Sifo Group acquires Navigare Medical Marketing Research

Sifo Group acquires Navigare Medical Marketing Research Sifo Group AB has reached an agreement in principle for the acquisition of Navigare Medical Marketing Research AB. The acquisition will be executed as of July 1, 1999. Navigare will become part of the Sifo Research & Consulting Division of Sifo Group. Sales staff are key persons in the business. Navigare specializes in market studies within the medical field, and provides consultant services for marketing of pharmaceuticals. Navigare carries out studies in the Nordic countries as well as international studies through the HRP (Healthcare Research Partners) network. "The acquisition of Navigare brings new competence to Sifo Research & Consulting, as well as a new market segment that complements our existing operations throughout the Nordic countries," says Robert Kessiakoff, Division Manager for Sifo Research & Consulting. "Through the merger, Navigare gains greater resources and access to Sifo Research & Consulting's capacity and development tools for data collection in the Nordic countries, among else," says Karl-Gunnar Persson, President of Navigare. Navigare Medical Marketing Research had net sales in 1998 of more than SEK 25 million and has experienced high growth and good profitability through the years. The impact on earnings per share for Sifo Group will be marginal for the current year. Facts about Sifo Group The Sifo Group has three divisions: Observer Media Intelligence, which works with media and market research; Sifo Research & Consulting, which works with surveys and consulting operations; and SMG Consulting, which is active in management and strategic consulting. Sifo Group has sales of over SEK 950 million and employs around 1,100 people in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Germany and the Baltic states. The Sifo Research & Consulting Division has over 300 employees and is the market leader in Sweden and a major player in the Nordic countries in the field of market studies, opinion polls and related consultant services. Sifo Research & Consulting is operational in five business areas: Management of Intangible Assets, Brand Management, Market Development, Media and Opinion & Society. Sifo Research & Consulting is represented in Sweden, Norway (Feedback AS Research & Consulting in Oslo) and Denmark (Sifo Research & Consulting A/S, Copenhagen). Facts about Navigare Navigare is a company which specializes in market research in the medical and pharmaceutical sector in the Nordic countries. All the project managers have extensive experience of the pharmaceutical industry and the field work is performed by medically-trained personnel. Most of the clients are international market research agencies and marketing pharmaceutical companies in the Nordic area. Navigare is the Scandinavian member of Healthcare Research Partners (HRP), an organisation combining national expertise to provide quality medical market research worldwide. Thanks to the membership in HRP, Navigare also has the capacity to conduct international market research outside the Nordic area. The headquarters of Navigare are situated in Kungsbacka. For further information, please contact: Robert Lundberg, President and Chief Executive Officer, phone +46-8-625 15 43, e-mail robert.lundberg@sifogroup.se Robert Kessiakoff, Manager of the Sifo Research & Consulting Division, phone +46-8-701 69 90, e-mail robert.kessiakoff@sifo.se This press release is also available at http://www.sifogroup.com ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/05/05/19990505BIT00370/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/05/05/19990505BIT00370/bit0002.pdf