Convergys Buys Speech Recognition Division of iBasis

CINCINNATI, OH - Convergys Corporation (NYSE: CVG), the provider of integrated billing, employee care and customer care services, announced it has purchased the iBasis Speech Solutions line of business (formerly Price Interactive) from iBasis Inc. (NASDAQ: IBAS), a provider of international Internet-based communications services. The Speech Solutions business develops and hosts Interactive Voice Response (IVR) and Advanced Speech Recognition (ASR) solutions for large carrier and enterprise customers. Convergys paid $17 million in cash with an additional $1.5 million placed in escrow, representing less than one times anticipated 2002 full-year revenues. Up to $16 million in earn-out payments are possible if certain revenue milestones are achieved in 2002 and 2003. The earn-out payments would also represent less than one times revenue. The transaction includes 130 iBasis employees located in Reston, Virginia, as well as Miami and Saint Louis. This iBasis division has about 40 clients. "This acquisition better positions Convergys with IVR and ASR implementation technology and supports our strategy to accelerate revenue growth in our customer management and employee care businesses," said Jim Orr, chairman, president, and chief executive of Convergys. "The combination of Convergys' unrivaled experience and expertise in customer relationship management and advanced speech recognition technology further enhances our product offerings." The Speech Solutions architecture Convergys acquired, called SpeechPort can interface with speech recognition technology from ASR companies SpeechWorks (NASDAQ: SPWX) and Nuance (NASDAQ: NUAN).