West Corporation to Acquire SchoolMessenger


OMAHA, Neb., April 14, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Corporation, a leading provider of technology-driven communication services, today announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Reliance Holding, Inc. d/b/a SchoolMessenger, a leading provider of notification and mobile communication solutions for the K-12 education market.

Thousands of public and private school districts in all 50 states depend on SchoolMessenger's innovative solutions to connect and effectively communicate with millions of parents, students and staff every day. SchoolMessenger was founded in 1999 and has become the leading provider of high volume, on-demand messaging and communication platforms for the K-12 community.

SchoolMessenger will be a part of West's Unified Communications business segment. "We are excited to add SchoolMessenger to West's strong portfolio of alerts and notifications solutions," said Todd Strubbe, president of West's Unified Communications operating segment. "We know that domain expertise, platform performance and customer service are the three critical requirements for delivering a world-class messaging and notifications service. SchoolMessenger has demonstrated outstanding capability on all three dimensions. We look forward to sustaining this excellence and helping drive even greater innovation."

"A focus on serving our customers has shaped the SchoolMessenger culture since day one. We are pleased to be joining such a widely respected communications industry leader that shares our commitment to customers," said Ron Davies, executive chairman of SchoolMessenger. "As part of West, we will have access to additional resources and expertise that will further fuel our growth and reputation as the recognized communications leader in K-12."

Closing of this transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to occur during the second quarter of 2014. SchoolMessenger had revenue of approximately $27 million in 2013. West expects this transaction to be slightly accretive in 2014 on an earnings per share basis, adjusted for deal-related amortization and expenses.

About West Corporation

West Corporation (Nasdaq:WSTC) is a leading provider of technology-driven communication services. West offers its clients a broad range of communications and network infrastructure solutions that help them manage or support critical communications. West's customer contact solutions and conferencing services are designed to improve its clients' cost structure and provide reliable, high-quality services. West also provides mission-critical services, such as public safety and emergency communications.

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, West serves Fortune 1000 companies and other clients in a variety of industries, including telecommunications, retail, financial services, public safety, technology and healthcare. West has sales and operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Latin America. For more information on West Corporation, please call 1-800-841-9000 or visit www.west.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "intends," "continue" or similar terminology. The statements contained in the 2014 guidance are forward-looking statements. These statements reflect only West's current expectations and are not guarantees of future performance or results. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, competition in West's highly competitive industries; increases in the cost of voice and data services or significant interruptions in these services; West's ability to keep pace with its clients' needs for rapid technological change and systems availability; the continued deployment and adoption of emerging technologies; the loss, financial difficulties or bankruptcy of any key clients; security and privacy breaches of the systems West uses to protect personal data; the effects of global economic trends on the businesses of West's clients; the non-exclusive nature of West's client contracts and the absence of revenue commitments; the cost of pending and future litigation; the cost of defending West against intellectual property infringement claims; extensive regulation affecting many of West's businesses; West's ability to protect its proprietary information or technology; service interruptions to West's data and operation centers; West's ability to retain key personnel and attract a sufficient number of qualified employees; increases in labor costs and turnover rates; the political, economic and other conditions in the countries where West operates; changes in foreign exchange rates; West's ability to complete this and future acquisitions and integrate or achieve the objectives of its recent and future acquisitions; future impairments of our substantial goodwill, intangible assets, or other long-lived assets; and West's ability to recover consumer receivables on behalf of its clients. In addition, West is subject to risks related to its level of indebtedness. Such risks include West's ability to generate sufficient cash to service its indebtedness and fund its other liquidity needs; West's ability to comply with covenants contained in its debt instruments; the ability to obtain additional financing; the incurrence of significant additional indebtedness by West and its subsidiaries; and the ability of West's lenders to fulfill their lending commitments. West is also subject to other risk factors described in documents filed by the company with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. 

These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which the statements were made. West undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law.



            

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