Imaging giant Canon Europe has signed an agreement to purchase open platform video management software provider Milestone Systems via its subsidiary Canon Europa N.V., the companies announced today.
Neither firm released the terms of the deal.
Founded in 1998, the Denmark-based Milestone Systems has raised $25 million from Index Ventures, and has posted a net income of $6.2 million on revenues of $74 million, TechCrunch.com reports.
With the goal of creating a formidable player in the video surveillance market, the transaction will allow Canon to enhance its software capabilities in this sector.
“Canon is making an important strategic investment today to realize our objective to expand in [the video surveillance] market, Canon Europe, Middle East and Africa President and CEO Rokus van Iperen says.
“Together with Milestone, we can accelerate our growth by delivering new advanced products and solutions for new sectors, through new channels, to offer greater customer value,” he adds.
The announcement comes after months of speculation of whether Milestone had plans to go public. During the Milestone Integration Platform Symposium 2014, Milestone CEO Lars Thinggaard neither confirmed nor denied the rumors, but stressed that the company would always focus on growth.
As part of the Canon Group, Milestone, which has more than 115,000 certified partners in more than 115 countries, will be able to accelerate its business and development of new products by using Canon’s business and consumer channels to expand its global market presence.
The firm will also operate as standalone company within the Canon Group.
“Milestone is extremely excited about the huge potential that being part of a global group will provide,” Thinggaard says. “Canon respects how we built our business with our partners and supports our strategy of providing open platform solutions and therefore the need to remain a standalone company within the Canon Group. We feel this step is right for taking both our business and support for suppliers and partners to a new level.”
Following the completion of the acquisition, Milestone’s management will remain in place.
