Attention Business Editors:
Big Picture to acquire Coollink ecommerce and hosting business
Big Picture Technologies Inc. (CDNX:BPI)
CALGARY, AB, April 27 /CNW/ - Big Picture Technologies Inc. today
announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Cool
Partners Inc. to acquire that company's ISP, e-commerce and hosting division
for a combination of cash and shares. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Cool
Partners Inc. is the privately-held parent company of Coollink.com, a leading
Tier 1 national ISP (Internet Services Provider).
"This is an extremely exciting development for Big Picture", said
President and CEO Michael Anthony. "The benefits and synergies from this
acquisition are too numerous to list."
"For starters, Big Picture will gain in excess of $6 million CDN in
accretive revenue and more than 10,000 online ISP, hosting and e-commerce
customers who are natural cross-sale opportunities for eMerchant pro and
eClerk. In addition, we gain a strategic US presence, an extensive hosting
infrastructure, and a professional call center expanding our customer support
and inbound/outbound telesales capabilities. Moreover, Coollink's highly
effective marketing relationships with Tiger Direct, PC Mall, MicroWarehouse
and others yet to be announced are expected to yield significant bundling
opportunities for Big Picture's products."
"In short", Anthony added, "Coollink's online-centric business model is
the perfect complement to Big Picture's focus on packaged e-commerce products.
This acquisition moves us one significant step closer to realizing our goal of
market leadership in this fiscal year."
In commenting on the transaction, Grant Wynn, Coollink President, noted:
"The hosting business is increasingly driven by value-added solutions. And Big
Picture's products are ideally positioned to address this need in the small
business e-commerce sector. By joining forces with Big Picture, Coollink will
be able to leverage its online investment and assets to the benefit of its
customers and shareholders. This transaction enables Coollink's Broadcast
Network Division to expand and accelerate its core business of developing
leading-edge Internet streaming technologies and to better leverage our
proprietary products such as Demotrac(TM) -- which provides demographic and
psychographic profiles of online customers."
The acquisition is subject to due diligence by both parties and the
approval of their respective Boards of Directors and regulatory authorities.
The parties expect to close the transaction by the end of May.
Dallas based Coollink is a national "Tier 1" Internet Service Provider,
offering low cost access and hosting rates, together with a full suite of web
design and e-commerce implementation solutions. Coollink's website is located
at coollink.com.
Big Picture Technologies Inc. (CDNX:BPI) is a developer of award winning
Internet, e-commerce, and e-service software and is a designer of world class
e-business solutions. The Big Picture website is located at bigpic.com.
THE CANADIAN VENTURE EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT
RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
CERTAIN STATEMENTS MADE IN THIS PRESS RELEASE, WHICH DESCRIBE THE
COMPANY'S INTENTIONS, EXPECTATIONS OR PREDICTIONS, ARE FORWARD-LOOKING AND ARE
SUBJECT TO RISKS AND UNCERTAINITIES BEYOND THE CONTROL OF THE COMPANY. FROM
TIME TO TIME, THE COMPANY MAY UPDATE OR REVISE ANY FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS,
WHETHER AS A RESULT OF NEW INFORMATION, FUTURE EVENTS OR CHANGING MARKET AND
BUSINESS CONDITIONS.
-0- 04/27/2000
For further information: Michael Anthony, President & CEO, Big Picture Technologies Inc., (403) 265-8018, anthony@bigpic.com; To request a free copy
of this organization's annual report, please go to www.newswire.ca and click on reports@cnw.
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