Fusepoint Acquires Versus

The leading provider of outsourced IT services and infrastructure, Fusepoint Managed Services (www.fusepoint.com) acquired the business of Versus (www.versus.com). Versus is a privately-held Montreal-based information technology company specializing in advanced managed hosting and IT application services.

"Versus has emerged as the recognized leader in applications management and outsourcing services in Quebec, and this strategic acquisition brings a highly complementary portfolio of IT solutions and expanded service capabilities such as application management and in-depth Microsoft experience to Fusepoint," said Robert Offley, president and CEO of Fusepoint Managed Services.

Versus will become a Fusepoint company, with its operations remaining in Montreal and Québec City. Current President and CEO Christine Beaubien, Chief Technology Officer Michel Plante and Jean-Yves St-Arnaud, Vice President will remain with the company and join Fusepoint's Executive Management Team.

IDC Canada valued the 2003 Canadian systems infrastructure service provider (SISP) market at C$409 million, and predicts it will continue to grow by approximately 13 per cent yearly to reach C$680 million by 2007.

"After nearly a decade of delivering measurable business results to our customers within the province of Quebec, the Versus team feels the time has come to explore the tremendous opportunities in the rest of Canada," said Christine Beaubien, president and CEO of Versus.

With a steady growth rate of 40% year over year since 2000, the company maintains over 100 active customers and just recently added an information technology (IT) outsourcing contract, valued at close to $2million, with Transat A.T.Inc., Canada's holiday travel leader.

With a total workforce of 125, the combined company will have offices and data centres in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal, and Québec City. Terms of the sale are not being disclosed.

With its state-of-the-art data centres, Fusepoint is a major force in Canada's IT industry -- providing customers with the highest levels of hosting, security, business continuity, and managed application infrastructure services.