USWB <news>
Headline: USWeb/CKS Strengthens International Presence
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Company Acquires Leading Internet Application Design and Development
Firm in Benelux Region
SANTA CLARA, Calif., April 29 /PRNewswire/ -- USWeb/CKS (NASDAQ:USWB), a
leader in strategic Internet and marketing communications services, announced
today the acquisition of Case Consult. Case Consult is a professional
services firm specializing in Internet application design and development,
helping clients improve their business through the use of advanced information
technology. The acquisition of Case Consult, with offices in Belgium,
Luxembourg and the Netherlands, marks USWeb/CKS's first steps into the Benelux
region and builds the company's presence in Europe to over 550 employees in
eight countries.
"International expansion continues to be part of our strategic business
focus in 1999," said Robert Shaw, CEO of USWeb/CKS. "Acquiring a company like
Case Consult, with a strong reputation and presence in the Benelux region,
allows us to reach a new set of customers and round out our capabilities in
the greater European market."
"We share the goal of helping clients transform their businesses to
compete in the digital economy," said Gerald Goetgeluck, Chairman of Case
Consult. "We are pleased with the opportunity to join USWeb/CKS's worldwide
pool of talent and expertise in Internet and marketing communications services
and believe we can help the company become a leader in the Benelux region and
the world."
Jan Picavet, CEO of Case Consult, will become the USWeb/CKS Executive
Partner in Europe, responsible for the company's entire European operations.
"Jan brings strong leadership skills and proven experience in managing and
growing a European organization in the professional services arena," continued
Shaw. "We are delighted to add an executive of his caliber to our worldwide
management team. His presence will help us to accelerate the expansion of our
complete service offering throughout Europe."
Picavet joins USWeb/CKS with an impressive track record. Before he became
the CEO of Case Consult, he was President of the Benelux Division of Computer
Sciences Corporation (CSC) for more than 5 years, developing it into one of
the most important IT service players in the region. Prior to joining CSC,
Picavet held General Management and European Executive positions with
Cullinet, Legent and a subsidiary of Coopers & Lybrand.
As with all of the company's regions, the European region will offer the
full set of strategy, marketing communications and Internet technology
services and expertise of USWeb/CKS. As the USWeb/CKS Executive Partner in
Europe, Picavet will be responsible for the European region's financial
performance, client satisfaction, business development, recruiting and
employee professional growth. He will also be responsible for executing on
the Company's acquisition strategy to fill gaps in service offerings and
practices in key locations throughout Europe.
Koen Anseeuw, the current COO of Case Consult, will become the managing
partner of USWeb/CKS in the Benelux region, responsible for the business
development, financial performance, client satisfaction, recruiting,
professional development and delivery of USWeb/CKS's full line of services in
the region.
About Case Consult
Case Consult is a professional services firm specializing in application
design and development, with a focus on new technologies. Leveraging over
140 IT professionals in Belgium, Luxembourg and The Netherlands, Case Consult
offers leading training and consulting services in professional Internet and
client/server application development. The firm groups its expertise into the
following categories: Internet technology, client/server services, training,
professional testing and data warehousing.
Case Consult currently has formal partnerships with many technology
leaders including IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Sun and Sybase. Its clients are in
a variety of industries including finance, manufacturing, systems integration
and government. Case Consult works with Arjo Wiggins, Credit Lyonnais
Luxembourg, Electrabel, European Fund Administration (EFA), European
Commission, Flemings, Group S, Eurobench, Industrial Bank of Japan, NATO,
Robeco, Sodexho and Tiense Suikerraffinaderij, to name a few.
About USWeb/CKS
USWeb/CKS (NASDAQ:USWB) is a professional services firm that works with
companies to define strategies and implement innovative ways to build their
businesses by combining the expertise of strategy, Internet technology and
marketing communications. USWeb/CKS helps clients differentiate their
products and services, strengthen customer relationships, leverage human
capital, and improve business efficiency in the new digital economy. With
more than 2,500 professionals, USWeb/CKS has helped hundreds of businesses
advance their marketing communications programs as well as traditional IT and
Internet systems -- everything from brand development and advertising to
business process automation and e-commerce solutions. The Company is
headquartered in Santa Clara, California. Additional information about
USWeb/CKS is available at www.uswebcks.com or by calling 408-987-3200.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" (as defined under
securities law) about USWeb/CKS' plans and expectations regarding its business
in the Benelux region. Prior to this announcement, USWeb/CKS has had no
presence or expertise managing an operation in this region. International
operations entails inherent risks and unless the Company overcomes the
challenges of initiating operations in a new region, its success will fall
short of its plans and expectations and its business will suffer. For
additional information about factors that could affect the businesses of
USWeb/CKS, see the documents filed by the companies with the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE USWeb/CKS
-0- 04/29/99
/CONTACT: Jessica McNulty of USWeb/CKS, 408-987-3296,
jmcnulty@uswebcks.com/
/Company News On-Call: prnewswire.com or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 120663/
/Web site: uswebcks.com |
