02/13/2012

QSC concludes framework agreement with KIND Hörgeräte

Großburgwedel/Cologne, February 13, 2012. QSC AG has acquired the market leader in hearing aids, KIND Hörgeräte GmbH & Co. KG, as a customer for its Direct Sales division. KIND has signed a framework agreement for comprehensive ICT services from the range of services offered by QSC. With over 600 specialist shops and more than 2,500 employees, KIND is one of the world's leading hearing aid companies.

In the initial step, QSC will equip KIND locations with cutting-edge landline and mobile communications technology and the corresponding connections.

The company will be outfitted with comprehensive VPN, LAN, and voice services at its three main locations as well as at an additional 500 national shops and 100 international sites.

The shops will be outfitted with the award-winning Centrex telephone system IPfonie centraflex from QSC with over 1,000 extensions. The customer was also impressed by the new mobile offers from QSC. In future, KIND will use a large amount of mobile SIM cards from QSC.

"We are convinced that we have found a fair and especially flexible partner in QSC - a partner that can optimally meet our needs," says Dr. Alexander Kind, CEO of KIND Hörgeräte GmbH & Co. KG.

With its broad spectrum of products and services, ranging from data transfer, Housing, and Hosting to IT Consulting and IT Outsourcing, QSC was able to set itself apart from some notable competitors. "We are very pleased that we were able to impress KIND, the market leader in hearing aids, with our services," explains Thomas Stoek, the Management Board member responsible for the Direct Sales division. "With our broad range of services, QSC Direct Sales now has the opportunity to supplement the services supplied to KIND with additional, useful IT solutions." Stoek also underscored QSC's positioning as a medium-sized player in regard to its customers.

About KIND Hörgeräte GmbH & Co. KG
KIND, headquartered in Großburgwedel near Hanover, is the market leader in Germany and one of the world's leading companies for hearing aids. The company operates over 600 specialist shops for hearing aids around the world and employs more than 2,500 people.
With the production facility audifon headquartered in Kölleda, Thuringia, the corporate group covers the entire value creation chain for hearing aids: from research and development to production and sales, even including professional customization and support.

About QSC: ICT solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises
QSC AG, Cologne, is a service provider for voice and data communication, as well as ICT services. Established in 1997, the company has been focusing on small and mid-size business customers. QSC is the first provider to operate an Open Access platform, which unites a wide range of broadband technologies to offer national and international site networking, including Managed Services. QSC additionally supplies its customers and distribution partners with a comprehensive product portfolio that can be modularly adapted to every need. QSC was the first provider in Germany to build its own Next Generation Network (NGN), and therefore enjoys long years of experience in connection with IP-based telephony solutions, in particular. QSC AG has been listed on the TecDAX index since 2004. The QSC group employs a workforce of some 1,300 people.

Further information is available from:
QSC AG
Dennis Knake
Corporate Communications
Mathias-Brüggen-Str. 55
50829 Cologne, Germany
Fon: +49 221 6698-285
Fax: +49 221 6698-289
E-mail: presse@qsc.de