MTN Communications, a provider of wireless communications technologies to the maritime industry, is being acquired by another company with expertise in communications in remote locations, Miami-based Emerging Market Communications (EMC).
The agreement, announced today, combines both companies headquartered in Florida sometime in the second quarter. But the deal also has two Seattle connections.
MTN is backed by Ignition Capital, the growth equity group tied to Ignition Partners in Bellevue, Wash. And MTN itself has an engineering office in downtown Seattle that was established in 2012 and now is overseen by MTN VP of Product Development Livio Arleo. When the office opened, it had under a dozen people with plans to expand, and a company spokesperson says it’s now up to about 20 Seattle employees.
The acquisition of MTN by EMC will “benefit the organizations’ combined 1,600 vessels and more than 8,000 land-based customer sites in the most hard to reach places on all continents and in every ocean,” according to a company statement. EMC is backed by ABRY Partners, a private equity firm.
“Our vision is to create the next generation mobility platform offering the most reliable, secure and cost-effective connectivity solutions for people and businesses on-the-move — and in far reaching places — on land and at sea – and the acquisition of MTN makes this vision a reality,” said Abel Avellan, founder and CEO of EMC.
Financial details were not disclosed, and the merger is subject to the usual regulatory approvals.
