CALABASAS, Calif., August 20, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- NetSol Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:NTWCD), a developer of proprietary software applications, announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, NetSol Technologies (Pvt.) Limited, has entered into a second joint venture agreement with Hyundai Information Technology Co., Ltd. (HIT) of South Korea. Under the terms of the new agreement, NetSol and HIT will work as a team on all infrastructure development projects within Pakistan. These projects will primarily involve the public sector and Pakistan's armed forces. "This joint effort produced a strong team with many years of industry experience, knowledge of the country and an impressive Software-CMM Level 3 accreditation," said NetSol Technologies CEO Naeem Ghauri. "We believe this agreement positions our new team to bid on and win large, mission critical projects within Pakistan."
NetSol Technologies (Pvt.) Ltd. recently signed a joint venture agreement with HIT. Under the terms of the agreement, a consortium was formed to bid on an extensive computerization program for Pakistan's Department of Immigration and Passport Offices within the country, as well as its ten embassy locations.
"Pakistan has enjoyed considerable growth over the last three and a half years," commented NetSol Technologies' President Salim Ghauri. "With the recent deregulation of Pakistan's telecommunications sector and the government's desire to attract investors to the country, while experiencing an unprecedented increase in exports, Pakistan must continue to build a solid technology infrastructure to support the growth expected over the next several years. Pakistan's government realizes that delaying the development of an information technology infrastructure may cause the country to be left far behind other competing countries." The areas within Pakistan expected to receive major information technology investments by the government are education, public sector automation, railways and the country's armed forces.
"With a significantly improved economy and the country's stock market breaking all past records, the Pakistani people are ready to transition to an Internet/high-tech economy," continued Ghauri. "NetSol is the only SW-CMM Level 3 rated company in Pakistan and has earned an excellent reputation within the public sector. Partnered with HIT, a company with vast experience in delivering infrastructure projects around the world, we expect that our experienced team will be awarded an aggressive share of government funded projects. The HIT and NetSol team will be a formidable player in the Pakistani marketplace.
"Our partnership with Hyundai International, coupled with our recent acquisition of Washington D.C.-based Altvia Technologies and the Company's SEI SW-CMM Level 3 ranking, positions NetSol for substantial revenue growth during fiscal 2004," commented NetSol Technologies' CEO Naeem Ghauri. "We believe our fiscal 2004 revenue could increase between 60 and 75 percent over that of fiscal 2003. Our goal is to increase revenue through well-managed growth as we strive to improve shareholder value and become profitable."
Hyundai Information Technology
Hyundai Information Technology (HIT) was established in 1993 with the integration of Hyundai's affiliated computer department. HIT was founded in an effort to establish its information infrastructure, which is the foundation of Korea's competitiveness, by providing information services based on System Integration (SI) of public corporations, financial companies and enterprises. HIT has been successful in constructing and operating large-scale IT projects and has earned a reputation as "a total information services company representing Korea." HIT's vision in the 21st century is to preempt new markets with specialized solutions and become the "World's Best Business Partner" with world class competitiveness. HIT is endeavoring to create the highest customer value with the best information technology. HIT has achieved an SEI CMM Level 3 rating.
NetSol Technologies (Pvt.) Limited
NetSol Technologies (Pvt.) Limited Pakistan is a wholly owned subsidiary of NetSol Technologies, Inc., a leading end-to-end solution provider for the lease and finance, banking and financial services industries. Headquartered in Calabasas, Calif., NetSol Technologies, Inc. operates on a global basis with locations in the U.S., Europe, East Asia and Asia Pacific. NetSol helps its clients identify, evaluate and implement technology solutions to meet their most critical business challenges and maximize their bottom line. By utilizing its worldwide resources, NetSol has been delivering high quality, cost-effective IT services ranging from consulting and application development to systems integration and outsourcing for years. Their commitment to quality is demonstrated by achieving both ISO 9001 and SEI (Software Engineering Institute) CMM (Capability Maturity Model) certification.
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
This release is comprised of inter-related information that must be interpreted in the context of all the information provided; accordingly, care should be exercised not to consider portions of this release out of context. This release is provided in compliance with Commission Regulation FD and contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21B of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, goals, assumption or future events or performance, are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements." Forward looking statements are based on expectations, estimates and projections at the time the statements are made that involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those presently anticipated. Forward looking statements in this action may be identified through the use of words such as "expects," "will," "anticipates," "estimates," "believes," or statements indicating certain actions "may," "could," or "might" occur. Such statements reflect the current views of NetSol Technologies with respect to future events and are subject to certain assumptions, including those described in this release. Should one or more of the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as anticipated, believed or expected. NetSol Technologies does not intend to update these forward-looking statements prior to announcement of quarterly or annual results.