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NEWSLETTER

The latest news from Sound & Communications, for more than 50 years.

August 9, 2010

FRANCISCO PARTNERS TO ACQUIRE GRASS VALLEY BROADCAST & PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS
Francisco Partners, a San Francisco CA-based private equity firm focused on investments in technology-based companies, has made a binding offer to Technicolor for the acquisition of the Grass Valley Broadcast & Professional (Issy les Moulineaux, France) business activities. With nearly $5 billion of capital under management, Francisco Partners is one of the largest technology-focused private equity funds.
The offer is for 100% ownership of the current Grass Valley Broadcast & Professional business, which would operate as "Grass Valley" going forward. This includes the camera, content repurposing, editing, master control, modular, news production, production automation, routing, servers, storage and switching product lines, including their entire product portfolios, the R&D centers and factories around the world, the sales and systems activities and customer support organization worldwide, as well as the management and administrative support functions dedicated to the business. This business perimeter and associated product lines represent the core of what the market historically knows as Grass Valley products.
The Transmission and Headend businesses, in the process of being separated from the Grass Valley Broadcast & Professional business, are not included in the offer. Technicolor will continue the planned divestiture of these businesses separately. These businesses plan to operate individually going forward.
Subject to final agreement, regulatory approval, applicable notification requirements and, when it is requested, the prior consultation of staff representatives, it is expected that the transaction can be completed before the end of 2010.
In exclusive comments to Sound & Communications, Ray Baldock, CTO for Grass Valley, said, “We’re all excited about the prospects of new ownership by Francisco Partners. Until the deal closes, it’s very much business as usual for Grass Valley, our customers and our partners—but with renewed vigor and confidence now that the offer has been announced. So, in the short term, there is no change to our strategy in regard to the product roadmaps or markets that we serve. It is premature to comment on the longer term until after the deal is fully executed and closes.”

VITEC MULTIMEDIA ACQUIRES FOCUS ENHANCEMENTS SYSTEMS GROUP
VITEC Multimedia (Atlanta GA) has purchased the Focus Enhancements Systems Group (Campbell CA). With this purchase, VITEC has added video acquisition and management products to its lineup. According to the company, customers can now look to VITEC throughout the entire video production process, including acquisition, conversion, image processing, MPEG compression, recording, media asset management, streaming, decoding and delivery.
According to Philippe Wetzel, CEO of VITEC Multimedia, “In combination with our recent acquisition of Optibase, this acquisition furthers our objective to provide a complete line of advanced digital video solutions to our customers around the globe.”
“Focus has partnered with VITEC Multimedia in the past and, given our…history, we concluded that sale of Focus’ Systems Group to VITEC was the right decision,” commented Brett Moyer, President/CEO of Focus Enhancements.

CEDIA EXPO is the number one trade show in the electronic systems industry.
This year’s EXPO returns to the Georgia World Congress Center September 22-26 offering insider tips and strategies to expand your business. CEDIA has been listening to your feedback and has included some exciting additions to the EXPO line-up, including expanded education offerings, the new Future Technology Pavilion, and a Members Only Education Pass. Check out the exciting additions at www.cedia.org/expo. CEDIA’s Electronic Lifestyles® Awards Program has also been expanded to include a new Attendees’ Choice Award for manufacturers and the HGTV Pro Audience Choice Award.
Start connecting with what is happening at EXPO now with the new “Follow Me” application for your smart phone. This app can connect you with CEDIA EXPO at the push of a button. Plan your schedule, review courses, and set up meetings. Continue using this app as the week progresses to view the interactive show schedule, floor maps and event schedules, and download e-brochures from manufacturers. The Follow Me app is available at www.cedia.org/expo. Don’t forget to connect with CEDIA using the social networks you already use. Follow CEDIA on Twitter @CEDIAnameric, find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/CEDIA.region2, or join the CEDIA group on LinkedIn, and stay connected with what is going on at CEDIA EXPO.

PRO SOUND, INC., ACQUIRES ADVANCED MEDIA DESIGN SYSTEMS
Pro Sound, Inc. (Miami FL), has acquired Pensacola FL-based Advanced Media Design Systems. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. According to Rod Sintow, Pro Sound CEO, “The new office will position Pro Sound for an increased presence in the south.” Sintow noted the office will remain based in Pensacola, and will retain its current staff, with Brian Smith leading the company as Regional Director for the Gulf Coast. According to Smith, "It will be business as usual for all AMDS clients and they will continue to enjoy the same one-on-one responsiveness that they have come to expect, with the added resources [that] Pro Sound can provide."

EYECLICK INTERACTIVE INKS N.A. DISTRIBUTION DEAL WITH SALITEK
EyeClick (London, UK) and Salitek (Northbrook IL) have forged a partnership and set the goal of providing end-to-end multimedia solutions. Merging EyeClick’s interactive software with Salitek’s systems creates an added potential for catching a viewer’s attention. Orion MPDP screens are distributed exclusively in the US by Salitek.
“Salitek is [pleased] to partner with EyeClick to distribute these innovative, interactive solutions,” commented Salitek President Vince Schuster, MBA, CTS, ISF-C, DSDE, “bringing further synergy to our portfolio of videowall and video display offerings.” He continued, “We are furthermore very pleased by the positive response to the EyeClick interactive demonstration, which was presented on an Orion 3X3 MPDP wall in portrait mode, featured in our exhibit booth at InfoComm 2010.”

SHOOTING INCIDENT AT EMCORE
A shooting occurred on July 12 at Emcore’s southeast Albuquerque NM plant. A former employee of the company, Robert Reza, fatally shot two Emcore workers, and injured four others, before killing himself. According to police reports, the attack capped a bitter custody dispute between Reza and his ex-girlfriend, Adrienne Basciano, over their five-year-old twins. Basciano, shot several times in an employee break area where she was sitting with another woman, is recovering from her injuries.
Reza was hired in October 2006 and filed for medical leave in March 2009. He returned to Emcore in June 2009 and resigned about a month later due to medical reasons.
The company is establishing a memorial fund for victims at Bank of America branches for those in the community who have expressed a desire to donate to the Emcore Memorial Fund.
Emcore is the parent of Opticomm, a manufacturer of fiberoptic video, audio and data networking for the commercial, governmental and industrial sectors.

ESTA OFFERS TWO STANDARDS FOR PUBLIC REVIEW
ANSI E1.8-2005, Entertainment Technology—Loudspeaker Enclosures Intended for Overhead Suspension—Classification, Manufacture and Structural Testing, and BSR E1.24-201x, Entertainment Technology-Dimensional Requirements for Stage Pin Connectors, are available for public review through September 20. The review forms and instructions for both documents, and the draft BSR E1.24 standard, are available at www.esta.org. ANSI E1.8 is an existing American National Standard being considered for reaffirmation. It can be purchased from The ESTA Foundation (New York NY) at www.estafoundation.org/pubs.htm.
ANSI E1.8-2005 is a standard for the structural integrity of loudspeaker enclosures. It is designed to ensure that flown speaker enclosures don't break and rain parts. No substantive changes are planned for the existing standard in this reaffirmation, unless comments from the public suggest that changes are warranted, in which case the standard will be revised.
BSR E1.24-201x is a revised version of the existing ANSI E1.24-2006. The standard is being revised to clarify its use as a configuration standard giving the mating requirements for male and female pin connectors, contact setbacks from the front face and marking requirements. The electrical reliability and flammability requirements for pin connectors would be covered by other standards, such as UL 498, Attachment Plugs and Receptacles.
Reviewers also are requested to look for protected intellectual property in the documents. ESTA does not intend to adopt any standard that requires the use of protected intellectual property, unless that property is essential for technical reasons, and can be licensed and used by anyone without prejudice or preference for a “reasonable” fee.

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