Sifo Group acquires Sverige Media

Sifo Group acquires Sverige Media The Sifo Group has signed an agreement to acquire Infratest Burke's media analysis business in Sweden, Sverige Media. The merger will create sound conditions for meeting ever-increasing demands for product development and customised client services. Sifo Group is acquiring Sverige Media from Infratest Burke AB with immediate effect. Sverige Media will be absorbed into the Sifo Group's division Sifo Research & Consulting - business area Media. In 1997 Sverige Media's turnover was in the region of SEK 10 million, and the company is expected to make a positive contribution to profit within the Sifo Group from 1999 onwards. The merger is a logical step in response to the changing face of the media. The increase in the number of media and changes in media consumption place increasing demands on media analysis and planning. Media advisers, advertising agencies, advertisers and not least the media themselves are in need of increasingly detailed and comprehensive information. Merging the businesses creates increased resources, a broader area of competence and a larger customer base. It also creates the conditions for continuous development and the long-term provision of an effective range of products. - Sverige Media has made a significant contribution to media planning in Sweden over the last four years and the progress it has made will be continued through increased customisation of client services and product development. We see the merger between Sverige Media and Sifo Research & Consulting as the most constructive solution in terms of meeting future market needs, says Pär Källeskog, chairman of Infratest Burke. - The merger will enable us to meet individual client demands in an increasingly complex media market. It also enables us to make way for a broader Nordic alternative in the international media analysis market, says Robert Kessiakoff,head of the division Sifo Research & Consulting. The Sifo Group - Facts and Figures The Sifo Group has three divisions, Observer Media Intelligence which works with media and global market monitoring, Sifo Research & Consulting, which provides surveys and consultancy services, and SMG Consulting which is active in the field of management and strategy consultancy. With 290 employees, Sifo Research & Consulting division is the market leader in Sweden and a major player in Scandinavia in the field of surveys and consultancy services. Sifo Research & Consulting is operational in five business areas: Management of Intangible Assets, Brand Management, Market Development, Media and Opinion & Society. For further information, please contact: Robert Lundberg, President, Sifo Group, phone +46 8 625 15 43 Robert Kessiakoff, Head of Division, Sifo Research & Consulting, phone +46 8 701 69 90 P-G Andersson, Sifo Research & Consulting, Media, phone +46 8 623 47 05