The Freedman Electronics Group, home to pro audio brands: RØDE Microphones, Event Electronics and Aphex, expanded its company portfolio, purchasing the surround sound recording marque SoundField from TSL Products, the industry leading broadcast equipment manufacturer.
RØDE Founder and Managing Director Peter Freedman AM and TSL Products’ Managing Director Chris Exelby sealed a deal that now sees Freedman Electronics take control over the entire SoundField company, including the current product line as well as all IP associated with the iconic brand. The existing product line will continue, and all support and warranty for SoundField products will now be handled through the new entity. TSL Products will retain the upmix/downmix processing product range, which will be rebranded.
The Freedman Electronics Group MD is ecstatic with the purchase. “I’m extremely excited we have added the SoundField product line to the Group”, said Peter Freedman. “RØDE is a power player in studio and live microphones and the world’s market leader in on-camera mics, so adding a product line like SoundField – with its unique surround sound microphones and applications – to our portfolio is a real step for the Freedman Electronics Group.”
SoundField invented 360-degree surround sound – or ambisonic – audio capture technology in 1978, and remains the premier brand in the world. Today the range includes innovative ambisonic microphones, and systems/apps for broadcast, music and location recording. “The applications for cinema, home theatre, music, gaming and, crucially, the rapidly growing Virtual Reality medium are astounding. SoundField created the technologies that are now benchmark equipment for capturing responsive atmosphere and a stunning sonic world,” added Freedman.
Chris Exelby, Managing Director, TSL Products, commented, “We’re proud to have brought the revolutionary SoundField microphone and processor range to its current prominence across many sectors, from live sports and broadcast events to music recording, and now to VR.”
TSL Products’ Product Director Pieter Schillebeeckx joined The Freedman Electronics Group as New Product Development (NPD) Director in January 2017. He has been working on the SoundField technologies for 16 years and is unarguably a world leader in pro audio product and R&D workflow.
“I’m looking forward to a terrific new challenge,” Schillebeeckx says. “RØDE is simply the envy of the audio industry and, with Peter Freedman’s vision on both product innovation and market strategy, this is a great opportunity to develop new technologies and be part of the ongoing audio revolution that RØDE is building. To be able to live and work in such a beautiful country as Australia is really a bonus.”
Interview with Matthew Quade, Managing Director at Advantage Business Partnerships
Please tell me about your involvement in the deal?
Advantage Business Partnerships acted for the vendor in providing commercial vendor due diligence responses to the purchaser and advising on structural options for the deal, as well as coordinating the various legal and tax advisors on both sides and the correspondence between all parties - effectively project managing the overall deal. We also provided an interim Director appointee to help facilitate completion in the absence of any other person able to act.
Why is this a good deal for all involved?
The vendor felt it had taken this product line as far as it could in a niche market and had greater opportunities in other product lines which were more core to its primary customer base globally. The sale enables the business to invest for growth across the remaining product lines by accelerating R&D and entry into new markets.
For the purchaser, this was a niche product and accompanying technology which slotted perfectly into its existing product offerings and enabled it to immediately offer a product line it might otherwise have spent perhaps two years developing.
What challenges arose? How did you navigate them?
Time zones and availability of key individuals who were roaming the globe throughout negotiations was one challenge. It is always difficult for small businesses to find time to focus on a deal like this when everyone is multi-tasking and has key day-to-day management tasks to contend with. My colleagues and I, at Advantage Business Partnerships alleviate this by providing the expert commercial management and focus to keep the deal moving.
In addition, we encountered some challenges around New South Wales law (the domicile of the purchaser) and the requirements that laid down in order to reach a completion all sides could accept was legally valid and not likely to be challenged. This just required some sensible renegotiation and flexibility combined with determination on all sides to overcome, which was ultimately achieved without damaging goodwill or costly delays. We at Advantage Business Partnerships were able to assist in soothing concerns and making sure the deal didn't unduly stall despite the additional hurdles.
