TANDBERG Television acquires N2 Broadband

Company News: Page (1) of 1 - 02/04/05

TANDBERG Television acquires N2 Broadband Purchases Atlanta based Video on Demand software solution provider (February 04, 2005)

TANDBERG Television, a global leader in professional video compression and TV delivery systems, today announced that it has completed its acquisition of the business of Atlanta-based N2 Broadband, Inc., a provider of scalable, open-platform solutions for on-demand entertainment. The global purchase consideration is $118M, made up of a mixture of TANDBERG Television shares and cash.

With the completion of this purchase, the entire business of N2 Broadband will be integrated into TANDBERG Television and the company will operate under the name of TANDBERG Television in all markets. As of today, N2 Broadband?s President and CEO, Reggie Bradford takes on the role of President of TANDBERG Television, Inc. The new combined North American concern will be headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with a development facility in Denver, CO and sales offices on both the East and West Coasts of the US and in Canada. The total staff for the Americas operation is approximately 180 employees.

The combined resources of N2 Broadband and TANDBERG Television create a global force in the provision of enabling technologies for the delivery of on-demand digital multimedia content. As the competition between cable operators, satellite broadcasters and telephone operators increases, there is mounting demand for TV delivery systems that enable these players to exploit the potential of their different networks. An increasing need to differentiate services in order to attract and retain subscribers is creating a march towards all-digital networks and on-demand offerings. The merger will expand and diversify TANDBERG Television?s systems offering by bringing together best in class, open systems based hardware and software solutions. N2 Broadband?s standards-based, open solutions for on-demand entertainment are a natural extension to TANDBERG Television?s core technology offering and have already been integrated with TANDBERG Television?s video compression systems.

"The N2 Broadband acquisition significantly accelerates the growth opportunities for both companies. For TANDBERG Television, the addition of N2 Broadband immediately provides us with increased market presence in North America as well as giving us new products that dovetail with our existing solutions to provide the world's most advanced open VOD systems,? says Eric Cooney, President and CEO of TANDBERG Television. ?This acquisition is central to our strategic plan, particularly as the North American market represents the largest growth opportunity for TANDBERG Television over the short and medium term. We are already the supplier of choice for professional video compression systems in Europe and Asia and we look forward to the N2 Broadband acquisition helping us to extend that position, widen our product range and bring our systems into the North American cable and IPTV markets."

N2 Broadband is the leading provider of open-platform solutions that enable network operators and content providers to efficiently and confidently offer on-demand services. The Company is a highly respected player in the North American cable market with strong brand awareness, established relationships with the top cable operators, and an engineering staff intimately familiar with current and next generation cable system architectures. N2 Broadband has established an excellent reputation for world-class customer service through the implementation of advanced Operations Support Services (OSS) from its 24/7 Network Operations Center in Atlanta to ensure the highest level of network reliability, and a range of customized professional services for the rapid, scalable deployment of on demand services. With the industry?s strongest portfolio of standard definition and high definition compression solutions for MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and SMPTE VC-1, TANDBERG Television is the primary supplier of digital cable head ends in Europe, with a strong position in the global DTH satellite market and a market lead in the provision of IPTV delivery systems to telcos around the world.

"This is a win-win deal that is very well timed. The combined strength of TANDBERG Television and N2 Broadband means that we can compete effectively on every continent and provide the video compression, transmission and on-demand delivery solutions that enable entertainment and telecommunications companies to attract and retain customers, reduce churn and increase ARPU,? says Reggie Bradford, President of TANDBERG Television, Inc. ?For N2 Broadband this agreement means that our advanced VOD solutions can be deployed more effectively outside the USA and that we have access to the resources required to increase our technological lead. For TANDBERG Television, N2 Broadband?s knowledge and reputation in the USA cable market will be invaluable and our product set will combine with TANDBERG?s to provide cable and IPTV solutions of incredible scope and power."

About N2 Broadband
N2 Broadband is the leading provider of open-standard solutions that enable network operators and content providers to quickly and confidently offer on-demand services to television subscribers. N2 Broadband products and services are deployed in more than 100 cities throughout North America by entertainment and cable industry leaders including A&E Networks, Adelphia, Cablevision, Charter, Comcast, Cox, Discovery, Time Warner, Rogers, iN DEMAND, HBO, WWE and Starz-Encore Group.

N2 Broadband was recently named in CED Magazine's "Broadband 50 Companies to Watch" for the fourth consecutive year and recently included in Red Herring's list of the Top 100 Innovators for 2004.

For more information visit: http://www.n2broadband.com.

About TANDBERG Television
TANDBERG Television (Oslo:TAT.OL) creates products and systems for the delivery of high quality live video and on demand content across cable, DSL, fiber, IP, satellite and terrestrial networks. Recognized as a market leader, the Company provides systems integration and global support capabilities through its sales and 24-hour support operations in the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe. TANDBERG Television's customers include many of the major broadcasters, network operators and content owners around the world.

For more information visit: http://www.tandbergtv.com.

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