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Elektrobit Group Oyj - EB EXPANDS PRESENCE IN ASIA WITH OPENING OF SHANGHAI OFFICE

March 26, 2012

EB EXPANDS PRESENCE IN ASIA WITH OPENING OF SHANGHAI OFFICE


PRESS RELEASE

Free for publication on March 26, 2012, at 12.00 a.m. (CET+1)

EB EXPANDS PRESENCE IN ASIA WITH OPENING OF SHANGHAI OFFICE

EB establishes new office in China to meet the requirements of its automotive customers

EB (Elektrobit) announced today the expansion into the People's Republic of China with the formation of EB Automotive Software (Shanghai) Ltd, the legal entity in Shanghai. In addition to its office in Beijing, serving both automotive and wireless customers, this new global hub will help EB support especially the company's growing automotive customer base in China and neighboring markets in Central Asia. By expanding its presence in China, EB is aiming to develop an efficient and well-established base, as well as benefit from customer proximity and cost advantages - essential to maintain and build on its competitiveness.

"Through strategic investments and targeted efforts, EB is making significant gains in China towards our growth and global footprint goals," said Alexander Kocher, President of the Automotive Business Segment at EB, at the official opening event in Shanghai at MOCA in People's Park. "Today, China produces about 20 million vehicles with double-digit growth rates to stabilize somewhere around 35 million units annually by 2020. And the automotive industry is rapidly changing with the continued trend to driver assistance applications and to the integration of external devices in the car. Meanwhile most innovations in the automotive industry are brought about by software and electronics, infotainment and online services have become key differentiators. These trends represent good business opportunities for EB."

From the offices in Shanghai and Beijing, EB will conduct development, engineering, localization and business development to meet the ever-growing demands for state-of-the-art automotive software, particularly for China, which has become the largest automotive market. The China operation is an integral part of EB's global network and infrastructure aiming at sustainable business model and growing local team for years to come.

"The demand for automotive software solutions and services in China is rising quickly," said Jeff Zhou, Managing Director of EB Automotive Software (Shanghai) Ltd. "The new legal entity in China will help us expand our business, meet our customer demands efficiently and keep pace with the growth in this region. Our navigation engine EB street director has been successfully deployed both in PND and in-car infotainment systems for different carmakers worldwide. Here in China, EB is working with two major global carmakers to adapt and release EB street director navigation in market".

EB plays an important role in the development and integration of navigation, human-machine interface (HMI), driver-assistance systems and electronic control unit (ECU) for carmakers. EB has a proven record in automotive software development for over two decades. EB is cooperating with a community of industry leading partners to help build the next generation of smart, flexible and cost efficient automotive software solutions.

EB has dedicated automotive and wireless teams all across the globe, with offices in Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Japan and the US, as well as another office in Beijing to support its customers in China and neighboring markets in Central Asia.

Further information:

Manuela Papadopol
Global Marketing Manager, Automotive Business Segment
Tel. +49 9131 7701 6709
Email: [email protected]

Philipp Hanke
Weber Shandwick for EB
Tel. +49 89 380179-48
Email: [email protected]

Press releases from EB are available online at:
www.elektrobit.com/whats_new/press_releases

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EB, Elektrobit Corporation
EB develops advanced technology and transforms it into enriching end-user experiences. EB specializes in demanding embedded software and hardware solutions for the automotive industry and wireless technologies. The company's net sales for the year 2011 totaled EUR 162.2 million. Elektrobit Corporation is listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. www.elektrobit.com

EB's Automotive Software Business
EB's Automotive Software Business has established itself internationally as one of the most important suppliers of embedded software solutions for the automotive industry. In addition to the development of innovative products, it also specializes in services and consulting for the automotive industry, supplying implementations of serial software solutions for a broad range of AUTOSAR and FlexRay, Infotainment, Navigation, HMI, and Driver Assistance systems. www.automotive.elektrobit.com