A virtual solutions company, Partners in Europe, based in Shannon, has won a contract to sell Kenwood Technologies CD-Rom drives into EU member-states.

Mr Kieran Sheahan, Partners chief executive, an Irish company employing 25 people, expects the contract to be worth $3 to $5 million (€3 to €5 million) in the first year. "Kenwood is a very well recognised brand name. It is a huge vote of confidence in us," he said. Partners was founded in 1993 to provide US manufacturers of computer products which targeted Europe with sales, marketing and service expertise.

Mr Sheahan said the company expected to employ about 40 people within a year by focusing on new wave technologies. "There is a shelf life. When the client becomes very successful, he will come in and take the business directly. We are turning over clients on a regular basis," he said. But there was scope for servicing the needs of "second tier" e-commerce companies without the resources to establish their own European base and for whom selling directly from the US was not an option, he said.

The Kenwood TrueX CD-Rom drives have graphics applications, such as for 3D games, data visualisation and digital audio extraction.