Partnership Agreement

19 Mar 2007 15:00

Creston PLC19 March 2007 Date: 19th March 2007On behalf of: Creston plc ("Creston" or "the Group")Immediate Release Creston "Search Powered by Latitude" Alliance Creston plc, the diversified marketing services group, and Latitude Group Ltdtoday announced a partnership agreement to provide Creston Group operatingcompanies with the capability to offer Latitude's world-class pay-per-click andsearch optimisation solutions. The initiative will be offered to Crestonclients by each operating company with the Group and carry the branding "poweredby Latitude". Latitude Group Ltd is the UK's leading independent search engine marketingagency. The company was formed in 2001 and employs around 70 search enginemarketing specialists at its offices in London and in Cheshire. Don Elgie, Chief Executive of Creston plc, said: "Most clients now see search as a critical component of their communicationsplans. We have been vocal about our desire to provide Creston clients with bothadvisory and transactional expertise in this discipline. "We understand the category very well and have been hugely impressed withLatitude during our discussions - they are shaping the strategic direction ofsearch marketing - a discipline in which the UK leads the world - we have greathopes for this partnership agreement." Dylan Thwaites, CEO of Latitude Group Ltd, added: "Search marketing is about to move to its next level in terms of effectiveness,measurability and impact. The first wave of search marketing has been textdriven but Web 2.0 applications mean that search can be used to drive consumerengagement with richer creative content such as video streaming. We will beworking with Creston's operating companies to integrate search with theircreative thinking at a strategic level - it's hugely exciting for us and forclients." Enquiries: Redleaf Communications 020 7822 0200Emma Kane/Sanna Lehtinen NOTES TO EDITORS: • Publication quality photographs are available through Redleaf on thenumbers shown above. About Creston Plc • Creston's strategy is to build a diversified international marketingservices group through a combination of organic growth and selectiveacquisitions. The Board's aim is to identify synergistic benefits betweencurrently independent marketing services companies offering premium servicessuch as market research, direct marketing, advertising, public relations,research and digital; and to build a diversified Group that offers clientssolutions to both existing and future marketing needs. • Creston's share price is quoted in the Financial Times, The DailyTelegraph, The Times and the London Evening Standard. About Latitude • London-based Latitude Group Ltd is an expert in search enginemarketing, integrating search expertise with web marketing and onlinecommunications. The agency employs more than 100 people and helps clients rankin the best possible positions on search results pages and achieve exceptionalreturns on their investment in search marketing. In 2006 Latitude was selectedto receive a 'Media Momentum' award, while its chief executive officer, DylanThwaites, was also named as Ernst & Young Technology & CommunicationsEntrepreneur of the Year. Latitude clients currently include Kwik-Fit,Endsleigh, Britannia Hotels, Ocean Finance, Fitness First, Equity, ComputerQuote, Travelex UK Retail and Leadmarket. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange