Access Providers rebrands as Clever Communications

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 05 June 2007 05:48

IT Industry - Deals

Following its acquisitions of IT solutions provder Activ Australia and telecommunications services provider, Saise Télécommunications, broadband wireless operator, Access Providers (ASX: APV), has re-branded as Clever Communications Australia with all products and services consolidated under the new brand.

In a statement the company said "re-branding marks the culmination of the successful integration of the acquired companies, and the unveiling of a new, unified company, as well as setting the foundation for the company's next stage of growth and expanded product offerings."

Access Providers started life providing high capacity point-to-point broadband wireless services for businesses in Melbourne. In September 2005 it acquired Saise Telecommunications, a provider of bundled voice, data and mobile services to the business market, for 19.8 million shares and $667,000 in cash, which gave Saise shareholders around 29 percent of Access Providers' equity and brought around 50,000 business customers into Access Providers' network.

In October 2006 Access Providers acquired Sydney-based IT solutions provider, Activ Australia marking its first significant foray into the IT solutions space, and giving Access Providers its first staff on the ground in Sydney. Activ provided a wide range of IT services to about 600 business customers with between them 25,000 end users. The company had been in operation for more than a decade.

Announcing the rebranding, Access Providers' chairman and CEO, Keith Ondarchie, said: "This is not about a new name and a fancy logo. We have taken three complementary organisations and undergone an intensive integration process of cultures, products and brands to create a fundamentally new company...We are now one company, with one message to customers and competitors: 'we are here to simplify the complexities of IT&T for Australian businesses'."