Tieto divests its French subsidiary

Tieto Corporation has agreed to sell its French subsidiary to the French IT company Devoteam. Tieto will book EUR 5.2 million in impairment loss and EUR 0.4 million in restructuring costs related to the divestment in its first-quarter 2010 results.

The sold unit has provided engineering, deployment and maintenance services for mobile, fixed and enterprise networks to telecom companies and large enterprises. The main markets have been France, Middle East and Africa. Tieto France SA employs approximately 120 people. In 2009, net sales from the sold entity were EUR 28.5 million. In the first quarter of 2010, net sales amounted to approximately EUR 5 million.

“This divestment is part of Tieto’s strategy to exit non-core businesses or markets. The services that have been provided by Tieto France SA are no longer part of our core services. The competence level of the employees in the French unit is excellent and with Devoteam these capabilities can be fully utilized,” says Bengt Möller, Executive Vice President, Telecom & Media in Tieto.

“We are pleased to welcome Tieto France employees within Devoteam. Their strong knowhow around mobile network rollout will accelerate our development in emerging countries,” says Godefroy de Bentzmann, co-CEO of Devoteam.

Tieto is an IT service company providing IT, R&D and consulting services. With approximately 17 000 experts, we are among the leading IT service companies in Northern Europe and the global leader in selected segments. We specialize in areas where we have the deepest understanding of our customers’ businesses and needs. Our superior customer centricity and expertise in digital services set us apart from our competitors.
www.tieto.com

About Devoteam:
Devoteam is an IT consulting group created in 1995. Combining consulting and technical solutions offers enables Devoteam to provide its customers with independent advice and effective solutions that meet their industrial objectives. In 2009, Devoteam achieved a turnover of EUR 460 million and an operating margin of 6.2%. The Group consists of 4 437 employees in 23 countries across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.