Private equity firm Black Dragon Capital is to purchase broadcast media solutions company Grass Valley.
It follows last October’s decision by Belden to dispose of the company following a strategic portfolio review that also put forward a cost reduction programme that’s expected to result in $40 million a year savings.
The deal, which will be finalised later this quarter, will see the transfer of all Grass Valley assets to Black Dragon, which plans to continue to lead the migration to a software-based future.
Black Dragon’s founder and CEO, Louis Hernandez, Jr. commented, “We see tremendous opportunity for transformation in the media technology market and believe that Grass Valley is in an ideal situation to lead the market through these changes. Under Belden’s leadership, the Grass Valley solutions portfolio has expanded and the business has developed a discipline that puts them in the upper quartile of the market in profitability.”
Mr Hernandez is a former CEO of Grass Valley’s rival Avid. His private equity company is know to take a hands on approach.
There are no immediate changes planned to Grass Valley’s operational management structure and Tim Shoulders will continue in his role as president.
“Grass Valley has led the market in the transition from SDI to IP and has been diligently pivoting our product lines to cloud-based and SaaS solutions,” said Tim Shoulders, Grass Valley’s president. “Black Dragon brings the expertise and vision that will allow us to accelerate this transition to the benefit of our customers who are looking for more robust and flexible models for content production and delivery.”
The company says Grass Valley customers can expect a seamless transition from the current product range.
