The Carlyle Group Invests in Global Media GmbH; Global Media Positioned for Growth in Consolidating Market

London – Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group today announces it has invested in Global Media GmbH, a web marketing company for a significant minority share of the business. Financial details are not disclosed.

Global Media GmbH is an international internet marketing agency. It delivers the full range of online services including search engine optimization, key word advertising and online media planning. Global Media currently has 200 customers across Europe - mainly mid to large size brands or companies including AOL, eBay and lastminute.com. The company has a significant presence in the travel, retail and financial services industries and a leadership position in the German market.

Global Media was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Munich, Germany. The business has 105 employees, and has subsidiaries in the UK, France, Italy, Scandinavia, Russia and Korea. Global Media has grown its sales by over 100% in both 2005 and 2004.

The online advertising market is currently growing at a significant rate. It is expected to also grow 25% in Europe in 2007 driven by the increasing penetration of broadband, the increased use of online advertising, and the growing level of ecommerce across all geographies.

The investment by Carlyle enables Global Media to accelerate growth and development and to take advantage of this growth cycle, through both organic and inorganic growth. By these means Global Media aims to achieve a consolidated leadership role in Europe and further drive its expansion in Asia.

Thomas Gerteis, CEO of Global Media said, "We believe there is great opportunity in the internet market for consolidation and growth. The online advertising market is becoming increasingly complex, and clients are seeking a one-stop shop to manage this complexity and their needs. With this investment from Carlyle we will be able to further service this demand, and develop the company into the main player in Europe and a leading position across the world."

Nazo Moosa, Associate Director, The Carlyle Group said, "We believe that the European online advertising market is at an inflection point – as what was formerly a cottage industry professionalizes and consolidates into a multi-billion industry with a few leading players. We believe that Global Media is well positioned to lead that consolidation through its international presence and broad services offering."

David FitzGerald, Managing Director, The Carlyle Group said, "We look forward to working with Thomas and his team in the coming years to enable Global Media become the leading web marketing business in Europe. This is a very exciting industry with good growth potential and we believe that Thomas and his team are the right team to capitalise on this development."

The investment is the fourth investment made through Carlyle’s European technology fund, Carlyle Europe Technology Partners. The fund is dedicated to small buyout transactions and growth capital investments in European technology companies with an enterprise value of €25 million to €250 million. Other investments in the fund include UC4 Software, an IT job scheduling software company headquartered in Austria, Transics B.V. a fleet management solutions provider, and NP Aerospace, a composite moulded products company based in the UK. The European technology team is co-headed by David FitzGerald and Wolfgang Hanrieder.

Global Media was advised by Ion Equity and mezzanine financing was provided by Capital Source.