Crawford Communications, Inc.

Ownership

Private

Company Description

Crawford, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, is a leader in the electronic media services industry offering mission critical services for domestic and international clients involved in all facets of satellite communications and broadcasting, IP-media, video and audio post production and digital media archiving.  Clients include broadcasters, cable networks, corporations and governmental entities.  Crawford was organized into three operating units:  Satellite Services, Post Production and Media Management.

Objective

The Company was approached by a strategic buyer with an interest in acquiring the Satellite Services division of Crawford.  This unit of the business was most heavily involved in providing services such as network origination, central casting, disaster recovery, satellite and fiber transmissions (both full-time and occasional use), satellite uplink trucks, digital media encoding, and digital file transfers via satellite, fiber and IP.  Crawford operated the largest and most modern independent facility on the east coast of the U.S.

Advisory Role

VRA Partners was engaged by Crawford to serve as exclusive financial advisor to assist in negotiations with the prospective buyer in an effort to maximize the value of the Satellite Services business.  In that role, VRA Partners helped develop an initial offer for the business, negotiated transaction value and terms, and assisted in the due diligence and documentation process.

Result

Crawford Satellite Services was acquired by Broadcast Facilities, Inc., a satellite services company with a significant presence on the west coast, and a portfolio company of Wasserstein & Co., a private equity firm based in New York, New York.  The combined businesses now operate under the name Encompass Digital Media.