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EXHIBIT 99
LHS GROUP INC. ANNOUNCES EFFECTIVENESS OF REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND PROXY
IN CONNECTION WITH ITS MERGER WITH SEMA GROUP PLC
ATLANTA and FRANKFURT--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 26, 2000--LHS Group Inc. (NASDAQ:
LHSG - news; Neuer Markt: LHI) today announced that the Registration Statement
and Proxy Statement filed in connection with its merger with Sema Group plc
("Sema", London: SEM.L) has been declared effective by the Securities and
Exchange Commission. The LHS Board of Directors fixed June 14, 2000 as the
record date for its special meeting to approve the merger of LHS and Sema. The
mailing of the proxy statement to LHS stockholders will begin today, and the
special meeting to approve the merger will be held on Thursday, July 27, 2000,
at 10:00 a.m. EDT, at The Westin Atlanta North at Perimeter, Seven Concourse
Parkway, Atlanta, Georgia. Each holder of LHS common stock on the record date is
entitled to cast one vote per share, in person or by a properly executed proxy,
at the special meeting.
Sema Group will hold its stockholders' Extraordinary General Meeting to approve
the merger on July 21, 2000. The merger is expected to be completed on July 28,
2000, and the trading of the new Sema shares on the London Stock Exchange and
the quotation of the new Sema ADSs on the Nasdaq National Market is expected to
commence on July 31, 2000.
About Sema
Sema Group, www.semagroup.com, is one of the world's leading IT and business
service companies. The Group's 1999 turnover was (pound)1.41 billion, showing a
20 percent increase when compared with the 1998 full results. Turnover has more
than doubled over the past five years. The Group has 20,200 staff currently
working across 140 sites worldwide.
In March 2000, Sema Group announced its planned merger with LHS. The telecoms
business of Sema Group will thereby be combined with LHS to create one of the
world's leading suppliers of mobile communication software.
About LHS Group
LHS Group is a leading global provider of operating support system software and
services to the communications industry. LHS products range from pre- and
post-paid billing and customer care to enhanced services and acquisition
software. They are installed at more than 300 customer sites worldwide. LHS has
18 global and regional partners (system integrators, international operators and
equipment manufacturers) representing one of the largest implementation and
support networks in the global customer care and billing market.
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In addition to its Atlanta headquarters, LHS has major offices in Frankfurt,
Germany; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Boston and Miami, USA; and
Zurich, Switzerland. LHS is listed with NASDAQ (LHSG) and on the Frankfurt Neuer
Markt Exchange (LHI). For more information, visit LHS' website at
www.lhsgroup.com.
Contact:
LHS Group, USA
Klaus Kleber, (770) 280-3461
VP, Global Corporate Communications
[email protected]
or
Fleishman-Hillard, Germany
Peter Tasch, +49 (0) 69-405 702 16
[email protected]
or
Investor Relations Contacts:
Rainer Westermann (770) 290-6360 (USA)
SVP, Investor Relations
[email protected]
or
Nicolas von Stackelberg +49 (0) 6103-482-456 (Europe)
Manager, Investor Relations, Europe
[email protected]
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