Ericsson revives Red Bee brand and splits off media services business

Ericsson has split off its Broadcast and Media Services business into a separate business and has revived the Red Bee brand for its new name.

Ericsson Broadcast and Media Services will now become Red Bee Media and will operate as a separate business fully owned by Ericsson. The Red Bee Media name and brand identity will apply to all of Ericsson’s Broadcast and Media Services businesses worldwide. The broadcast and media services business has operations in Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, the UK, United Arab Emirates, and the US. Red Bee Media employs around 2,500 broadcast and media specialists globally.

Steve Nylund, CEO of Red Bee Media, said: “We looked at not only our vision and strategy for the future but also what we, as a business, now stand for. The Red Bee Media brand has a long and rich heritage in TV and media and is well recognized across the industry. Adopting this brand will enable us to strengthen our position as an independent and agile media services organization. It will provide the basis for our business, our people and our clients to unify around a shared identity that represents our purpose, brand positioning and values.”

Earlier this year Ericsson said it was “exploring strategic opportunities” for its media business and split it into two groups: Broadcast and Media services and Media Solutions, to create a “stronger operational focus”. The company said it would continue to develop media solutions, tapping into the rapid growth in video traffic on networks including mobile.

“It is apparent that Ericsson is struggling to sell off this asset. Many of its rivals are struggling in light of the challenging and competitive landscape. Therefore private equity could be the only realistic and viable option,” said Paolo Pescatore, VP, Multiplay and Media, CCS Insight, commenting on Ericsson’s latest move.

“However, strategically content is proving to be a key battleground for all telcos which represents a significant step towards offering a suite of connected and smart home services. With this in mind Ericsson was undoubtedly bringing together a strong suite of assets in TV. Moving forward we expect to see rivals such as Huawei and Nokia place more focus on this area as a means of differentiating their offerings beyond connectivity,” he said.