Announcements

FIFTH ANNIVERSARY DINNER OF AMERICAN BUSINESS FORUM ON EUROPE

You are cordially invited to the American Business Forum on Europe Fifth Anniversary Dinner Thursday, October 11, 2007 The Princeton Club 15 West 43rd Street, New York City Reception: 6:30 p.m. Dinner: 7:00 p.m. Discussion of The Big Economic and Political Issues For Europe and the U.S. including The Increasingly “Green” World Economy; The Future of Energy Markets; The Global Financial Picture; Competition among the Major Stock Exchanges; Challenges for the EU from Russia and Asia All speakers at this Anniversary Dinner have addressed the American Business Forum on Europe during the last five years. They will present throughout the evening brief (10-minute) updates on important new developments in their fields and give perspectives for the future. The names and topics of the various speakers will be announced at the end of September $135 per person; Table for eight: $ 1,050 A response sheet is enclosed Business Attire

FALL PREVIEW EVENTS BOSENDORFER NEW YORK

Dear Friends of Bösendorfer New York, Fall is around the corner and we are back with a new season and some extra exciting news! This year has been our most successful so far and, in addition to that, we are very proud to welcome a new Bösendorfer Venue in New York City: the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. Located right in the Lincoln Center area, the hall now boasts a Bösendorfer Imperial – yes, with 9 extra keys. The space will eventually seat up to 1000 people and features amazing acoustics that lends itself to exceptional recordings. It is news that we think is sure to thrill the performing artist equally as much as the audience. Now, as for performances and even our newest endeavor: audiophile recordings, we have not been idle either – visit our Upcoming Events section to see our full program for this fall, starting the season with a return appearance of the very extraordinary Valentina Lisitsa herself – this time on the “WunderKind”. This season also marks the beginning of our collaboration with the celebrated recording engineer, Ira Norman Segall, owner of Unipheye Music. Mr. Segall will be capturing our much acclaimed series for posterity. We alluded to the WunderKind in our last newsletter before the summer break, as some of you may remember. Now, this is an exceptional, older Bösendorfer that our technical director and president, Gerhard Feldmann - who just celebrated his 35th Anniversary of working with Bösendorfer pianos - came across at an Evaluation Call a little more than a year ago. The WunderKind, at that time, was in rather very poor condition due to attempted repairs with wrong materials and obviously the true knowledge lacking. Below you will find a few visual snippets on this re-emerging Bösendorfer – the aural to follow with the inauguration concert on October 4th!

ZUMTOBEL STAFF BECOMES ZUMTOBEL-A STRONG BRAND IN A NEW LIGHT

Zumtobel Staff is enetering a new era in the firm's history with a brand relaunch.The "ZUMTOBEL STAFF" word mark , that resulted from the merger of Zumtobel and Staff in 1994 is being replaced by a new logo.To find more information visit www.zumtobel.us or call 1-800 932 0633
www.zumtobel.us

AUSTRIAN BUSINESS AGENCY

AUSTRIA ANTICIPATES NEXT WAVE OF EU ENLARGEMENT New centre of gravity in the heart of the European unification process. “Conquer” the Balkans – from Austria. Where the Balkans Begin Austria is well-known as a business interface for Central and Eastern Europe. Approximately 300 international companies have set up their regional CEE headquarters in the Vienna region. Austria is now playing the same vital role in the Balkans today as it did ten or fifteen years ago in the Czech Republic or Hungary. This applies to Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro and Albania, but also increasingly to Romania and Bulgaria. All these countries are in a similar position. They are “emerging markets” par excellence, with high growth opportunities, relatively little competition, but burdened by a series of risks. They represent markets whose potential should not remain unexploited. However, if one sails into these tricky waters, it should preferably be done from a secure domestic harbour. Austrian companies have already put up many surface marker buoys as an orientation guide for businessmen. The small Alpine Republic is usually the largest investor in these nations, significantly ahead of countries such as Germany or the USA. That means one can rely on Austrian service providers with extensive market experience, such as banks, transport firms, lawyers, tax advisors or advertising agencies. They have all already established a foothold in these markets, and know how to elegantly sail around potential obstacles. Vienna Airport serves as a hub for this region, and the recently implemented Austrian group taxation scheme enables firms to appropriately take advantage of start-up losses in the region for tax purposes. It boils down to the fact that “In the Heart of the New Europe“ is more than just a suitable slogan which Austria selected for itself. Earlier, people in the country made fun of their own capital city by derisively stating, “The Balkans begin on Rennweg in Vienna”. (Rennweg is a long avenue near the city centre). In the meantime, this phrase has taken on a renewed and at least comparable importance for many companies. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Austria’s overall economic performance is perceptibly better than the average of the Eurozone countries. For the year 2006, economic experts expect a growth rate of at least 2.5 per cent. The latest industrial data, which indicate the highest production volumes and orders on hand over the last five year period, fires the imagination of optimists. It is increasingly likely that the country will achieve an economic growth rate of 2.8 per cent for the current year. One key reason for this positive development is the market penetration and investment drive launched by Austrian companies in the Central and Eastern European region at an early stage. These business efforts are paying off. They not only target the new EU Member States, but also the Balkan countries, namely Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Serbia. more... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Interview with Beatrix Peter-Knauf, Managing Director of Knauf Austria Mrs. Knauf, your company has had a subsidiary in Austria since the year 1970. In the course of time, it was assigned overall responsibility for coordinating business operations in the markets of Eastern and South Eastern Europe. What makes Austria a good base for doing business in this region? The logical links established between Vienna Airport and Bratislava Airport, which have been offering flights to all Eastern European destinations for many years, have transformed Austria into a springboard for the Eastern and South Eastern European region. Our experience has demonstrated to us that it is precisely the top Austrian managers who can easily and smoothly build up good business ties to Eastern European partners and customers. Moreover, Austria’s policies towards Eastern Europe have paved the way to ensure a positive atmosphere in which to interact and do business. Could you please describe how your family-owned company succeeded in achieving market leadership in the countries of South Eastern Europe? As a family owned and operated company, we succeeded in assuming market leadership in Eastern and South Eastern Europe because almost all our customers are also family owned and operated businesses, managed by first or second generation family members. At an early stage, we already demonstrated our confidence in these markets. Initial talks were held at the end of the 1980s, and by the middle of the 1990s, we were involved in the first privatisations of state owned companies. From the very beginning, we realised that it would be wrong to consider the Eastern European countries as export markets. In the long term, success would be based on treating them as domestic markets. In line with this strategy, there is hardly a single Eastern European country which does not have a local Knauf production facility, which more or less covers domestic demand. We have always had complete confidence in the capabilities of our newly-acquired employees in Eastern Europe. At present, almost all Knauf subsidiaries are being run by local managing directors, sales and production managers. As a result, our Eastern European executives have always had the opportunity to get ahead in their own countries, but also to be promoted within the Knauf Group, and thus to assume total responsibility for our business operations in their respective countries. This is certainly an important reason why we have an extremely low fluctuation rate Knauf Austria does not only serve as regional headquarters. You also have a production facility in the province of Styria. Will you maintain this factory? Naturally, our corporate headquarters are located in Germany, but we were always aware of the important role played by the Austrian company as a kind of foster mother to our CEE subsidiaries. Nevertheless, our facility in Weißenbach near Liezen in Styria had to be worried about having a future at all as a production location. Only after four years of negotiations did we succeed in ensuring an adequate supply of raw materials. In April of this year, we finally reached a positive agreement. We are happy to say that we will already begin with the mining of the newly-opened gypsum deposits this year. As a company in the construction industry, whose products have a relatively low value per tonne, our investment plans naturally depend on the raw materials, and thus on reducing freight costs and not on cutting wages. More about Knauf -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Henkel Transfers Part of Production from Hungary to Vienna Henkel has taken a rather unusual approach in expanding its production capabilities in Austria. Henkel has decided to shut down its detergent plant in Hungary and transfer part of the production to Vienna, which has long served as the manufacturing location for Persil, Silan and other products exported to CEE markets. Vienna’s competitive advantages include its geographical location as well as the availability of well-trained employees. Henkel will invest a total of 6.3 million euros in its Vienna facility in the year 2006. Furthermore, Henkel’s regional headquarters for the Central and Eastern European region, located in Vienna, has also assumed management responsibility for coordinating business operations in Turkey. Austria’s economic and political strengths comprised the main reason underlying the company’s decision. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Borealis Transfers Research Centre to Linz Borealis, Europe’s second largest plastics company, is not only transferring its corporate headquarters from Copenhagen to Vienna, but has also initiated an extensive expansion drive of its research centre in Linz. The city will emerge as the global centre of the firm’s polypropylene research, the most widely sold plastic in the world. The number of researchers at the facility will increase from 120 to 200. Borealis is investing 25-30 million euros to expand its research laboratories in Linz. During the course of the next five years, Austria plans to invest a total of 18.7 million euros in plastics research at the University of Linz, which in turn will strengthen the plastics cluster. As a result of the transfer of its headquarters to Vienna, Borealis will be the fourth largest industrial group in Austria. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Several Pharmaceutical Companies Operate Large Research Centres in Vienna “Vienna is the traditional business interface in Central Europe“, says Christa Janko, the managing director of the “Vienna School of Clinical Research“, explaining one of the main reasons why one of the world’s most prominent centres of clinical research was established precisely in Vienna. Five years ago, this research hub was launched by the U.S. pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, together with the City of Vienna. In the meantime, it has provided training in clinical research – a field in which Vienna’s General Hospital has gained worldwide recognition - to close to 3,000 doctors and researchers from 72 countries. The pharmaceutical industry has successively discovered the advantages of Vienna as a favourable research location, primarily due to the good university education which is provided. The initial step was taken in the year 1988, when the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim set up the Research Institute for Molecular Pathology in Vienna. In the meantime, a number of outstanding domestic start-ups such as the vaccine specialist Intercell have arisen in close proximity to this research giant, with its 350 employees. Viennese researchers are even responsible for some blockbuster drugs developed by the world’s largest pharmaceutical firms. For example, Lamisil, a medicine designed to combat skin fungus, was developed in the Viennese research centre of the Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Austria Boasts Second Lowest Effective Tax Burden Within EU-15 According to a recent study carried out by the Centre for European Economic Research, the effective tax burden in Austria amounts to 23.1 per cent, an outstanding ranking giving Austria the second lowest rate in the EU-15 behind Ireland. The tax burden for companies is particularly high in Germany and Spain. The analysis measures the so-called “effective tax burden”, which not only takes account of prevailing tax rates but also the tax assessment basis. In this regard, the decisive factor is not only what percentage of the taxable profit is actually paid to the tax authorities, but to what extent tax deductions reduce the actual tax burden.

SEITER-MILLER ADVERTISING

"We have a small budget, can we get a commercial with big bite?" New York, NY — June, 2006 The question came from Seiter & Miller's newest client Wiley, one of the world's leading book publishers, including the Dummies series and Betty Crocker cookbooks. The company's newest and hottest seller The Little Book that Beats the Market had a chance to appear on cable TV, but only if they could produce something great on a limited budget. We've always believed that creative and effective advertising can be tailored to fit our clients' resources. This new TV spot titled "Shark Bait" continues a long tradition of Seiter & Miller commercials that are creatively outstanding thanks to their simplicity and a strong concept...and within the client's $20,000 budget. Credits go to Stefan Danielski and Lindsey Jones, Art Directors; Livingston Miller, Writer; and Sam Stephens at U-Direct Productions. About Seiter & Miller Advertising: Seiter & Miller Advertising is based in New York City. The agency’s clients include Arnold Bakeries, Crain's New York Business, Kyocera Mita America, New York University School of Continuing and Professional Education and Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group. "We have a small budget, can we get a commercial with big bite?" New York, NY — June, 2006 The question came from Seiter & Miller's newest client Wiley, one of the world's leading book publishers, including the Dummies series and Betty Crocker cookbooks. The company's newest and hottest seller The Little Book that Beats the Market had a chance to appear on cable TV, but only if they could produce something great on a limited budget. We've always believed that creative and effective advertising can be tailored to fit our clients' resources. This new TV spot titled "Shark Bait" continues a long tradition of Seiter & Miller commercials that are creatively outstanding thanks to their simplicity and a strong concept...and within the client's $20,000 budget. Credits go to Stefan Danielski and Lindsey Jones, Art Directors; Livingston Miller, Writer; and Sam Stephens at U-Direct Productions. About Seiter & Miller Advertising: Seiter & Miller Advertising is based in New York City. The agency’s clients include Arnold Bakeries, Crain's New York Business, Kyocera Mita America, New York University School of Continuing and Professional Education and Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group.

JEFFREY M. HERMANN - Be aware of Estate Tax Pitfall for Austrian -American couples

In issue 6/2005 of German World Magazine Jeffrey Hermann writes about the unfavorable tax treatmnent, if at least one partner in a marriage is not a U.S. citizen.The U.S. taxes permamnent residents in the same way it taxes its own citizens.For the estate tax, this means that permanent residents are subject to tax on their world wide assets.For more information contact jmh & jmhlegal.com and www.jmhlegal.com or 212 - 922 9093

Aussendung der AuslandsösterreicherInnen-Abteilung des Bundesministeriums für auswärtige Angelegenheiten:

Wien, 7. November 2005 US-Visafreiheit für ÖsterreicherInnen: aktuelle Bestimmungen Aufgrund jüngst eingetretener Änderungen zur Visapflicht bzw. Visafreiheit österreichischer StaatsbürgerInnen im Verhältnis zu den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika möchte das BMaA die aktuellen Bestimmungen darstellen. VISAPFLICHT besteht für: InhaberInnen von grünen (alten) Reisepässen; im Reisepass miteingetragene Kinder (gilt sowohl für die Miteintragung im roten als auch im grünen Reisepass); und andere als touristische oder Privatgeschäftsreisen (z.B. journalistische Tätigkeit, Studium, Ausbildung, Forschung, Austauschprogramme, Vorträge, Arbeitsaufnahme, Au-pair, Heirat etc.). Visapflichtige USA-Reisende müssen vor Antritt der Reise bei einer US-Vertretungsbehörde ein Visum beantragen (in Österreich: Konsularabteilung der Botschaft der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, Gartenbaupromenade 2/4, 1010 Wien, Tel.: +43.1- 313.39; Fax: +43.1-512.58. 35; e-Mail: consularvienna@state.gov; Internet: www.usembassy.at). VISAFREIHEIT (im Rahmen des sog. Visa Waiver Program) besteht für: InhaberInnen von roten, maschinlesbaren Reisepässen, die vor dem 26. Oktober 2005 ausgestellt wurden und jedenfalls zumindest für die Dauer des geplanten Aufenthaltes gültig sind. Aufgrund einer Entscheidung des Department of Homeland Security vom 26. Oktober 2005 können nunmehr auch InhaberInnen von Reisepässen, die nach dem 26.10.2005 ausgestellt wurden, und Reisepässen, die nach dem 26. 10. 2005 verlängert wurden, visumfrei in die USA einreisen. Sie benötigen dafür allerdings eine in den Pass eingeklebte Vignette mit einem eingedruckten digitalen Bild. Informationen betreffend die Neuausstellung eines Reisepasses oder die Verlängerung Ihres Passes und die Vignette erhalten Sie bei Ihrer Passbehörde im In- oder Ausland. Diese Regelung gilt als Übergangslösung bis zur Einführung der neuen österreichischen Reisepässe und ist mit 12 Monaten befristet. Personen, die mit einem nicht maschinenlesbaren Reisepass ohne Visum im Rahmen des Visa Waiver Programs einreisen möchten, werden ohne Ausnahmen und sofort auf Kosten des jeweiligen Carriers repatriiert. Fluggesellschaften werden daher Passagieren ohne maschinenlesbaren Reisepass und ohne gültiges US-Visum die Beförderung in die USA ausnahmslos verweigern. Weitere Informationen finden Sie im Internet unter auf der Reisehinweise-Website des BMaA - www.reisehinweise.at unter 'Länderspezifische Reiseinformationen' / 'Vereinigte Staaten' bzw. direkt unter www.bmaa.gv.at/view.php3?f_id=2357&LNG=de&version=&dv_staat=193 - sowie auch unter Department of Homeland Security bzw. Department of Homeland Security - Travel & Security . Mit meinen herzlichen Grüßen aus Wien Ihr T. M. Buchsbaum m.p. Leiter der AuslandsösterreicherInnen-Abteilung

AUSTRIAN BUSINESS AGENCY:HIGH QUALITY OF LIFE IN VIENNA

Study: High Quality of Life in Vienna Vienna ranks third in the world in quality of life, according to a study of 215 leading cities by a Frankfurt-based management consultant, behind Switzerland’s Geneva and Zurich and tied with Vancouver. According to Mercer Human Resource Consulting, the German cities Frankfurt am Main, Munich and Duesseldorf tied for fifth place. The annual study compares leading cities on the basis of political and social factors, along with educational offerings, traffic infrastructure and the safety of its citizens.

AUSTRIAN BUSINESS AGENCEY : Austria - The ideal location for targeting CEE

The New Europe More than a year has already passed since the expansion of the European Union, and, looking back from Austria’s perspective, the results have been surprisingly unspectacular – at least in the negative sense. None of the fears associated with the entry of the 10 new states has come to pass. And Austria has played the role we have assumed since the fall of the Iron Curtain: among the “old“ EU nations, we are proving the best business partners with the new member states. Austria has the closest trade ties and achieves a remarkable surplus in the balance of payments with these nations, despite the fact that, on a per capita basis, we are by far the biggest investor in these neighboring countries. This state of affairs results not only from our unique understanding of the mentality and business needs of the region but also from the best flight connections, the necessary language capabilities and an optimal network of providers of associated services. So it’s no coincidence that the 300 international companies with Eastern European headquarters in Austria have not only kept them in place despite the EU expansion, but many have also increased the number of countries under their supervision. And we’ll be especially pleased when companies like Kraft Foods and FedEx continue to establish their new headquarters in Vienna, as opposed to Prague or Budapest. These firms are aware of something many other companies have demonstrated: Austria is no longer in a fringe location – but right at the heart of the new Europe. The EU expansion launched only a year ago, but it has already played a role in Austria’s above average growth of 2.2 percent. Austria’s strategic location will allow it to further expand as it moves from the fringe of the EU 15 to the center of gravity in the EU 25. And it will open whole new vistas for opportunity as well for internationally active companies seeking the optimal site for their CEE headquarters. + Austria’s Direct Investment Offensive in the CEE States + A Strong Track Record in Exports and Equity Investments + High-Performance Austrian Service Providers Offering Comprehensive Networks in CEE Markets + High Levels of Trust in Investors from Austria + A Focus on the Balkan Nations in Preparation for the Next Round of Expansion + The Highest Export Growth Rate in the EU + Austria Is Growing Apace with the CEE Nations

KOCH ENETERTAINMENT ANNOUNCES ITS SALE TO ROW ENTERTAINMENT

On May 10, 2005 KOCH ENTERTAINMENT announced, that it has entered into a definitive agreeement to be purchased by the ROW Entertainment Income Fund.KOCH Entertainment is one of America's largest independent record, music publishing and distribution companies as well as a fast-growing independent video label and distributor.The announcement was made by Michael Koch, founder and CEO of KOCH Entertainment. ROW is buying the business for a total purchase price of approx. US$ 80 million, including US$ 20 million of ROW Fund units, US$ 55 million of cash and US$ 5million of assumed liabilities.The acquisition, which has been approved by the Trustees of ROW, is immediately accretive to ROW's Fund Unit holders and is scheduled to close by June 1, 2005.The combined businesses would have had a pro forma revenues of US$ 563 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2004.
For further information contact

SENATOR DASCHLE JOINS ALSTON+BIRD LLP

Senator Tom Daschle joins Alston+Bird as Special Policy Advisor in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.Senator Daschle will advise the firm's clients on issues related to all aspects of public policy with a particular emphasis on issues related to financial services, health care, energy, telecommunications and taxes.In addition , he will advise on trade and other international matters. With more than 25 years of service in the house of Representatives and the Senate and 10 years as Senate Democratic Leader, Senator Daschle has played an instrumental role in the development of U.S. legislative and regulatory policy. Elected to the U.S.House of Represenatives in 1978, he served there until 1986, when he was elected to the U.S.Senate from South Dakota.In his first year, he was appointed to the Senate Finance Committee, an unusual honor for a freshman.He became Minority Leader of the Senate in 1994 and Majority Leader in 2001.He is the second longest serving Democratic Leader in history.

INTERCONNECT USA represents The Milford Plaza Hotel

Ernest Langsner, Vice President and Sandra Camponogara, Managing Director of Interconnect USA LLC announced the representation of the Milford Plaza Hotel abroad.
To learn more about the International Corporate Program click here

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