TRADING UPDATE
The Company is pleased to advise that the performance for the year ended 31 December 2009 has been broadly in line with market expectations and that the loss before tax and a goodwill impairment reported at the half year, is anticipated to fall in the mid range of the Company's brokers' estimates. This reflects both the impact of the disposal of the mobile phone contracts business on 31 December 2009 and its performance for the 12 months to 31 December together with the previously anticipated losses incurred by our early stage ecommerce subsidiaries Pauldirekt GmbH (90%) and Premingo GmbH (95%).
The ecommerce companies have grown revenues in line with expectations; Pauldirekt has increased its turnover to circa €4.5 million from a nominal base in 2008, while turnover at Premingo has increased by over 350% to approximately €0.44 million. Our ecommerce associate Shirtinator AG (36.9%) continues to perform very satisfactorily and is ahead of our profit expectations.
Our ecommerce service platform companies getperformance GmbH (100%) and getlogics Gmbh (64%) performed in line with expectations.
Cash balances at 31 December 2009 amounted to €9.8 million resulting in net cash of €8.5 million following the drawdown of €1.3 million of long-term property finance by getlogics GmbH in the second half of 2009.
Following the disposal of the mobile phone contracts business the Company's cost base has been substantially reduced. The strategic focus is now on the development of the existing ecommerce portfolio, the enhancement of our established service platforms and the identification of suitable additional ecommerce investments.
The Company anticipates that it will announce its preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2009 in the third week of April, 2010.
PROPOSED CANCELLATION OF AIM QUOTATION
The Company's shares are currently dealt on both the AIM market in London and the Entry Standard Market in Frankfurt. The Company's business is based in Germany and it has become clear that the substantial majority of dealings in the Company's shares now take place in Germany, reflecting a growing German shareholder base.
Taking account of the costs associated with the AIM quotation, the fact that the shares are primarily dealt on the Entry Standard Market, and the German-centric nature of the Company's business, the Board has concluded that it would be appropriate to seek to cancel the admission of the Company's shares to AIM. Such cancellation requires the approval of shareholders in general meeting and, accordingly, a circular convening the required extraordinary general meeting ("EGM") will shortly be sent to shareholders.
If approved by shareholders at the EGM to be held on 12 March 2010 it is anticipated that the cancellation of admission of the Company's shares to AIM will take effect on 19 March 2010.
Once the cancellation of the AIM quotation has taken place, it is anticipated that non German based shareholders will continue to be able to hold their shares in either certificated form or in CREST and will be able to make arrangements via their stockbrokers to trade shares on the Entry Standard Market, a constituent market of the Deutsche Borse in Frankfurt.
PROPOSED CHANGE OF NAME TO ECOMMERCE ALLIANCE PLC
At the time of the announcement of the impending disposal of its mobile phone contracts business on 26 November 2009, the Company indicated that it would propose a change of name for the Company, reflecting a contractual requirement to do so following the sale of the getmobile domain name.
In light of the Company's strategic focus on the ecommerce sector the board proposes that the Company's name be changed to Ecommerce Alliance plc and will put forward a resolution to this effect for shareholder approval at the EGM.
CHANGE IN DIRECTORSHIP
The Company is pleased to announce that Daniel Wild, who has been acting as an Executive Director of the Company during Tim Schwenke's absence on sick leave, has been appointed CEO with immediate effect and that Tim Schwenke has returned, as an Executive Director, with effect from 1 February 2010.
The Non-Executive Chairman, Pierce Casey, and Brian Stephens, a Non-Executive Director, have informed the Company that they intend to resign from the Board on the cancellation of the AIM Quotation.
