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Alma Media Lehdentekijät acquires Finnish Business Communications Ltd

ALMA MEDIA CORPORATION                      PRESS RELEASE 13 June 2006
 
Alma Media Lehdentekijät acquires Finnish Business Communications Ltd
 
Alma Media’s Lehdentekijät group has acquired Finnish Business Communications Ltd, FBC (Suomen Business Viestintä Oy), a company specializing in advertisement marketing and corporate publications for small and medium-sized enterprises. The transfer takes place on 1 July 2006. FBC has annual net sales of around EUR 2.5 million and 15 employees.
 
“FBC’s advertising marketing and Lehdentekijät’s expertise in content production make an outstanding combination. Advertising has grown, and continues to grow, in importance as a means of funding customer magazines,” Lehdentekijät’s managing director Kimmo Kallonen says.
 
Until now Lehdentekijät has not had its an advertising sales organization but has outsourced media sales. “Having our own advertising sales organization will strengthen Lehdentekijät’s position also when tendering for large customer magazine contracts.” Kallonen forecasts.
 
Among other things FBC publishes Yrittäjän maailma (Entrepreneur’s World) and business information for the Helsinki metropolitan area in addition to handling advertisement sales for the Kuntalehti (local authorities), Yrittäjäsanomat (enterprises) and Tehy (health and social care services) magazines. The company also publishes various directories including Kokous- ja kongressihakemisto (the Conference and Congress Directory).
 
“FBC’s transfer to Alma Media means growth in resources and entirely new development opportunities,” says Matti Hurme, FBC’s managing director. “Lehdentekijät is an old friend and partner and we have good experience of various joint projects. For our existing and future customers and partners, this deal will be reflected in better service and sales growth.”
 
The customer magazine business in Finland has grown steadily at an annual rate of over 10 percent since the 1980s, driven partly by wider application of customer loyalty programmes and customer management systems.
 
Alma Media Lehdentekijät is a leading customer magazine house in Finland with a portfolio of more than 50 regularly published titles. The company also publishes directories and corporate annual reports. Its net sales in 2005 totalled approximately EUR 10 million and the company has roughly 50 employees. Lehdentekijät is part of Alma Media’s Kauppalehti group.
 
Further information:
 
Kimmo Kallonen, Managing Director, Alma Media Lehdentekijät, kimmo.kallonen@lehdentekijat.fi, tel. +358 400-455 845
Matti Hurme, Managing Director, Finnish Business Communications Ltd, matti.hurme@sbv.fi
Juha Blomster, Managing Director, Kauppalehti Group, juha.blomster@kauppalehti.fi, tel. +358 400-453 233
 
http://www.lehdentekijat.fi/
http://www.sbv.fi/
 
  • Published: 13.6.2006, 12:30
  • Category: Press release, Releases

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