Brightstar Europe to establish a presence in Austria through agreement to acquire AKL Telecommunications GmbH
Agreement extends Brightstar Europe’s pan-European growth strategy – customers will benefit from a broader product portfolio and extensive resources
Vienna − May 3, 2010 − Brightstar Europe, a joint venture between Brightstar Corp. and Tech Data Corporation (NASDAQ GS: TECD) announced an agreement to acquire 100% of the shareholding of AKL Telecommunications GmbH. The acquisition is subject to merger approval by Austria’s Federal Competition Authority and is expected to close by the end of May. AKL is one of Austria’s leading suppliers of mobile telephony devices and fixed network telephony solutions to the wireless channels including telecommunications dealers and consumer electronics stores. With an impressive portfolio of major vendors, including Nokia and Samsung, AKL is also a distributor for Orange.
Brightstar Europe’s acquisition of AKL will give customers access to a broader choice of solutions in the converging IT and telecommunications market. Customers will now benefit from the combined product and service portfolios of both companies, including access to leading portable PC brands as well as the introduction of RIM BlackBerry® products and services to the Austrian market. The result is a value proposition for Brightstar Europe’s vendors and customers in Austria that leverages the knowledge, strengths, and relationships of both organisations to deliver incremental benefits.
Rod Millar, President of Brightstar Europe said, “The agreement to acquire AKL Telecommunications is further evidence of Brightstar Europe’s pan-European growth strategy. AKL has an excellent reputation in the Austrian market with a skilled workforce, a strong vendor portfolio and a loyal customer base, all of which we look forward to working with in the future.”
Wolfgang Atzinger, current owner of AKL added “With Brightstar Europe, we will have the ability to satisfy both IT and telco customers with a complete product portfolio and a wide range of services.”
After the acquisition, AKL will continue to operate as a separate entity from its offices and warehouse in Vienna. Wolfgang Atzinger will remain with the company as a consultant and Kurt Dojaczek will lead the management team.
Brightstar Europe, through its joint venture partner Tech Data, has operations in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and the Benelux which benefit from a significant centralised back-office IT infrastructure and superior logistics resources, as well as from the strong capital structures of both Brightstar and Tech Data.
About Brightstar Europe
Brightstar Europe is a joint venture between Tech Data Corporation and Brightstar Corp. The company is headquartered in the United Kingdom and has access to sales offices in 16 countries and nine logistics centres throughout the continent. It distributes mobile phones and other wireless devices to a variety of customers including mobile operators, dealers, agents, retailers and e-tailers throughout Europe.
About Brightstar
Brightstar Corp. is a multi-billion dollar global leader in customized distribution and integrated supply chain solutions for the converging wireless and IT industries. With sales and distribution facilities on six continents, Brightstar offers leading wireless and IT manufacturers the largest global reach, ensuring that the right product is in the right place, at the right time. Brightstar’s industry-leading supply chain solutions are used by the world’s top network operators and retailers to improve financial results, increase EBITDA and turn their supply chains into a competitive advantage. For more information on Brightstar, please visit http://www.brightstarcorp.com.
About Tech Data
Tech Data Corporation (NASDAQ GS: TECD) is one of the world’s largest distributors of technology products from leading IT hardware and software producers. Tech Data serves more than 125,000 IT solution providers in over 100 countries. Every day, these resellers depend on Tech Data to cost-effectively support the technology needs of end users, including small and medium businesses (SMB), large enterprises and government agencies. Ranked 109thon the FORTUNE 500®, Tech Data generated $22.1 billion in net sales for its fiscal year ended January 31, 2010. To learn more, visit http://www.techdata.com.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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MEDIA CONTACTS:
Nigel Judd, Marketing Services Director, Tech Data Europe
Tel: + 00 351 917 2044 92
Email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Michele M. Merrell, Senior Director of Global Marketing and Communications, Brightstar Corp.
Tel: + 1 305.921.1484
Email: michele.merrell@brightstarcorp.com