ACQUISITION

The TV software company is now part of the Tivo world.

Tivo owner Xperi made 109 million dollars, about 1.1 billion kroner for Norwegian software company Vewd Software.

– We are excited to join the Xperi family and look forward to combining the experience, skills and size of the two companies so that we can deliver new innovative solutions to our customers. Together, we can deliver more engaging experiences to millions of viewers worldwide who enjoy TV series, sports and movies – all through our platform, said Aneesh Rajaram, CEO of Vewd.

Available on more than 30 million TV

Vewd has quietly established itself as one of the world’s largest software suppliers for hybrid and OTT (“over-the-top”) TV solutions – that is, solutions for distributing live TV to viewers via the internet.

In addition to OTT software for manufacturers of Smart TVs and set-top boxes, Vewd also makes software for, among other things, in-car entertainment systems.

This software is shipped to more than 30 million smart TVs and other devices every year. In total, Vewd Smart TV Solutions are installed in more than 450 million units from companies such as Amazon, Commscope, Hisense, Nintendo, Sagemcom, Skyworth, Sony, Swisscom, TCL, TPV Phillips and Vestel.

Very profitable

This has been a very lucrative affair for the company that began in 2015. The accounting figures on Proff.no show pre-tax returns of over NOK 100 million annually, with the exception of 2020 when it ended up around NOK 80 million. Total profit for 2016-2020 is more than DKK 700 million.

– I think we are Norway’s most secret technological success, said Aneesh Rajaram, in one interview with Digi.no in 2020.

For Xperi, this acquisition means the company will establish Tivo as a leading independent platform for streaming media content. With the Vewd solution, you can accelerate and scale the rollout of TiVo OS for connected TVs, and enable Xperi to expand its offerings in video over the Internet. In addition, Xperi will also become the world’s largest independent supplier of Smart TV middleware.

– Vewd’s global reach and expertise in creating solutions that support content owners, TV producers and SoC partners while deploying middleware and OS solutions across multiple devices is invaluable to us. This gives us more revenue opportunities as we expand our global position within the power unit, said Geir Skaaden, Chief Products and Services Officer at Xperi.

This acquisition means Xperi will take over 275 employees from Vewd. Vewd management will continue to lead the business, and be integrated into Xperi’s management structure.