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TiVo Merges with Xperi
Entertainment technology and TV data provider TiVo is to merge with audio, imaging and computing technology products firm Xperi Corp., in an all-stock deal with an enterprise value of $3bn. The TiVo name will remain on its products but the combined company will be known as Xperi.
 The firms had a combined revenue of $1.1bn for the 12 months ended in September 2019. The deal gives a slight majority of shares (53.5%) to current TiVo shareholders, and 46.5% to Xperi's. TiVo had said in January this year that it was reviewing strategic options including a sale, going private, or selling its products business but keeping its intellectual property wing.
Xperi's top team will provide the leadership for the new company: CEO Jon Kirchner and CFO Robert Andersen retaining the titles. Current TiVo CEO David Shull said in a statement that the deal will expand efforts to bring its technology into more digital devices, an area the company has found challenging of late. He added: 'With Xperia's annual licensing of more than 100 million connected TV units, and complementary relationships with major content providers, consumer electronics manufacturers and automotive original equipment manufacturers, our combined company will transform the home, car and mobile entertainment experience for the consumer'.
The firms say the merger will create one of the largest licensing companies in the world, with more than 10,000 patents and applications between them and minimal licensee overlap. Kirchner says: 'This landmark combination brings together two highly complementary companies poised to set the industry standard for user experiences across the digital value chain. Together, we will be able to integrate TiVo's leading content aggregation, metadata, discovery, and recommendation capabilities with our home, automotive, and mobile technology solutions to help our customers create experiences that excite and delight consumers'.
TiVo is also embroiled in major patent disputes with Comcast, and its leaders have said they expect the comms giant eventually to pay a license for TiVo's innovations, 'just as its pay-TV peer companies do and Comcast did in the past', with financial damages possibly 'running into the tens of millions, or even the hundreds of millions'.
Web sites: www.tivo.com and www.xperi.com .
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