TiVo emerged as the winner on day 2 of an auction for MobiTV’s assets after fending off several raised bids from Amino in conjunction with Roku and RPX, a patent portfolio company.
TiVo’s winning $18.5 million bid for MobiTV comprised of $17.4 million in cash along with the APA submitted as part of the company’s baseline bid prior to the auction. The company beat out a competing $18 million bid comprised of $11.7 million in cash from Amino along with $5 million in cash from a Roku-RPX joint venture.
Other bidders included TV2 Consulting, Streaming TV Acquisition and Vobile—which dropped out early on during the auction.
Up for auction was both MobiTV’s IP/patent business and its ongoing operations which include providing live and on-demand video delivery solutions for video service providers. MobiTV Connect, the company’s software-as-as-service platform, has been tapped by operators including T-Mobile, Cable One and MCTV to launch app-based streaming TV services. The company said that Connect has been picked by more than 90 operators since first launching 2016.
“The acquisition of the MobiTV assets immediately expands our capabilities and the addressable market for our IPTV solutions, helping to secure TiVo’s position as a leading provider of pay TV solutions,” said Jon Kirchner, chief executive officer of Xperi, TiVo's parent company. “As a result, the acquisition of MobiTV’s managed service assets will help accelerate our growth in the IPTV market through an increased subscriber footprint.”
RELATED: MobiTV files for bankruptcy as it plots restructuring
Xperi anticipates the acquisition will be finalized in early June 2021.
In March, MobiTV voluntarily filed for bankruptcy and said that it would use the proceedings to implement a restructuring process which it said will better position its operating platforms for long-term sustainability and growth. The company received a commitment for a $15.5 million debtor-in-possession financing facility that it said would support it during the restructuring process.
In a letter to MobiTV’s partners, CEO Charlie Nooney assured that the bankruptcy process does not mean that his company is going out of business. He said MobiTV expects to complete the restructuring process in the second quarter of 2021.
“We recognize that our customers are MobiTV’s most valuable asset. While the Company is reorganizing, our executive team and employees will be managing our business professionally and with the drive and enthusiasm for excellence that we have always demonstrated. We will continue to focus on providing excellent and uninterrupted service,” wrote Nooney.
This article was updated to include a statement from Xperi and an anticipated closing date.