GTMI NEWS:
Global Telemedia to Acquire International
Holding Company
Business Wire - February 04, 1999 10:54
ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 4, 1999--
GTMI to Enter Philippine Telecommunications Market
Global Telemedia International, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: GTMI - news;
"GTMI") announced today that it has entered into a preliminary agreement to
acquire Bentley House Furniture Company ("BHFC"), a Philippine holding
company with interests in: telecommunications; agricultural; mining; timber export;
and furniture manufacturing.
When the transaction is complete, the combined company plans to form The
Mindanao Telecommunications Company for the purpose of providing voice,
data and video services, both conventionally and via the internet, to the major
island of Mindanao, population in excess of 16,000,000. The exact time for the
introduction of such service was not disclosed.
Jonathon Bentley-Stevens, BHFC's Chief Executive Officer stated: "BHFC is
located in the "Trade Free Zone" in Mindanao's largest city, Davao, which is part
of the BIMP-EAGA Borderless Trade Agreement between Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia and the Philippines. Similar to NAFTA, BIMP-EAGA serves a
combined population of over 400 million people. We believe that this region is
going to enjoy major growth in the immediate future and we are very satisfied to
have forged a strategic alliance with an emerging communications partner like
GTMI. BHFC has net assets in excess of US$120,000,000. The company is
making those assets available for the purpose of establishing the credit facilities
necessary for the combined companies to realize their new joint business plan."
Roderick A. McClain, GTMI's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer added:
"This acquisition positions the company to introduce new emerging technologies
into areas that presently do not have extensive infrastructure in place. The
acquisition also allows us to immediately fulfill the financial requirements
necessary to proceed with our other contracts for the marketing of CyberAir
Communications, Inc. services (release -11/09/98) as well as other pending
carrier contracts."
BHFC is presently in the process of establishing itself as a provider of
telecommunications in the Philippines through the introduction of new
technologies.
The company also holds all the timber rights on the 60,000 acre combined
plantations of Kapai and Kaics, located in Mindanao, with combined reserves of
more than 1,020,000 cubic meters of Mahogany and furniture grade hardwoods.
These properties have been independently appraised at a value of
US$850,430,577 by a Philippine government agency; the Department of
Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR). These timberland resources are
suitable for manufacturing export quality furniture for hotels and resorts, export
grade lumber and telephone and utility poles.
BHFC has existing facilities for the milling and finishing of raw timber as well as a
"state of the art" furniture facility, designed and financed with the assistance of
Sumitomo Corporation, with whom BHFC has an international agreement. This
factory is believed by the management of BHFC to be one of the largest and
most modern furniture factories in the Philippines. BHFC has entered into several
contracts with major hotels, in development, to provide them furniture, fixtures
and equipment. BHFC can provide prospective clients services from the initial
designs all the way through complete furnishings and anticipates great success for
this "hospitality division."
Additionally, BHFC has an export guarantee with the Philippine government in
the amount of US$50,000,000 per year to export furniture and semi-finished
timber products under a "Counter Trade" agreement to offset essential
government purchases.
BHFC is headquartered in Makati City, Philippines. The company has additional
offices in Manila, Davao, New York and Brunei.
BHFC will submit certain members of its management team for election to the
Board of Directors of GTMI as well as enlisting two qualified outside members
to the Board of Directors in preparation for GTMI to seek re-listing for trading
on the NASDAQ small cap exchange. The timing for seeking such relisting has
not been determined.
The acquisition is subject to both companies completing independent due
diligence investigations and formal documentation, and the Company anticipates
closing within forty-five days. The terms of the acquisition were not announced.
GTMI terminated its previously announced acquisition of CIS Systems because
of financial problems and instability in the region formerly known as the Soviet
Union.
Global Telemedia International, Inc. (GTMI) is a full-service communications
company focusing on international communications networking in emerging
countries. The company also holds the necessary certificates of conveyance with
the applicable public service communications in the Continental United States as
well as an International carriers license (214). Additionally, GTMI is developing
its own proprietary technology to complement these efforts.
The statements contained in this release may contain forward-looking statements
relating to such matters as anticipated financial performance, business prospects,
technological developments, new products, research and development activities
and similar matters. The Private Securities Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe
harbor for forward-looking statements. In order to comply with the terms of the
safe harbor, the Company notes that a variety of factors could cause the
Company's actual results to differ materially from the anticipated results of other
expenditures expressed in the Company's forward-looking statements.
CONTACT: GTMI
Mark Wachs, Mark Wachs and Associates, New York
212/832-2800
or
BHFC, Makati City, Philippines
Jonathon Bentley-Stevens, 011-632-810-7776
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