Cognizant Picks up Digital Video Solutions Company itass
Teaneck-based Cognizant has acquired itass, a digital video solutions company headquartered in Atlanta, Ga.
Founded in 1999, itass helps cable, telecom and tech companies deliver a broad range of digital video services over traditional network environments and on set-top boxes, tablets and cellphones.
Neither company revealed the terms of the transaction, but this appears to be an interesting small strategic investment for Cognizant, a Fortune 500 firm.
Cognizant said that the end-to-end video engineering and multiplatform capabilities of itass will complement and extend its ability to serve communications, media and high tech industries.
“As multiplatform video becomes the new normal, new technologies create more powered and savvy consumers and more industry sectors look to harness the potential of video for customer interaction,” Rajeev Mehta, Chief Executive Officer of IT Services at Cognizant said in the release announcing the deal.
Philly Tech News editor Tom Paine, a frequent contributor to NJTechWeekly.com, analyzed the acquisition in this article.
Paine said that itaas will support Philadelphia-based RDK Management LLC, a joint venture between Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Liberty Global.
“A key aspect of itaas’ business is its role in supporting the RDK joint venture. Last fall, itaas was selected by RDK Management LLC to oversee community support services as well as technical support and training for licensees of the RDK. Most of itaas’ approximately 200 employees appear to be based in Atlanta or India, plus some in Canada.”
Paine noted that the “Reference Design Kit (RDK), originally developed primarily by Comcast, is a pre-integrated software stack for set-tops, gateways, and other IP-capable devices. Comcast, through the joint venture, has made an effort to open it up and make it an industry standard. RDK Management says there are now more than 140 RDK licensees, and RDK applications will be on display by several of those at next week’s Cable Show in Los Angeles.”
The joint venture was formed last year, with Comcast veteran Steve Heeb named its President and GM, Paine added.
Itaas, which stands for interactive television and application solutions, was founded by CEO Vibha Rustagi and her cofounders Jatin Desai and Jaspal Bhasin. The group came out of Scientific-Atlanta, a story that appeared on the Atlanta Constitution website said.
