Inmedia Communications Acquires CAST; Broadcast and Media Services Leader Expands Playout Business to Transmit Half a Million Hours of TV per Year

Gerrards Cross - Inmedia Communications Limited (Inmedia) has acquired Cable and Satellite Transmissions (Cas.t) Limited (CAST) from Barnes Trust Television Limited, including staff, equipment, premises and customer contracts. This significant deal ranks Inmedia second only to Sky as a playout provider and strengthens its position as the largest independent UK playout provider.

The acquisition increases Inmedia’s playout client-base to more than 60 channels playing out half a million hours of TV every year and expands its service capability to more than 100 channels. Following the acquisition, Inmedia’s major playout customers now include The Travel Channel, The Chinese Channel, ESPN, Sony and Zone Vision.

Inmedia, owned by its management and global private equity firm The Carlyle Group, makes the deal as part of its long-term strategy to grow the business through such acquisitions, as well as maintaining a strong emphasis on the broadcast, enterprise and international carrier markets.

Inmedia is to use CAST’s 20,000 square foot­­ central London premises at Newman Street W1 as its new London Media Centre with additional studio and editing facilities. The new site helps broadcasters to physically deliver content directly to Inmedia in central London and is a significant addition to Inmedia’s services through the entire production chain from studios for capture to editing, post-production and playout.

The London Media Centre is situated less than 500 metres from the BT Tower and will allow Inmedia to offer a cost-effective solution to broadcasters for occasional-use video feeds to and from Newman Street. In turn, this enables broadcast feeds to be played live to air or recorded on site for re-use by the broadcast station.

Former CAST general manager Geoff Trickey becomes head of playout and takes responsibility for the new London Media Centre, Newman Street, and playout operations at Gerrards Cross.

Inmedia anticipates the acquisition will generate around £3 million incremental turnover from CAST’s playout operation alone and sees the deal as a significant part of its long-term strategy to expand its playout operations.

"Inmedia’s acquisition of CAST both enhances its services for existing customers and enables it to deliver an advanced, comprehensive offering to even more broadcasters," says Inmedia CEO Nick Thompson. "Not only do we now have strong presence in the heart of the London broadcast community, we have significantly increased our capacity to help more broadcasters conduct their essential operations as efficiently as possible."

Thompson continues: "We swiftly sourced and executed this acquisition, which receives full support from the Carlyle Group."

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