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The IMS Company Expands via Flight Deck Resources Acquisition

Dépèche transmise le 24 avril 2009 par Business Wire

The IMS Company Expands via Flight Deck Resources Acquisition

BREA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The IMS Company, an entertainment and communications solutions provider to in-flight entertainment, aerospace and travel industry markets, has announced the acquisition of Flight Deck Resources (FDR), a leading provider of Electronic Flight Bag solutions to commercial airlines, corporate aviation, air cargo, general aviation and aircraft fleet operators worldwide.

FDR, which will now be known as IMS Flight Deck, will join IMS Entertainment and IMS Engineering as a division within The IMS Company, according to IMS chairman and CEO Joseph Renton.

“As a result of the acquisition, we have synergistically expanded our product reach and will now have the ability sell products and services to our customers not only in the cabin of the aircraft but also in the flight deck,” said Renton. “It is our ongoing strategy to find ways to prudently grow our business and we see the FDR acquisition as one of those ways.”

A number of FDR’s executives and employees joined IMS Flight Deck and have moved into IMS’ facilities in Brea, California, thus ensuring a smooth and efficient transition for current customers. “As a turnkey Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) solutions provider, FDR—now IMS Flight Deck—is a single source for EFB hardware, software, mounting and certification,” said Renton. The acquisition is part of a strategic initiative to provide an integrated package of products and services that are comprehensive and complementary, Renton commented.

IMS provides portable entertainment solutions, applications, wireless communications, cabin avionics, media distribution systems, content delivery network services, content and data-loading solutions, and advanced systems and software engineering services, according to Renton. “The ability to provide a comprehensive solution set for the flight crew and the flight deck of the aircraft further demonstrates our commitment to a robust and compelling set of aircraft solutions,” he said.

IMS Flight Deck offers the SkyTab Electronic Flight Bag product line in addition to its proprietary EFB software applications. These Flight Deck Management Systems (all single piece Class 1 and Class 2 portable EFBs under FAA AC-120-76A) are capable of hosting and displaying navigational charts, digital terminal procedures charts, GPS data, company policies, documents, aircraft manuals and preflight planning applications. They also perform exceedingly complex functions such as performance calculations, satellite communications, display of real-time weather information and airport moving map applications, said Renton.

Despite the current economic environment, The IMS Company, the leading provider of in-flight portable entertainment solutions, has continued to operate on sound footing, according to Renton. Earlier this month IMS announced a large portables sale and three year support agreement to supply portable media players (PMPs), ground-based delivery infrastructure, and recurring content management services for Kuwait Airways, and another sale for PMPs and content management services to Gabon Airlines.

About The IMS Company:

Founded in 1996, The IMS Company is an entertainment and communications solutions provider in the travel industry and a systems and software solutions provider to the aerospace industry and the military. IMS serves more than twenty commercial airlines with portable entertainment, wireless communications and content management services, as well as the provision of advanced systems and software engineering support in the development and deployment of the latest in in-flight entertainment, cabin avionics and media distribution systems. IMS also provides engineering services and software development services to unmanned vehicles and software-defined radios. IMS has expanded into the provisioning of content services and hardware solutions for business aviation, rental car, rail passenger, and related markets reaching the traveling public. In 2008, IMS was named the 14th fastest-growing privately held company in technology-heavy Orange County, California by the Orange County Business Journal, moving up from 24th fastest-growing in the 2007 survey. For more information see: www.imsco-us.com.