London, 21 March 2003 – Hotwire, the European technology PR consultancy, today announced the appointment of Peter Ross as senior partner. Ross joins the agency from Miller/Shandwick Technologies in London, where he was associate director. In addition, Ross was the director of Weber Shandwick´s European Technology Practice.

At Hotwire, Ross will be responsible for growing and developing the agency´s electronics and enterprise computing practices, and will contribute to the company´s expansion strategy and operations. He will report to Hotwire managing partner and co-founder Kristin Syltevik.

“I look forward to helping Hotwire expand its services and client base in the electronics and enterprise computing sectors, and to continue its impressive track record of growth,” said Peter Ross. “Hotwire attracted me because of its independent-minded, entrepreneurial style and by the quality and talent of its management team and people. After working for a global agency for nine years, Hotwire´s culture and approach to its clients is an appropriate next phase for my career.”

“Peter´s strong reputation providing consultancy to companies spanning the electronics and enterprise computing markets made him the ideal candidate for this role,” said Kristin Syltevik, managing partner and co-founder of Hotwire. “In addition, his extensive experience in managing and coordinating pan-European PR campaigns is crucial as interest among our clients and prospects for this capability builds.”

Before joining Hotwire, Ross spent nine years at Miller/Shandwick Technologies, the high tech PR unit of Weber Shandwick, where he worked in the agency´s London and Silicon Valley offices. There, he managed programmes for clients including Agere Systems, Agilent Technologies, Intel, Microsoft, Reuters and Sprint. In addition, Ross served as director of Weber Shandwick´s European Technology Practice, working with the agency´s European technology practice leads to develop client services and business in the region.

Earlier, Ross worked in marketing communications for Californian based Syntex Corporation (now Roche Bioscience).

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.