Matrixx buys AT&T customer care unit

Matrixx Marketing, a unit of Cincinnati Bell, agreed to acquire AT&T Solutions Customer Care for $625 million in cash.

The deal, expected to close in early 1998, will nearly double Matrixx's revenues and make it the world's largest provider of outsourced customer care services.

AT&T will be among the company's biggest customers. Under the deal's terms, Matrixx will provide AT&T with employee support and other outsourced services for eight years. During that time, Matrixx will be guaranteed revenue for three years and will become a preferred vendor for any future spending by AT&T's business units.

AT&T Solutions Customer Care, formed in 1983 as AT&T American Transtech, will become part of Matrixx, a spokeswoman said.

No decision has been made on the operation's location or work force size. Customer Care is headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., and employs 2800 permanent and 1900 temporary workers. The company, with revenues of about $400 million, also has call centers in Texas, California, Arizona, Tennessee, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Tokyo and London.

Matrixx, which reported revenues of $425 million, has a similar footprint in the U.S., but a slightly larger presence in Europe with call centers in London and Paris.

For AT&T, the sale is the third major divestiture since the arrival of C. Michael Armstrong as CEO. AT&T also agreed to sell its 2.4% interest in DirecTV and its Universal Card business.