News from 2017

Agreement to acquire SK-NIC, A.S., Manager of Slovakia’s Top-Level Domain, .sk

The board of CentralNic, the global software platform company supporting subscription web services including domain names, is pleased to announce that it has agreed to acquire the business and assets of SK-NIC, the manager of the exclusive country code top-level domain for Slovakia, .SK. The Board believes that this will represent a major, strategic and earnings enhancing acquisition for the Group.

The acquisition involves the purchase of the business, including all the property, rights and assets, of SK-NIC. SK-NIC has managed the .sk country code since 1993 and is officially recognised as the sponsoring organisation of the Slovak country-code top-level domain (“ccTLD”) by the worldwide governing body, the Internet Assigned Numbering Authority (“IANA”).

SK-NIC has a long term track-record of growth in domains under management, supported by strong performance by the Slovak economy over recent years. Slovakia has a population of over five million and delivered GDP growth almost double the Eurozone average for 2015. It has an estimated penetration of 63 domains per 1000 head of capita as at 31 December 2016, compared to the neighbouring Czech Republic at 121 domains per 1000 head of capita and to the UK with 162 domains per 1000 head of capita – indicating significant growth potential with competitive pricing and service levels.

SK-NIC enjoys a high domain name renewal rate of over 77%, providing consistent and attractive recurring revenues from a diversified customer base, which includes over 360,000 domains under management and over 2,100 active retailers in Slovakia.

CentralNic intends to invest to improve the SK-NIC service using the Group’s superior platform technology and through the provision of new services. The team and training in Slovakia will be strengthened, placing a new emphasis on marketing, communications and retailer support. There will also be a commitment to supporting the Slovak internet community by offering a superior service at more competitive prices than provided historically. The Group will also contribute five percent of SK-NIC’s revenues to a fund dedicated to projects that contribute to the Slovakian digital economy, under the terms of a co-operation agreement with the Slovakian Government.

Ben Crawford, CentralNic Group CEO, said:
“SK-NIC is a major, earnings enhancing acquisition for Group, which is wholly consistent with our growth strategy. The business will benefit significantly from CentralNic’s technology and expertise, to improve its security, resilience and growth, as well as bringing to the Group strong recurring revenues. The .sk country code adds a substantial new product and SK-NIC’s network of over 2,100 local retailers extends our geographic footprint into an important new market with considerable growth potential.”

For media enquiries:

CentralNic Group PLC

Ben Crawford, Chief Executive Officer
Andy Churley, Group Marketing Director
press@centralnic.com

+44 (0) 203 388 0600
+44 (0) 203 388 0600

About CentralNic Group PLC

CentralNic (AIM: CNIC) is a London-based AIM-listed company which develops and manages software platforms allowing businesses globally to use the internet for their own websites and email, as well as protecting their brands online. Its core growth strategy is identifying and acquiring cashgenerative businesses with annuity revenue streams and exposure to emerging markets, and migrating them onto the CentralNic software and operating platforms.

CentralNic operates globally with customers in over 200 countries. It earns revenues from the worldwide sales of internet domain names and hosting on an annual subscription basis.