On 1 April SanomaWSOY's Annual General Meeting decided based on the Board's proposal, that the name of the Group will be Sanoma Corporation as of 1 October 2008.
At the same time, the current Sanoma Corporation's name will change based on the decision made earlier. As of 1 October, the new name of the division is Sanoma News.
Also the names of the other divisions will be unified to begin with 'Sanoma'. From the beginning of October, SanomaWSOY Education & Books' new name will be Sanoma Learning & Literature and SWelcom's Sanoma Entertainment. The new name for the Rautakirja Division will be Sanoma Trade. However, Rautakirja will remain as the name of the parent company of the Sanoma Trade division. Sanoma Magazines' name remains unchanged. In addition to the new names, also the visual appearance of the Group and the divisions will be renewed and unified.
"Sanoma is a powerful name and it is easy to adopt and remember as the Group name in all language areas. In addition, the Finnish meaning of the word Sanoma (i.e. message) describes our business well. Changing the names of our Divisions is a clear and logical step when the Group's name changes. The new names highlight the diversity of our businesses and bind the Divisions as part of the Sanoma Group," says the Group's President and CEO Hannu Syrjänen.
"We want the Sanoma Group to be seen as even more coherent entity in the future," Syrjänen continues.
The Group's name change has no effect on product brands. Magazines', newspapers', television channels' as well as book and educational publishers' names will not change. "I believe that the changes in our ways of operating along with the Group's increasing co-operation will grow the added value of our products and services", Syrjänen comments.
Additional information: SanomaWSOY's Group Communications, tel +358 105 19 5062 or ir@sanomawsoy.fi