EchoStar Global L.L.C., a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) (“EchoStar”), has acquired Helios Wire Corporation (“Helios”), a satellite-enabled IoT connectivity company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada — the acquisition includes Helios’ Australian subsidiaries Sirion Holdings Pty Ltd. and Sirion Global Pty Ltd. (“Sirion Global”).
Sirion Global holds global spectrum rights for S-band Mobile Satellite Service (MSS), administered by Australia, and has been working to develop solutions for high volume asset tracking and monitoring applications by satellite. The acquisition occurred by way of a court approved plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia).
Anders Johnson, Chief Strategy Officer, EchoStar, noted that this acquisition advances the company's strategy and further lays the foundation for a global S-band solution for the future. EchoStar's aim is to develop S-band technologies that will dramatically reduce the cost of satellite IoT, including Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications, public protection and disaster relief (PPDR) and other end-to-end services worldwide. Over time, EchoStar products and services will be integrated into the new global, hybrid networks that leverage multiple satellites and terrestrial technologies. This acquisition of Helios and Sirion Global positions us closer to realizing that vision.
Raghu Das, Co-Founder and COO, Helios, said the firm's shareholders are pleased to have concluded the sale of Helios and the Sirion subsidiaries to EchoStar, which has a wealth of S-band experience in the United States and Europe and is the perfect operator to take this project forward and accelerate the build-out of the Sirion constellation and deployment of global IoT services.
