Winnipeg-based telecommunications companyMTS Allstream Inc. announced on Monday the acquisition of video conferencing technology provider ICU Technologies Inc.in a continued effort to strengthen its unified communications offerings, the company said.
“We’re always looking for growth opportunities and this lines up well with the unified communications portfolio, and strongly enhances the video aspect of the business,” said the company’s general manager of unified communications, Tom Jolly.
While MTS Allstream feels it is where it needs to be in terms of voice and data infrastructure offerings, video conferencing service offerings aren’t as strong, said Jolly.
"Our integrated solutions will build on MTS Allstream's existing video capabilities,” said Bob Sayer, president of ICU Technologies.
From Network World Canada
Other vendors in the space were considered, but ICU Technologies, said Jolly, was “very complementary” to where the company was experiencing growth in the video conferencing business, namely the Greater Toronto Area.
The company’s foray into the space, he said, was driven in part by maturing technology in recent years, increased interest in robust video services among customers who were also upgrading their data infrastructure in order to support such services.
“We think it’s going to be a significant growth market over the next few years.”
ICU Technologies is the company’s second acquisition in the unified communications space in the past three months. Its acquisition last November of Montréal-based telephony systems and customer network technologies provider Multinet Communications Services Inc. bolstered the company’s position in the Québec market, said Jolly.
Jolly said MTS Allstream isn’t ruling out future non-organic growth in the area of unified communications.
From ComputerWorld Canada
The company certainly has the resources to make acquisitions that fit with its basic business strategy, said Albert Daoust, senior analyst with Mississauga-based Partner Research Corp. “More acquisitions seem very likely if for no other reasons that MTS is a financially strong organization,” he said.
In fact, MTS Allstream might want to make an additional acquisition to increase its penetration in the Ontario market, said Daoust. Additionally, he said Alberta and British Columbia are also markets where the company might want to bolster its critical mass through non-organic growth.
Following the company's second acquisition in the unified communications space, Jolly said: “I wouldn’t necessarily say we’re a market leader at this point, but I think we’re certainly poised to assume a leadership position in that market in the very near future.”
Financial details of the acquisition were not released.