Breakthrough for Norman Access Control in Asia:

Norman ASA has signed a framework agreement with its strategic business partner Firetek in South Korea involving all Norman's products, but where the main focus is on Norman Access Control. This agreement is worth NOK 30 million over a three-year period and includes, among other things 100,000 Norman Access Control licences in the first year.

Norman entered into a strategic alliance with South Korean Firetek in May this year. Norman will now extend this alliance after signing the framework agreement with Firetek, which gives this company exclusive rights to sell all Norman's products in South Korea, China, Japan and Taiwan in return for a minimum sales volume of NOK 30 million over a three-year period.

First agreement secured

Firetek has already succeeded in signing an agreement with a global company, the head office of which is in South Korea, regarding purchase of a large number of Norman Access Control licences. This security software is used to secure against unauthorised access to PCs and networks.

President Goo Kwon in Firetek says that: "Data security is a key issue in Korea, as the nation's use and dependence on IT technology is growing dramatically. And the strategic alliance between Firetek and Norman ASA is becoming a very interesting issue in this country, as up to now the Korean market has only been able to choose between American and Israeli security applications." According to Firetek, USD 90 million in security software was sold in South Korea last year. This was an increase of 300 per cent from the previous year. The forecast for South Korea shows a 100 per cent growth in security software in each of the next three years.

Faith in Asia

President Goo Kwon goes on to say that: "We are proud to have signed this agreement with Norman, whose security systems are used by many major companies worldwide. Firetek is very optimistic with respect to the development of this market in China, Japan and Taiwan. One of the reasons for this is that the Asian market is trying to avoid using American software and that no one in Asia has developed competitive products."

"Breakthrough"

Bjørn Fosli, Managing Director of Norman says: "This contract means that Norman will have a steady and sound turnover in the fast growing Asian market in the next three years. It is a breakthrough for sale of Norman's products in this market. We are especially pleased that Norman Access Control has received so much attention. This strategic partnership with Firetek will give us a foothold in this market and we shall use resources to turn this into a very profitable partnership for Norman."

Firetek plans to establish an office in Japan

Firetek is one of the leading data security and network communication companies in South Korea. The company's head office is in Pusan and it has recently opened an office in Seoul. Firetek currently has 50 employees and focuses mainly on major South Korean companies. The company plans to open an office in Japan in October

For further informationi, please contact:

CEO Bjørn Fosli i Norman ASA, tlf: + 47-67-10-97-17, cellular phone: + 47-90-51-84-68

About Norman Access Control:

Norman Access Control is used to prevent unauthorized access to PC's and networks. The product has functions for:

1. Control of log ons, in order to secure that only authorized users can log on the PC.
2. Encryption in order to prevent access to sensitive information for unauthorized users.
3. Resource control in order to prevent changes in the PC's configuration and thus reduce the need for support. Norman Access Control is especially useful for people with portable computers who have stored sensitive information on their hard disks.