Atea acquires e-commerce company serving SMB customers in Norway

Atea AS has entered into an agreement to acquire all

shares in Dropzone ASA which will establish the base

for Atea's dedicated sales and marketing machine

serving the small and medium sized customer segment

in Norway.

Dropzone is a leading IT infrastructure company

selling its products through its user-friendly and

efficient e-commerce solution. The company has 15

employees, and a large and loyal customer base of

more than 20,000 customers within the private and

public sector.

Dropzone generated revenue of MNOK 131.0 and EBITDA

of MNOK 3.7 in 2009 and has had a strong earnings

track record since it was established in 1999. The

company is located in Oslo.

The acquisition is strategically important for Atea

to establish Ateadirect in all 7 Atea countries, a

dedicated eSHOP and sales and marketing initiatives

for the small and medium sized segment.

The agreed transaction value is MNOK 29.2 (enterprise

value). The shares are acquired from Petter Fjellstad

(Chairman) and the management team. The management

and all employees will continue in Atea and be

responsible for growing the SMB segment sales in

Norway.

The acquired business is expected to generate revenue

of MNOK 170.0 and EBITDA of MNOK 5.5 in 2010.

The transaction of Dropzone is subject to approval

from the Norwegian competition authorities and is

expected to have effect within 16 working days.

For further information, please contact:

Steinar Sønsteby, Managing Director, Atea AS, mobile

+47 930 55 655

Jesper Mathiasen, Corporate Development Director,

Atea ASA, mobile +45 3078 1880

Rune Falstad, CFO Atea ASA, mobile +47 906 14 482

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