EVRY increases its investment in cloud infrastructure and partners with IBM

• EVRY will invest substantially in its infrastructure business to accelerate transformation
• EVRY combines its strong local knowledge and presence with IBM`s global cloud capabilities
• Customers will benefit from a faster time-to-market for leading-edge infrastructure solutions
• EVRY will continue to take full responsibility for customers and deliveries

(Oslo, 1 October 2015) EVRY will accelerate the ongoing transformation of its infrastructure business and invest significantly in both technology and competencies in order to provide its customers with market-leading solutions.

As part of an accelerated transformation of the infrastructure business, EVRY and IBM have entered into an unique long-term partnership, which will significantly improve EVRY`s infrastructure offering to its customers. EVRY will continue to lead development of value-added infrastructure services and combine this with the use of IBM's innovative cloud technology and global scale. 

Through the agreement, EVRY will partner with IBM for its basic infrastructure platform and IBM will play a key role in the transformation of EVRY`s basic infrastructure services to global platforms with proven methodology and global expertise.

As part of this accelerated transformation, EVRY will invest more than NOK 500 million to develop the best infrastructure solution in the Nordics. For the first time EVRY`s customers will have access to hybrid cloud solutions based on IBM`s Softlayer platform which will be installed in EVRY`s datacenter at Fet/Oslo. Additionally customers will enjoy a flexible infrastructure that will allow them to be even more agile in their digitalization.

"A leading infrastructure business is core to EVRY becoming a Nordic Champion. It is the foundation from which we build solutions that create business value and business outcomes for our customers. EVRY have started this transformation journey, but in order to deliver the best infrastructure solutions in the market, we need to accelerate the ongoing transformation of our infrastructure business", comments Björn Ivroth, CEO of EVRY.

"We have selected IBM as a global service provider and as a service delivery model for our basic infrastructure business. Customers will benefit from a faster time-to-market for leading-edge infrastructure, including new cloud based solutions. This strategic move allows EVRY to focus on being a customer-centric organisation with focus on value-added services and solutions built on leading technology", says CEO Björn Ivroth of EVRY.

"Our partnership demonstrates how IBM's expertise, technology and services can help EVRY adapt to new market conditions and opportunities while having trusted infrastructure services supporting the ongoing operations," said Martin Jetter, senior vice president, IBM Global Technology Services. "The Nordic region has always been at the forefront of adopting new technologies early and we are excited to work with EVRY as they accelerate the enablement of their clients to lead in the digital era. IBM's unmatched IT Infrastructure and cloud capabilities provide a perfect foundation for EVRY to create and sell advanced cloud-based solutions for their customers across the full range of customers and industries they serve."

Delivering value in a digital world

Infrastructure services are the backbone of the systems that support businesses, and the foundation for new and innovative digital solutions that drive businesses forward. Because of this, the market for infrastructure outsourcing services will remain critically important as businesses prepare their infrastructure for the new digital age. End-users should expect to be able to access services 24/7 across a wide range of channels and devices.

EVRY`s ambition is to support customers with more technological innovation allowing profitable growth and optimising the relationships they have with their customers. At the same time, EVRY wishes to reduce complexity and increase the use of industry standard components in customers' infrastructure, since this will allow them to have a more competitive and agile approach to changing market conditions.

In this challenging environment, EVRY wants to be a preferred and reliable partner who understands the customers` market, their culture and business model as well as the technological context in which they operate. In EVRY`s experience, medium and large enterprises, financial institutions and public sector organisations are particularly well served by a local champion like EVRY. The new customer-oriented offering announced today will give EVRY a strong position in the infrastructure service market in the Nordics, and its ambition will be to grow in selected market segments.

The key points of the agreement are:

• EVRY will invest more than NOK 500 million in its infrastructure business in order to accelerate the ongoing transformation of the business
• EVRY will partner across all platforms such as Mainframe, Unix and Wintel to IBM for a period of at least ten years
• EVRY will continue to manage the datacentres in which IBM will operate their technology
• EVRY`s customers in the Nordics will, for the first time, have access to leading cloud technology based on the Softlayer platform from IBM 
• There will be no change in how the customer interacts with EVRY going forward

Financial impact

EVRY will invest NOK 500 million in its infrastructure platform over the next 3-years to offer customers scalable, market-leading solutions on a global platform. In order to accelerate the transformation. The estimated contract value for IBM is USD 1 billion over the contract period.

IBM will take on 440 employees from EVRY's Nordic delivery organisation and 200 employees from its offshore location in Chandigarh in India.

EVRY expect the agreement with IBM will have a positive EBITA impact. Due to the impact the agreement has on EVRY's operation, balance sheet adjustments will be assessed later.     

The agreement will be subject to approval from Norwegian Competition Authorities.

This information is subject to disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

Contact persons

Björn Ivroth, CEO EVRY, Tel: +47 06500

Geir Remman, VP Corporate Communications, EVRY, Tel: +47 97055017

About EVRY

EVRY is one of the leading IT companies in the Nordic countries, with a strong local and regional presence in 50 Nordic towns and cities. Through its knowledge, solutions and technology, EVRY contributes to the development of the information society of the future, and so creates value for the benefit of its customers and for society as a whole. EVRY combines in-depth industry knowledge and technological expertise with a local delivery model and international strength.

EVRY has some 10,000 employees, and the company is committed to demonstrating that Nordic customers are best served by a supplier that understands Nordic business from the inside. EVRY reports annual turnover approaching NOK 13 billion. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange and operates from headquarters at Fornebu in Bærum, with major activities in both the Norwegian and Swedish markets.