Ericsson has added another prong to its TV strategy with the acquisition of metadata business FYI Television.
Based in Grand Prairie, Texas, the company currently has 150 employees. Ericsson said it would combine FYI Television’s US-market expertise and reach with Ericsson’s leading position in content discovery in Europe to create a powerful global force in content discovery.
FYI Television accumulates and distributes TV entertainment content and linear scheduling data from over 9,000 TV networks, aggregating the information into customised formats for various digital, media, content, analytics and print clients for use on their connected devices such as tablets, phones, desktops, internet portals and gaming consoles.
Magnus Mandersson, Executive Vice President and Head of Business Unit Global Services at Ericsson, said: “As the TV industry evolves and viewing behavior changes, we believe that high-quality, rich metadata will be a key component for a personalised TV experience. Combined with our capabilities in TV platforms and content discovery, we will be able to help our customers to improve the video experience and identify new revenue opportunities.”
FYI Television will become a part of Broadcast & Media Services.
The acquisition is expected to close this quarter, subject to regulatory checks.