Leading Eastern and Central European publisher 1C Company officially announced today that it has signed an agreement in which it has acquired one of the largest Russian publishing and distribution companies, BUKA.

1C and BUKA are two of the most well known brands in the Russian games and multimedia market. Future cooperation opens new horizons for the strategic development of both companies.

A merger is currently not planned, but managers of both enterprises will try to make the best use of the synergy in their publishing, distribution and marketing activities. This approach will give both 1C and BUKA a chance to develop even faster, outstripping the market's rate of growth.

"BUKA is one of the oldest players on the Russian game market. I always admired the company, its corporate culture, staff, management and operational efficiency," said Boris Nuraliev, Director of 1C Company. "The mutual potential of 1C and BUKA opens new unique opportunities and will help us to achieve success on this challenging and rapidly growing market. It will be an honor for us to develop such a well-known and popular brand."

"We have received offers from several potential buyers, however 1C's advantages were obvious. 1C is our long-term partner. We have experienced firsthand what 1C's basic principles are – to be honest to partners, customers and employees," comments Igor Ustinov, Chairman of Board of Directors of BUKA. "We highly estimate our staff and the brand that we were developing through all these years. Therefore one of the main aims for shareholders was to leave the company in good hands."