Keysight trumps Viavi’s March offer for testing and measurement company
Well, money talks. Keysight Technologies KEYS 0.35%↑ has announced its intention to acquire United Kingdom-based test and measurement company Spirent Communications for nearly $1.5 billion.
As Location Business News previously reported, Arizona-based Viavi VIAV -5.32%↓ made Spirent an offer for $1.3 billion—in deal that would have allowed it to gain a market leader in positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) technologies.
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Spirent’s board of directors intend to recommend the offer, which includes a cash offer per share and special dividend for investors. Keysight said it views Spirent’s business as highly attractive and aligned with the company’s long-term software-centric solutions strategy.
“Spirent has a differentiated portfolio, which is a strong fit for Keysight. Both companies share a common focus on empowering and accelerating high-value solutions for customers,” said Satish Dhanasekaran, Keysight president and CEO, in a statement.
Spirent, a pioneer in PNT testing, last year launched its SimXona satellite constellation simulator, which was certified by Xona Space Systems. Xona is developing PULSAR, a commercial PNT service built on a backbone of low- Earth orbit (LEO) small satellites, the company said.
At our deadline, Viavi has not made an announcement about the spurned offer.