Integrated Media Holdings closed on a deal to purchase WV Fiber, thereby gaining its own in-house fiber-transport network for its IPTV services.
I-Media paid $1.6 million and issued 4 million shares of stock as part of the acquisition, which closed Aug. 8. WV began operating as an I-Media subsidiary the next day.
WV’s network reaches 23 cities in the United States, plus London; Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Vancouver, British Columbia, and it connects with more than 400 other networks worldwide via peering agreements.
While all of WV’s existing service contracts remain in place, it will now serve as the backbone for I-Media’s Endavo multiplatform content-delivery network. In the past, that connectivity has been outsourced. By owning its own network, I-Media can cut down on its operational expense.
"In addition to being one of the most connected networks in the world for transport and peering, WV Fiber is structured to carry Endavo's broadband-video services and IPTV traffic over its IP backbone to the Internet and directly to broadband communities, IPTV-service providers and broadband-TV platforms around the world to establish a new media broadcast network," I-Media chairman Paul Hamm said. "The network's market reach now connects us with just about anyone seeking content over broadband."
The acquisition also allows Endavo to partner or compete with other IPTV or Web-video providers including Akimbo Systems, blinkx, iFilm, Google Video, Apple Computer’s iTunes and YouTube.
Endavo’s video streaming service targets the PC, offering an opt-in subscription for on-demand video.
