Infinova to acquire March Networks for $88.2m cash

In a deal that will speed March Networks' plan to expand into the Asian market, and create what Infinova says is one “10 largest global players in the video surveillance industry,” of IP video provider Infinova announced this morning that it will acquire IP video provider March Networks in a cash deal.

Infinova will pay $4.9 ($5.00 Canadian) per share. The total value of the sale will be about $88.2 million (or about $90m Canadian).

Infinova, which has its U.S. headquarters in Monmouth Junction, N.J. went public in Dec. 2010 on the Shenzhen exchange and raised $300 m. During an interview at that time, Infinova CEO Jeffrey Liu told me the funds will be used to expand R&D, marketing and sales and acquisitions:  “We're hiring on all fronts; we're in hiring mode,” Liu said during that interview. “But we're not going to use the $300 million just for that, we'll be looking for acquisitions that will help us get more market share quickly.”

What kind of acquisitions? “We've just started looking,” Liu said at the time. However, he said, another small manufacturer would be likely.

March Networks will continue to operate independently from its headquarters in Ottawa, and will retain its name and other brands.

I spoke to March Networks CEO Peter Strom and CMO Net Payne at ASIS in September. The two talked about how their new product introductions (an enterprise DVR, a 5 megapixel and a 3 megapixel camera, as well as new SearchLight applications such as skimming-detection features) are optimized for March's focus verticals: banking and retail.

Strom noted that March Networks has grown from a $6 million to a $100 million company over the course of eight years ...  and counts the top 50 banks in the world among its global customers with many banking and retail customers standardizing on March Networks globally. Payne said the company is becoming more “channel centric” and said the new products announced at the show are easier to use, install and are reliable, “so you don't have to roll a truck regularly.” March Networks raised $45 m when it went public in June of 2005.

According to Reuters, "March Networks also announced its quarterly financial results. For the second-quarter, the company reported a loss of C$2.3 million, or 13 Canadian cents per share, compared with earnings of C$1.2 million, or 7 Canadian cents per share, a year ago."

The deal is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. I'll have more on the story on next week's newswire after I speak with Stphen Cannellos of Infinova and Peter Strom at March Networks.