Company Press Release
SOURCE: Interliant, Inc.
Interliant Continues European Expansion with @viso Joint Venture
Joint Venture to Provide Capital, Infrastructure and Support for Interliant's European Expansion
PURCHASE, N.Y., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- In a move to continue its aggressive expansion into the European community, Interliant, Inc. (Nasdaq: INIT - news), a leading Application Service Provider (ASP) and Web hosting company, announced it has signed a letter of intent to enter into a joint venture agreement with European technology incubator @viso (''Atviso''). SOFTBANK Corp., a global Internet market leader, and European communications giant Vivendi established @viso to facilitate the entry of U.S. Internet businesses into continental Europe. As part of the Interliant agreement, @viso will invest capital in Interliant's European operations, as well as provide infrastructure in France and support services to help the company take a leadership position in Europe's application and Web hosting market.
''This joint venture demonstrates Interliant's commitment to becoming Europe's predominant ASP and Web hosting provider and serves as the cornerstone for our continued growth and expansion in the European market,'' said Bradley Feld, co-chairman, Interliant. ''Ongoing support from industry heavyweights like SOFTBANK and Vivendi will open doors for us in all areas of the European hosting market while helping us ramp-up our operations, customer base and sales organization through the partnership with @viso.''
Interliant will leverage the @viso joint venture to build stronger ties with other SOFTBANK and Vivendi companies, including Cegetel, France's leading private telecommunications company and other @viso companies.
''Interliant's strong U.S. presence and depth of experience in the ASP and Web hosting markets, combined with the resources available through @viso, will help Interliant solidify its position in the European Internet market,'' said Pierre Liautaud, @viso's CEO.
Masayoshi Son, Chairman of SOFTBANK Corp., added, ''Interliant has been a consistent leader in the Web-based applications revolution. We are convinced that Interliant's cutting-edge technology, key strategic partnerships and high standards for quality and service will make it a European market leader.''
As part of the joint venture, @viso will provide Interliant with a full set of market access services in Europe, including identification of local competitors and potential partners, in order to accelerate Interliant's position as a leading ASP and Web hosting provider in Europe. @viso will act as an incubator, providing capital, infrastructure and local support services, including strategic marketing, technical facilities and personnel resources.
About @viso
Formed in July of this year, @viso (Atviso) is a joint venture between Vivendi and SOFTBANK, aimed at helping U.S. Internet companies gain rapid market entry into continental Europe. Its regional expertise and toolboxes of services -- including state-of-the-art technical facilities and marketing, legal, PR and recruitment services -- help businesses expand into new territory. Additional information about @viso can be found at www.atviso.com
About Vivendi
With net sales of 39 billion euros (estimated for 1999) and 260,000 employees in over 100 countries, Vivendi is the world leader in Environmental Services and a major player in communications. Vivendi owns Cegetel, the largest French private telecommunications operator, Europe's leading pay- television company Canal+, and the publishing giant Havas.
About SOFTBANK Corp.
SOFTBANK Corp. has emerged as one of the world's leading Internet market forces. Through its ownership positions in more than 100 Internet companies and its unique Internet-zaibatsu management concept, it is able to create market synergies for its family of companies on a global scale. In Japan its activities encompass distribution, publishing, Internet media platforms, a broad range of e-commerce businesses, and joint ventures with companies such as Microsoft, Cisco, Yahoo!, Nasdaq and many other market leaders. In the U.S., SOFTBANK is the largest shareholder in leading Internet companies such as Yahoo!, E*TRADE and ZDNet, and in Europe has established Internet joint ventures with News Corp. and Vivendi.
About Interliant, Inc.
Interliant, Inc. (www.interliant.com), a leading Application Service Provider (ASP), provides application hosting, Web hosting and enhanced Internet services. These services enable customers of all sizes to capitalize on the latest Web-based technologies quickly and cost-effectively by relieving them of the burdens associated with building, managing and maintaining the infrastructure required to support mission-critical applications. By offering a comprehensive suite of hosting and IT consulting services, including virtual, dedicated, co-location hosting solutions, and application and groupware hosting, Interliant is able to meet the needs of any size business and to grow with its customers. Interliant currently has operations in the U.S. and U.K. and three primary state of the art data centers located in Atlanta, Houston and the Washington D.C. area. The Company's corporate headquarters are located in Purchase, New York.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward- looking statements. Actual results and the timing of certain events may differ significantly from the results anticipated or discussed in the forward- looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based largely on the Company's current expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. In addition to this press release, other important factors to consider in evaluating the forward-looking statements include, without limitation, those discussed in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 1999, the Company's Registration Statement on Form S-1 filed on March 15, 1999, as amended, and other filings by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In light of these risks and uncertainties, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements contained herein will in fact be realized and the Company assumes no obligation to update this information.
Interliant is a registered trademark of Interliant, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
SOURCE: Interliant, Inc. |
