TransGaming expands 'smart TV' platform with $7M acquisition

Game development and software company TransGaming announced today that it has acquired the Interactive TV & Connected TV division of social game company Oberon Media for a total of up to $7 million. With this new acquisition, TransGaming will further expand its existing GameTree TV platform in Europe, which offers a host of games consumers can play via their smart TVs or set-top boxes. "Smart TV" is an emerging buzz-term for a new crop of TVs hitting the market that are internet-enabled, giving users access to apps, videos, games and other content. TransGaming will also take over Oberon's existing distribution agreements with TV providers such as DISH Network, DirecTV, Reliance Digital TV and AirTel Digital TV, giving the company additional revenue streams and access to even more television devices. The GameTree TV platform will also adopt Oberon's existing game catalog, adding more than 100 titles to the service. Oberon's games cover a number of existing licenses, including Tetris, Deal or No Deal, Scrabble, Monopoly, and more. TransGaming said it will now be able to tap a "recurring multi-million dollar annual revenue stream" thanks to distribution agreements with top smart TV manufacturers. The $7 million purchase price of the Oberon division is made up of $3 million on closing, $2 million in revenue milestone-based earnouts and the issuance of 4 million TransGaming shares. "With the strategic acquisition of Oberon Media’s iTV and Connected TV division TransGaming cements its position as the clear leader in the delivery of video games to the connected living room," said Vikas Gupta, CEO and president of TransGaming. "We now have the ability to reach the hundreds of millions of set-top boxes currently deployed in living rooms globally, while also defining a clear migration path for service providers to bring high quality gaming to their subscribers as they deploy next generation devices," he added. Now that it has sold off its Interactive TV & Connected TV division, Oberon Media itself will continue to exist as a separate entity, focused primarily on the growth of its Blaze distribution platform, first launched in July 2010.