Richardson, Texas, Aug. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Electronic Transaction Consultants, LLC (ETC), a leading technology solutions provider for the smart mobility and transportation industries, announced today that Quarterhill Inc. (TSX:QTRH) (OTCQX:QTRH) has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase ETC from Align Capital Partners, Quarterhill is a growth-oriented company in the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) and Intellectual Property licensing industries, pursuing an acquisition strategy that capitalizes on attractive trends in both ITS and its adjacent markets.
The partnership with Quarterhill will help grow ETC’s existing portfolio and help the company expand into adjacent markets by leveraging riteSuite™, its highly flexible suite of mobility-focused products. ETC will continue to provide added value to its existing and long-standing customer portfolio while seeking to broaden its customer base. Additionally, ETC will focus on augmenting its existing innovative solutions to extend into markets where Mobility as a Service (MaaS) and ITS systems merge.
ETC will operate as a stand-alone entity within the Quarterhill ITS portfolio, pursuing its own organic growth and tuck-in acquisition strategy.
ETC's strength in tolling and mobility systems is complementary to Quarterhill's International Road Dynamics (IRD) business, which is a leader in Commercial Vehicle Operations and Enforcement technologies. ETC and IRD will work closely together to collaborate on revenue synergy opportunities with product expansion and geographic expansion being two areas where they will be able to support one another.
“We believe Quarterhill shares our vision for the growth and potential in ITS, and in particular for tech-enabled tolling as an essential solution to help expand, upgrade and support transportation infrastructure. We believe joining Quarterhill will offer us a platform for growth and scale in both our core U.S. market, as well as globally," said Bret Kidd, ETC's CEO. "Our focus on quality solutions and superior customer service has rewarded us with many long-standing customer relationships that have expanded over time, and we will continue to deliver on these core value drivers as part of Quarterhill."
"This is a transformational acquisition that will significantly diversify Quarterhill's financial results, bring scale to our ITS business and expand our presence in the tolling market, where we see strong growth trends," said Paul Hill, Quarterhill's CEO. "Roads and bridges in the U.S. are in need of expansion and repair at a time when government authorities are under tight budget constraints. Tolling solutions like those offered by ETC are essential in helping to pay for and sustain these infrastructure investments. With the U.S. federal government recently completing an infrastructure bill that will provide billions in additional funds for road repair and development, we believe ETC is well-positioned to benefit from these industry tailwinds."
The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and approvals and is expected to close in September 2021.
About ETC
ETC is a leading U.S. intelligent transportation and smart mobility systems provider, developing and delivering best in class solutions for tolling, congestion management, urban mobility, and multimodal transportation needs. ETC’s passionate and innovative team has been driving the future of mobility since 1999, with a number of industry firsts, including all electronic tolling (AET), dynamic pricing, agency interoperability, hosted mobility solutions and machine learning.
For over two decades, ETC has delivered sophisticated solutions to many of the U.S.’s largest toll authorities, including state-wide programs, county networks and tolling-specific authorities. ETC's solutions process over two billion transactions annually totaling over $3 billion in revenues for our customers, incorporating the latest in evergreen open-source and SaaS technologies and Big Data architecture through our innovative riteSuite™ products.
For more information on our products and services, visit www.etcc.com, LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/etctoll and YouTube channel at goo.gl/qNqpVv
About Quarterhill
Quarterhill is a growth-oriented company in the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) industry as well as, through its Wi-LAN Inc. subsidiary, a leader in Intellectual Property licensing. Our goal is to execute an investment strategy that capitalizes on attractive growth opportunities within ITS—and its adjacent markets—to become a global leader in that industry. Quarterhill is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol QTRH and on the OTCQX Best Market under the symbol QTRHF. For more information, visit www.quarterhill.com
