Hotwire to boost profile of 40-year old colour communication and technology company in the UK and Germany
London, 11 August 2004 - Pantone, the company that defines the way we see colour, has retained Hotwire, the European technology public relations consultancy, as its agency in the UK and Germany.

Colour is one of the most powerful marketing differentiators today, and the way in which it is used can distinguish or devastate a brand. Since Pantone created the first colour matching system in 1963, its solutions have enabled colour to be presented consistently across different media, from textiles and plastics to paper and plasma screens. Nearly every company uses PANTONE® Colours to standardise the appearance of their corporate identities and products, from Coca Cola red and Barbie pink to Visa blue and gold and IBM ‘big blue.’.

Pantone appointed Hotwire to raise its visibility among customers, who include graphic artists, designers, retailers, packaging experts and consumers. This will be achieved through a programme comprised of thought leadership, media relationship building, product PR and consumer outreach in the UK and Germany.

“Although the Pantone brand has always been known by a certain community of designers and business professionals in Europe, any broader perception has been limited by a lack of consistent, targeted outreach,” said Ellen Pinto, director of public relations for Pantone. “The appointment of Hotwire changes all this and marks a significant change in our approach to PR in Europe.”

Pinto continued: “We selected Hotwire because of the strong market knowledge and industry contacts of the team, and because they offered us the right blend of B2B and B2C experience. This was put to the test recently at Drupa, the largest trade show in the world for graphics arts and printing professionals, where the success of Hotwire’s media relations led to its appointment as our full-time agency.”

“Our aim is to heighten awareness of Pantone not only among its traditional graphics design customers, but also among other important audiences such as architects, interior and fashion designers and consumers,” said Peter Ross, senior partner at Hotwire. “We have bridged the expertise of our Enterprise Computing and Consumer Technology practices to create a programme that will exploit the power of the Pantone brand.”

About Pantone
Pantone, Inc., developer of the globally accepted PANTONE Colour Systems, is the leading source of traditional and electronic products for the selection and accurate communication of colour. With over 40 years of experience, Pantone is recognized as the worldwide market leader in colour communication and colour technology for the graphic design, printing, publishing, textile and plastics industries. More information is available at www.pantone.com. PANTONE® and other Pantone, Inc. trademarks are the property of Pantone, Inc.

About Hotwire
Hotwire is a European technology public relations consultancy established by Europe’s leading PR specialists to provide the technology industry with progressive PR services.

Since its foundation, Hotwire has won a number of prestigious awards for its work across Europe. The accolades include the French Public Relations Top Com d’Or Trophée in the Corporate Business category and the 2003 International Public Relations Association award for Best Business-to-Business Campaign for Scottish telecoms company THUS. In 2002, Hotwire won Best IT PR Company at the Computing Industry Awards and New Consultancy of the Year at the PR Week Awards.

Hotwire is headquartered in London with offices in Paris and Frankfurt. The company has six client practice areas: consumer technology, enterprise & electronics, telecommunications, digital media, applications & services and banking & finance.

For more information about Hotwire, please visit www.hotwirepr.com.