Thomson Broadcast To Acquire GatesAir

GatesAir, a global provider of wireless, over-the-air content delivery solutions for radio and TV, today announced Saturday that Thomson Broadcast has signed a definitive agreement to acquire GatesAir from an affiliate of The Gores Group. The transaction is subject to certain regulatory filings and is expected to close in the second half of 2022. Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

GatesAir has a history of powering over-the-air networks worldwide for the past 100 years. GatesAir has recently seen strong growth, coming off a successful participation in the North America Spectrum Repack program. GatesAir worked with Bowen Inc. on a robust process which involved interest from several strategic and financial parties, with Thomson Broadcast prevailing due to its highly complementary fit.

The companies said the combination of “GatesAir with Thomson Broadcast will create a scaled, comprehensive platform with greater capabilities in innovation, design and product efficiency and an expanded portfolio of holistic, turnkey broadcast solutions.”

“GatesAir is already an undisputed leader in the broadcast industry, and our combination with Thomson Broadcast will create a combined company of larger scale even better suited to meet the ever-evolving needs of our customers all over the globe,” said Bruce D. Swail, CEO of GatesAir. “I am very proud of the GatesAir team for its stewardship of and innovation in this industry over the past century and look forward to entering the next 100 years as an even stronger business leveraging the strengths of two legendary broadcast brands. On behalf of everyone at GatesAir, I’d like to thank Gores for their strategic guidance which was invaluable in growing our business and driving innovation.”

“Over the course of our successful partnership with Bruce and the management team, GatesAir has driven tremendous growth and transformation through organic and inorganic initiatives, establishing itself as a premier, independent broadcast company with market leading technology and service,” said Edward Johnson, senior managing director at The Gores Group. “We have no doubt GatesAir will continue on its successful trajectory and strengthen its market leadership alongside Thomson Broadcast.”

For more than 100 years, Thomson Broadcast has forged extensive experience in the fields of digital terrestrial transmission (DTV) and AM radio, including DRM. Thomson Broadcast is an international French company well known in the broadcast sector. Over the past two years, Thomson Broadcast has received awards for providing exceptional DTT turnkey solutions to large-scale digital migration projects in Africa.

“In 2018, we have set the goal to establish ourselves in the US Market. With Thomson Broadcast and GatesAir now united, these two companies will make us stronger in America and globally as well,” says Ylias Akbaraly, Thomson Broadcast chairman.

“Thomson Broadcast and GatesAir together can bring innovative and revolutionary products to the broadcast industry in the centuries to come,” says Aby Alexander, president of Thomson Broadcast USA.

“We are delighted to have reached this point,” says Amine Oubid, CEO of Thomson Broadcast. “From the start we were excited to work with the GatesAir team and saw the obvious fit of the two companies. The transaction closing can’t come fast enough for us. We’re very proud to participate in the rallying of two century-old companies and excited to start working together.”