 2010. Effective immediately, Cologne-based QSC AG has acquired all shares of IP Partner AG, of Nuremberg. Formed in the year 2000, this company is a fast-growing provider of hosting and IT outsourcing services for small and mid-size enterprises. With its workforce of nearly 60 people, the company is expected to generate revenues of € 14 million and positive net income for the 2010 fiscal year. IP Partner operates two data centers in Munich and Nuremberg with more than 10,000 servers for over 1,000 business customers. Construction is currently under way on further data centers having total floor space of 3,000 square meters. With this acquisition, QSC is accelerating its transformation process from a telecommunications (TC) provider to an integrated information and communications technology (ICT) service provider, thus enabling it to offer its predominantly small and mid-size customers a far broader spectrum of products and services in the future.

The purchase price involves two components. QSC will pay € 15 million in cash to the former shareholders as of January 3, 2011. A further € 10 million will be due and payable by no later than the end of April 2012, contingent upon various prerequisites, including a sustained high level of corporate growth, in particular. In recent years, IP Partner has been growing its revenues by an average of more than 30 percent a year.

QSC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Bernd Schlobohm notes: "IP Partner makes for an outstanding fit with us: Just as we do, this company focuses on high quality services for business customers. Together with IP Partner, we'll be able to do an optimum job of covering the rapidly rising demand for such ICT services as hosting, outsourcing and, in the future, Cloud services, thus further accelerating our transformation process toward becoming an ICT service provider. I look forward to working together with this company's management and its entire highly qualified team."

The two members of the management board of IP Partner AG, Christian Seitz and Thorsten Grosse, will continue to head up the company following the acquisition. As Seitz puts it: "With QSC, we have found the optimum partner for sustaining our growth strategy and being able to offer our customers an even better and broader spectrum of products and services."

Further information is available from:

QSC AG
Claudia Isringhaus
Head of Corporate Communications
Mathias-Brüggen-Str. 55
D-50829 Cologne
Fon: 0221 6698-235
Fax: 0221 6698-289
E-Mail: presse@qsc.de