i2S announces that it has entered into a stock purchase agreement to acquire a majority interest in Kirtas Technologies Inc, based in Rochester, New York, USA. The world leader in robotic bound-document digitization systems, Kirtas will complement the i2s Scanning unit’s product line, its distribution network, its customer profile and its strong presence in the US market.
The alignment with Kirtas reinforces the i2S Scanning unit
By aligning products and services with Kirtas, both companies will benefit from immediate synergies:

- The combined resources of the two companies makes them a leading player in the worldwide scanning market.
- Increased market coverage through the combined distribution networks, geographical zones, market knowledge and customer profiles.
- Increased depth and breadth of current and future scanning systems and software.

Future synergies in the high-potential market for content digitization

- With this strategic investment in Kirtas, i2S acquires a position in the U.S. which will enable it to reinforce its approach to American libraries and forge new partnerships with digital content and Internet players.
- The United States was the source of the major paradigm shifts in digital and Internet history and i2S will take advantage of advances by Kirtas and POLINUM, such as KirtasBooks.com, as part of its strategy to become a key player in the emerging market of digital asset development. i2S’ third-generation digital library Divvalib, launched in October 2010 by Amanager, could be integrated into KirtasBooks.com, the site created in 2009 to scan and circulate books in e-Pub format and provide on-demand printing. KirtasBooks.com has distribution agreements with a number of university libraries, making more than one million titles available via their Digitize-on-Demand model.
- Republishing relationships with institutions such as Boston Public Library and with Barnes & Noble.

Kirtas: the world leader in robotic bound-document scanning systems

With an installed base of over 200 units in 35 countries, Kirtas represents nearly 70% of the world market for robotic scanners. In 2010, Kirtas sold over 40 units of its robotic digitization systems.
Kirtas has been at the forefront of the digital revolution and has gained experience managing several major scanning projects: beginning in 2006 the company was selected by Microsoft for the "Live Book Search" project, whose goal is to scan works from U.S. public and university libraries, including Yale and Cornell Universities, in strict compliance with copyright laws. Kirtas carried out the digitization of 150,000 books between 2006 and 2008.

i2S: world leader in scanners for bound documents

i2S is the world's leading producer of scanners for bound documents and large formats. The group relies on an indirect network of 40 distributors throughout the world, with 1,600 scanners installed in 80 countries. The Group addresses three market segments: Cultural Heritage, Self Service and international service provision (Global Services). Cultural Heritage covers cultural and administrative assets and heritage collections (libraries, archives, museums, foundations, publishers).

Self Service corresponds to work environments, library reading rooms, school and university documentation centres, print centres, government and business.
Global Services - international players who project-manage large-scale scanning programs related to their original business, including large equipment manufacturers, IT service providers and telecom operators. With the establishment in late 2009 of the public-private R&D consortium POLINUM* (*Operational Platform for Digital Books) dedicated to the promotion and interoperability of digital content, i2S, as the project coordinator, positioned itself as a leader in accessing information in the growing digital-knowledge economy.

The group's parallel strategy is to acquire the technological building blocks that will complete its range of scanners and image processing software. This was the goal of the 2009 acquisition of the Amanager company, which specializes in online multimedia content production applications.

Contacts
Kirtas Technologies, Inc : Roger O’Brien, CEO roger@kirtas.com; Mike Maxwell mmaxwell@kirtas.com

i2S Group: Jean-Pierre GERAULT – Chairman of the Board : jp.gerault@i2s.fr
Agnès B. MAULEON – Marketing & Communications Manager: a.mauleon@i2s.fr
i2S Inc: Etienne LAMAIRESSE – CEO: e.lamairesse@i2s.fr

Los Angeles, CA – March 3, 2011. Deb Schwarz, CEO of Los Angeles-based LAC Group, announced today that the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council—through its regional certifying partner, WBEC West—has again certified the global information management provider as a Women’s Business Enterprise committed to excellence and the expansion of diversity best practices.

This recognition is significant for corporations and government agencies: By including women-owned businesses among their vendors, these organizations demonstrate their own commitment to fostering diversity and the continued development of their supplier/vendor diversity programs.

Said Schwarz, "The WBENC distinction is not easy to earn, and reaffirms to us—and importantly, to our clients—that our focus on excellence through opportunity is what continues to set us apart from so many other service providers in the information marketplace. For the second year in a row, we are proud to be officially recognized as a leader in this movement.”

WBENC (“Creating Opportunities, Recognizing Excellence”) is the nation’s largest third-party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women in the US. The organization’s painstaking certification process, designed to confirm a business is majority owned, operated and controlled by a woman or women, includes an in-depth business review and
site inspection.

Schwarz notes that, with the assistance of the WBENC, her firm’s commitment to the expansion of opportunity is perpetual: “Their training and tools, including executive level education programs, help us continue to meet and exceed our clients’ needs, year after year.” Visit www.wbenc.org for more information about the WBENC.

About LAC Group

LAC Group is a leading global provider of library, legal, information/research staffing, consulting, project and asset
management services, with clients in government/nonprofit, the Fortune 500, law, academia, biotechnology, and more. For additional information, visit www.lac-group.com or contact Erin Beekhuis at 323.302.9438 / erin@lac-group.com.

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Media Contact:
Erin Beekhuis
Projects & Communications Mgr.
323.302.9438
323.852.1093
erin@lac-group.com
www.lac-group.com