29.11.2005
GNT Acquires Finland's Leading Music Distributor Hot One Group

HELSINKI, FINLAND -- November 29th, 2005 -- GNT Group, the leading IT and consumer electronics wholesale distributor in Finland and the Baltic region, today announced the acquisition of Hot One Group, the market leader in the Finnish music retail industry. GNT has signed an agreement for the purchase of all Hot One Group shares pending approval by competition authorities. Hot One Group's personnel will transfer to GNT.

Hot One Group distributes approximately half of the music recordings sold in Finland. The group comprises two subsidiaries, Musiikkijakelu and Levypiste, which are responsible for record sales. Hot One Group services include the management of music sections in department stores as well as music sales points at service stations and supermarkets. In 2005, Hot One Group has also expanded the distribution of DVD films.

"This agreement is an excellent opportunity for us to expand into the music business, which is closely connected to the consumer electronics products that we represent. In the future, we will be able to utilize Hot One Group's successful customer service concept in the distribution of games, films and other associated products," said Mika Junnila, Managing Director, GNT Finland.

The collaboration with GNT provides Hot One Group with a highly efficient distribution channel and a wider product range. The company now has the opportunity to expand its sales to GNT's other countries of operation ( Sweden, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland).

"GNT's strong service and distribution expertise and wide product portfolio will allow us to serve our current customers even better than before. GNT also offers us a web-based sales solution that we have not had before. Business-to-business online sales are growing fast, and with GNT we will be able to develop our retails sales service concept," said Timo Mäntyniemi, Managing Director, Hot One Group.

Approximately 95 percent of Hot One Group's revenues come from record sales, and the remainder from DVD films and other products. In 2004, Hot One Group revenues totaled 28.5 million euros.

Further information:

GNT Finland
Mika Junnila, Managing Director

Hot One Group
Timo Mäntyniemi, Managing Director
timo.mantyniemi@musiikkijakelu.fi

GNT Group is the largest IT wholesale distributor in Finland and the Baltic countries. GNT represents leading brands including 3Com, Acer, Canon, Electronic Arts, Fujitsu-Siemens, F-Secure, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi, IBM, Kingston, LG, Microsoft, Motorola, Philips, Samsung, Siemens, Sony and Viewsonic. GNT Group’s headquarters and main logistics centre are located in Tampere, Finland, with country offices in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden and Poland. GNT Group’s net sales were 728 MEUR in 2004, and the company employs 596 people. For more information, please visit www.gnt.fi