As long as I’ve been banging on a keyboard about this whole Portland startup scene thing, there’s been one company that has been referenced in any Portland startup conversation: Elemental. And now, it’s a startup no longer. Elemental Technologies is being acquired by Amazon Web Services.
Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), an Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) company, announced that Amazon has reached an agreement to acquire Elemental Technologies, Inc., pioneers in software-defined video solutions for multiscreen content delivery. The acquisition brings together Elemental’s leading video solutions with the AWS Cloud platform to provide media and entertainment companies with a range of integrated solutions to efficiently and economically scale video infrastructures as the media industry increasingly moves to internet based delivery.
Elemental software makes it easy for media and entertainment companies to take live and on-demand video destined for traditional networks like cable, satellite, or over-the-air broadcast and re-format that content for distribution to PCs, smart phones, tablets, and TVs. Elemental has more than 700 media franchise customers and powers some of the world’s most popular over-the-top TV (OTT) applications, like the BBC’s iPlayer, CNNGo, ESPN ScoreCenter, HBO GO, MSNBC Shift, and Sky Go and Sky Now. Additionally, Elemental is supporting the world’s first 4K Ultra HD services including those that were delivered by the BBC during the 2014 World Cup.
Word around the campfire is that they get to stay in Portland. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. This is the second recent Portland acquisition for AWS. They announced the acquisition of Portland startup AppThwack earlier this year.
Geekwire is reporting that the purchase price is in the neighborhood of half of a billion dollars. TechCrunch is saying the same thing—and that it’s an all cash deal.
More information as it surfaces.
