Avail-TVN plugs Carlyle cash into SeaChange On Demand Group buy

Powered by a $100 million round of investment led by The Carlyle Group, Avail-TVN has announced plans to acquire On Demand Group from SeaChange International. The $27 million deal likely signals a further wave of expansion by Avail-TVN, which said it will use its new funds to grow internationally and develop new products and services.

SeaChange Rhagu Rau

SeaChange CEO Rhaghu Rau announces ODG's sale at The Cable Show Monday.

Avail-TVN, which resulted from the 2009 merger of Avail Media and TVN Entertainment, has rapidly become a digital media services powerhouse, with a particularly strong affinity for working with smaller service providers. Carlyle joins existing Avail-TVN investors including Columbia Capital, Valhalla Partners, Novak Biddle and Pioneer Ventures, but immediately becomes Avail-TVN's largest investor.

On Demand Group, based in the U.K., was put on the block by SeaChange International earlier this year as SeaChange looked to divest some of its businesses and cut costs. SeaChange also sold its broadcast server and storage unit this spring, and said that selling On Demand Group can help it focus on multi-screen software solutions for IPTV and cable TV operators.

On Demand Group has been working with several operators overseas, and can bring Avail-TVN presence in more than 25 countries and more than 70 million households. Its major regional markets include North America, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Asia.

Tony Kelly, CEO at On Demand Group, will now report to Avail-TVN CEO, Ramu Potarazu, and serve as a member of the executive management team.

For more:
- here's the press release on the Carlyle investment
- see this press release from SeaChange

Related articles:
SeaChange put On Demand Group on the block in March
Avail-TVN recently signed on to support Olympics programming
Avail-TVN has been on an expansion roll on recent years