Netgem and Videofutur have announced their approval of Netgem’s tender offer for 100% of the shares and convertible bonds issued by Videofutur, in exchange for cash or Netgem shares.
Netgem’s objective is “to return to growth on the French home market by seizing the opportunity offered by Connected TV. This will allow Netgem to extract more value from both its domestic presence and its technological assets.”
Videofutur has over recent years completed a major business transformation by evolving from DVD rental and distribution to operating Connected TV services. Its cloud-based video-on-demand platform is available across a wide range of connected equipment (PC, Mac, smart TV, tablets, smartphones) and remains essentially distributed through its own direct network (through the Internet and its own stores).
As a result of the Offer, Netgem will acquire both an expertise and an existing offer to address the Connected TV market. This will put Netgem in a position to deploy rapidly, beyond Videofutur’s own limited network, a Connected TV offer for multi-services operators in France. The implementation of this strategy will be facilitated by the already close working relationship between Netgem and Videofutur.
Beyond the French market, the cloud services platform developed by Videofutur for the multiscreen distribution of video services will be progressively integrated within Netgem’s international offering.