General Motors Awards arvato services Multi-Year Agreement to Provide Business Processing and Lettershop Services For GM Vehicle Purchase Programs

VALENCIA, Calif., Dec. 10, 2003 -- arvato services, Inc. and General Motors Corporation announce a definitive multi-year agreement. Under the agreement, arvato services, Inc. will provide General Motors with business process outsourcing services including fulfillment, lettershop, print on demand services, inventory and procurement management and postal optimization and consolidation services from its state of the art logistics and customer care center in Duncan, South Carolina.

As part of this agreement, arvato services, Inc. will deploy its leading-edge, supply chain technology platform, SAP R/3 4.6c, intelligent mail insertion machines, as well as its print on demand technology solutions to provide a seamless and complete management system for the GM Vehicle Purchase Program.

For more than 35 years, arvato services automotive group has been a leading global outsourcing provider of integrated supply chain, business process outsourcing, customer relationship management and marketing support programs to automotive manufacturers, dealer groups, suppliers and end users.

"Our clients include many of the largest automotive manufacturers in the world and we are very excited about bringing our automotive solutions to North America," said Peter Schmitz, President and CEO of arvato services, Inc.

"Our advanced supply chain technology and integrated customer care centers in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia are well-equipped to manage high order and call volumes for domestic and international automotive related programs," said Schmitz. "Strategically located facilities in the east and west coasts of the United States provide outstanding logistics support to cost-effectively meet the demands of both automotive manufacturers and their end-consumers.

"General Motors was seeking for a strategic partner that provides localized services with global capabilities. Our business processing expertise, state of the art infrastructure and strategic locations provide GM with the perfect solution to manage their Vehicle Purchase Program."

About arvato services, Inc.

arvato services, Inc., is a division of arvato AG (head office in Gutersloh, Germany) one of the biggest internationally networked media service providers. In the financial year 2002, the arvato group, which belongs to Bertelsmann AG, earned sales revenue of nearly 3.7 billion euros. The subsidiaries of arvato throughout the world currently employ over 31,000 people. arvato is a leading global third-party outsourcing provider specializing in Supply Chain Solutions, Fulfillment and Distribution Services, Customer Relationship Management, Media Replication, Commercial Printing, Financial Services, E-Commerce and On Demand Technologies.

Clients can be found in the automotive, telecommunications, information technology, media, financial services, healthcare, and travel markets.

About General Motors Corporation

General Motors Corp. , the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, has manufacturing operations in 32 countries and its vehicles are sold in more than 190 countries. With global headquarters in Detroit, GM's automotive brands include Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, HUMMER, Oldsmobile, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, and Saturn, along with other global partners and the distribution of other brands.