Industry watchers arrived at work Monday morning to a surprise announcement by EFI that it had signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by an affiliate of Siris Capital Group LLC in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.7 billion. The company describes itself as “a leading private equity firm that thinks beyond the transaction to unlock the potential in technology companies.” I spoke with EFI’s CEO Bill Muir and CFO Marc Olin to gain insight into the deal, the reasons behind it, and EFI’s perspective on what it means for the future.

WhatTheyThink:  Bill and Marc, thanks for taking the time to speak with me on this busy day. I know there are things you can’t talk about at this stage of the transaction, but I have to ask the questions anyway. That being said, the press release says, “Siris is a leading private equity firm focused on investing and driving value creation in technology companies that provide mission-critical solutions and are facing technology transitions.” But when you hear about an acquisition like this, the first thing that comes to mind is that they are planning to break up the company.

Marc Olin: That has not been their practice if you look at other companies they have acquired. If you read their website, they have a bond and call strategy, the combination of a bond—the part of the company that drives steady cash contributions—and the call—the part that has growth investment for the future. You couldn’t find a better fit than EFI for that strategy from a private equity perspective. Would they do something different three to five years down the road? Who knows? But in the near term, they see value in the company.