Panasonic has acquired Video Insight, a Dallas-based supplier of enterprise VMS to schools and higher education campuses in the U.S. in a move that gives the company the VMS solution it previously lacked. Terms have not been disclosed.
According to Panasonic, the acquisition is part of its strategy to expand business opportunities for both companies in the education market in North America. Under terms of the deal, Video Insight will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Panasonic.
Meanwhile, Video Insight Co-founder and CEO J. Robert Shaw told Security Sales and Integration his company elected to be acquired by Panasonic after receiving more than a dozen “unsolicited offers and unsolicited advances” from mostly private equity firms during the last couple years.
“Panasonic makes great products and they are vertically focused. They are focused around 12 different verticals. We like that orientation. We think that is the right way to sell,” Shaw said. “We are very focused on the product being the right solution for our customer, the right pricing, the right distribution model.”
Shaw told SSI that despite having no outside funding Video Insight has grown quickly, posting a 40 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) since 2009.
“We just felt like we couldn’t continue to grow at the rate we have been growing. It’s the law of trying to multiply large numbers. We felt it was really valuable to find the right partner,” he said.
Panasonic says it has set a clear target of reaching 10 trillion yen sales by 2018, and that security systems and video surveillance will play a key role in achieving its global growth initiatives.♦
