Logicalis UK Expands Video and Video Managed Services Business With Acquisition of Direct Visual Limited

By Logicalis Uk, PRNE
Sunday, January 23, 2011

Acquisition Cements Logicalis' Position as Leading UK Cisco/Tandberg Unified Communications, Video Conferencing, and Telepresence Partner

SLOUGH, England, January 24, 2011 - Logicalis Group, the international IT and Communications solutions
integrator, has reached an agreement and contracts have been exchanged to
acquire Direct Visual Limited, a UK based Tandberg (now part of Cisco)
Platinum Partner and one of the UK's leading independent suppliers of video
communications solutions and video managed services.

The acquisition further strengthens Logicalis' Unified Communications and
Collaboration business, and creates within Logicalis a highly skilled centre
of excellence for the newly combined Cisco/Tandberg solutions set - from
desktop video, integration of video and unified communications and
collaboration, room systems, and Cisco and Tandberg Telepresence solutions.
The acquisition also extends Logicalis' managed and hosted video
communications and collaboration services. Direct Visual was established in
1996 as a Tandberg reseller and is now one of its largest UK solutions
partners. In the intervening years Direct Visual has become one of the UK's
largest and most capable providers of video conferencing, and has innovated
in the use of video solutions in both the public and private sectors.

Tom Kelly, Managing Director of Logicalis UK, comments: "Video
has been an important market for Logicalis for some time, and as we look
forward, we expect video to become an ever more important part of our
integrated Unified Communications and Collaboration (iUCC) solutions and
services portfolio. Organisations are now looking to seamlessly integrate
video into a user's communications experience, and with the acquisition of
Direct Visual, Logicalis now offers a compelling proposition to the UK
market.

"Direct Visual brings the highest levels of technical
expertise with a strong management team and supplier relationships. With
Logicalis' extensive customer base and existing managed services offerings
there is great opportunity to further develop a new range of managed video
service offerings to our joint customer base."

Direct Visual was one of the first video providers to the users of the
Joint Academic Network (JANET), a relationship which complements Logicalis'
strengths in Higher and Further Education, Local Government, and Health, and
enhances Logicalis' recent connection of its Tier3+ data centre and cloud
offerings to the JANET community. Direct Visual also has a strong private
sector base, and Logicalis intends to leverage the organisation's
capabilities in video to rapidly expand a new portfolio of 'knowledge
collaboration' solutions and services; specifically in the financial, retail,
and professional services industries.

Kelly comments, "Logicalis was a leader in the deployment and integration
of IP communications solutions throughout the last decade, and today we are
still one of Cisco's most capable IP telephony partners. It is our intention
to continue this leadership in the unified communications and collaboration
solutions and services market, and we recognise more than most that it is not
simply the ability to deploy video technology that is important to our
customers, but, it is the ability to integrate visual communications into
their business processes and employees' daily working practices that makes
video a true business change agent.

"With our acquisition of Direct Visual, and recent investments in our
high-density data centre and Cisco-based cloud platform, we are now
positioned as the most capable and committed partner to deliver a new
'virtual experience' to the market, whether they wish to own and operate it
themselves, have it delivered as a managed service, or consume it from the
cloud. Logicalis now offers the most comprehensive set of integrated
communications solutions and services of any partner in the UK, and our
customers can deal with a single partner who can truly deliver all of their
video or wider unified communications and collaboration needs."

About Direct Visual

Direct Visual is the UK's leading supplier of Telepresence and Video
Communications to public and private organisations. Its unique value is in
providing technical expertise coupled with an in depth understanding of its
customers' requirements, to realise significant, meaningful and
cost-effective benefits.

Direct Visual has expertise in Telepresence and Videoconferencing
networking, managed service delivery, mass deployment of video communications
to the desktop, and sophisticated Audio Visual Integration in meeting rooms,
auditoria and boardrooms.

Continued commitment is made to remain at the forefront of visual
technology, underpinned by continued investment in new skills in Unified
Communications, Audio Visual systems integration, Business Process Analysis
and Project Management.

Direct Visual is very proud to have been awarded recognition from leading
manufacturers including Cisco, Tandberg (now part of Cisco) and Polycom for
excellence in both technological innovation, as well as its exemplary
services to its customers.

"Direct Visual is proud to offer what we consider the finest service in
our industry, and we will continue to provide innovative Telepresence and
video communication solutions, underpinned by remarkable customer service as
part of the Logicalis Group. Adele Thornton Head of Commercial Sales Team,
Direct Visual comments, "we are very excited about what the future holds."

For more information, visit www.direct-visual.com

About Logicalis

Logicalis is an international provider of integrated information and
communications technology (ICT) solutions and services founded on a superior
breadth of knowledge and expertise in communications & collaboration; data
centre; and professional and managed services.

Logicalis Group employs over 1,900 people worldwide, including highly
trained service specialists who design, specify, deploy and manage complex
ICT infrastructures to meet the needs of over 5,000 corporate and public
sector customers. To achieve this, Logicalis maintains strong partnerships
with technology leaders such as Cisco, HP, IBM and Microsoft.

The Logicalis Group has annualised revenues in excess of $1
billion
, from operations in the UK, US, Germany, South America and Asia
Pacific
, and is fast establishing itself as one of the leading IT and
Communications solution integrators, specialising in the areas of advanced
technologies and services.

The Logicalis Group is a division of Datatec Limited, listed on the
Johannesburg and London AIM Stock Exchanges, with revenues in excess of $4
billion
.

For more information, visit www.uk.logicalis.com.

For further information please contact: Andrew Parker/Jennifer Manning/Charlotte Sandy, Cohesive Communications, T: +44(0)1291-626200, E: logicalis at cohesive.uk.com

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