XDC secures EUR 15.3 million growth capital

Gimv, SRIW and existing shareholders provide
      additional funding for XDC’s pan-European roll-out of digital cinema

XDC,  European leader in digital cinema distribution services, has taken a major
step  forward in order to  execute its strategy to  deploy and service more than
8,000 digital cinema screens across Europe by 2015.

XDC  is the first company to have  VPF digital cinema deployment agreements with
all  6 major US film studios for a total of 8,000 digital screens in 22 European
countries.  VPFs  (Virtual  Print  Fees)  allow  cinema  exhibitors to invest in
digitalisation  with the financial support of  the film studios, throughout XDC,
deploying  entity.  XDC’s  VPF  agreements  make  it  the  largest player in the
roll-out of digital cinema in Europe.

As  only 5% of the European movie screens have already been digitalized, digital
cinema  is expected to grow tremendously in  the coming years, thanks to the VPF
system and a strong market demand for 3D movies and alternative content.

The  new EUR 15.3 million funding by Gimv, SRIW and selected existing investors,
provides  the company with the funds to  finance its growth in the coming years.
Founding  partner EVS  remains the  most important  investor with  a 30.2% fully
diluted  stake  (41.3%  not  diluted)  while  SRIW  and  Gimv become cornerstone
investors with a 20.7% and 20.2% stake (fully diluted) respectively.

Serge  Plasch, CEO  of XDC,  stated: “Securing  new funding  in this challenging
financial  climate shows the market potential  of XDC’s technology and services.
We  are very proud that a new investor  such as Gimv shares the vision with SRIW
and  our founding shareholders. With  this funding, the company  will be able to
accelerate  its network deployment and to expand its digital content services to
the European cinema industry and beyond.”

Alain  Keppens, Head Buyouts &  Growth - Belgium at  Gimv, stated: “Gimv is very
pleased to further strengthen XDC’s capital and become co-investor together with
EVS. Our Buyouts & Growth and Technology teams were able to tap on our knowledge
from  current and past investments in  the entertainment and media sectors, such
as  Barco, Alfacam and Kinepolis Group. We believe that the combination of XDC’s
strong  capital base, its financing agreements with banks and its strong support
and  service offering should enable the company  to capture a major part of this
high-growth   market.   Moreover,   we   are   convinced  that  the  company  is
well-positioned to reinforce its leadership in Europe.”

Olivier Vanderijst, Chairman of the Executive Committee of SRIW, stated: “XDC is
today  the  European  leader  in  its  sector. Following our first investment in
2008, our  additional commitment in this major financing reflects our mission to
support  Walloon companies in their international  expansion. It is also another
evidence  of the SRIW  involvement in new  technologies.” Eric Bauche, Executive
Committee  Advisor at  SRIW, added:  “Last but  not least,  XDC shall create new
vacancies  in Liege (Belgium) and across Europe for highly skilled people in the
coming years.”




About XDC International
XDC  is the European leader for Digital Cinema technology and services in Europe
with   more  than  1.350 committed  digital  screens  in  11 European  countries
(Germany,  Switzerland,  Spain,  Austria,  Portugal,  Belgium,  The Netherlands,
Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland) out of which 50% have already been
deployed.
XDC  HQ  is  based  in  Liege  (Belgium)  and provides end-to-end digital cinema
solutions  including equipment  supply, financing  (VPF, leasing,  …), training,
installation  and 24/7 maintenance, as well  as content processing and delivery.
The company is the first entity to have VPF digital cinema deployment agreements
with  all 6 major US studios Warner,  Fox, Universal, Paramount, Sony and Disney
for  a  total  of  8,000 digital  screens  in 22 European countries. Besides its
financing  program with  ING Lease,  XDC has  set up  a global financing of 100
millions Euros with a bank consortium led by BNP Paribas Fortis to allow the VPF
roll  out  of  2,000 digital  screens  for  its European deployment program. XDC
Digital  Content Lab  has been  processing more  than 600 different  titles, and
offers  a full service  including mastering, duplication,  key management, 24/7
helpdesk,  extranet tracking, physical/virtual delivery. Last but not least, XDC
is  also very  active in  Alternative Content  by offering  a full  service from
booking  and  promotion  up  to  delivery,  reporting and box office collection.
 www.xdcinema.com <

http://www.xdcinema.com/>

About SRIW
SRIW is the corporate investment vehicle owned by the Walloon Region. Founded in
1979, it  currently manages around EUR 1 billion  of assets.  SRIW provides long
term  equity or equity-linked funding to  support the international expansion of
Walloon  companies and attract foreign companies in that region. SRIW focuses on
industrial  companies,  as  well  as  environmental activities, technologies and
telecommunications.  www.sriw.be <

http://www.sriw.be/>

About Gimv
Gimv  (Euronext  Brussels:  GIMB,  Bloomberg:  GIMB  BB,  Reuters: GIMV.BR) is a
European investment company with nearly 30 years of experience in private equity
and  venture  capital.  The  company  is  listed  on  NYSE Euronext Brussels and
currently manages around EUR 1.7 billion of assets.
Gimv invests in buyouts and provides growth capital to established companies and
has  local teams  in Belgium,  France, The  Netherlands and Germany.  Gimv makes
venture capital investments in high tech sectors through its specialist teams in
Life Sciences, Technology and Cleantech.  www.gimv.com <

http://www.gimv.com/>

About EVS
EVS  Broadcast Equipment  (Euronext Brussels:  EVS, Bloomberg:  EVS BB, Reuters:
EVSB.BR)  is a  world-wide leader  in developing  and selling live and near-live
digital  solutions for Television and  Video content related corporations. Based
in Liege, Belgium, it is listed on NYSE Euronext and currently employs more than
270 staff  in 13 countries. EVS booked EUR 110 million sales in 2008. EVS serves
more  than 1.000 customers  including NBC,  BSkyB, FOX,  RTL, NHK, CANAL+, CCTV,
BBC,  ZDF  and  many  more.  It  pioneered Digital Cinema solutions in 1999 and,
concentrating  on broadcast technologies, spun-out this business line in 2004.
www.evs-global.com <

http://www.evs-global.com/>


For further information, please contact:
XDC - Serge Plasch, CEO – T [phone] - [e-mail]
EVS  -  Jacques  Galloy,  Director  and  CFO  –  Geoffroy d’Oultremont, Investor
Relations   &   Corporate   Communications   Manager   –   T  [phone] –
[e-mail]
SRIW   –  Eric  Bauche,  Executive  Committee  Advisor  –  T  [phone] -
[e-mail]
Gimv - Frank De Leenheer – Investor Relations & Corporate Communications Manager
-          T         +32         3 290 22 18 –         [e-mail]
<mailto:[e-mail]>


[HUG#1367505]





    Press release in PDF: 

http://hugin.info/133958/R/1367505/334393.pdf