At the Telescope User Group (TUG) Conference, North Plains, the leading provider of digital asset management (DAM), today announced that it has acquired Xinet. This acquisition combines two best-of-breed DAM companies to address the broader rich media management needs of creative workgroups, marketing departments and enterprises. In the process, it expands North Plains’ position as the largest pure-play DAM vendor in the industry. Now, the thousands of combined North Plains and Xinet customers can leverage the entire lifecycle of a rich media file, from its creation and work-in-process (WIP) to its global distribution and archiving as a valued asset.
 
As the volume of digital media created each year continues to increase, including video, audio, images, graphics, Flash banners, social media applications and 3D renderings, the need to manage these rich files throughout the full lifecycle from creation through distribution becomes a critical business process, one that reduces the cost of recreating, monetizing or inappropriately using digital files.
 
Both companies have been pioneers and innovators, singularly focused on addressing the challenges in rich media workflows. Through this acquisition, North Plains leverages Xinet’s best-in-class technology for file-based management of WIP assets as well as its success serving departments and creative work groups, and its global partner network. The acquisition extends North Plains’ already-established leading role in the DAM market providing industry-best database-centric asset management, particularly for enterprise organizations, publishers, media and entertainment and other Fortune 1000 companies that need to globally distribute their digital media to multiple agencies, partners, retail outlets and consumers.
 
“By acquiring Xinet, we are able to optimize the synergy between the two companies’ solutions and fully leverage the strong channel partner network and team of Xinet,” said James Christopher, President and Chief Executive Officer of North Plains. “This acquisition aligns with North Plains’ company strategy to deliver best-in-class products and services that reduce the time and costs associated with the creation, management, distribution, and archiving of rich media assets, and allow our customers to derive deep value from investments in these critical business processes.” 
 
“We have grown Xinet based on the strength of our software and our ability to address the needs of creative talent within organizations,” said Scott Seebass, Chief Executive Officer of Xinet. “Like Xinet, North Plains’ deep focus on digital asset management and their equal passion for delivering innovative products and services allows us to jointly provide our customers unparalleled products, services and solutions for rich media.”
 
“Accel-KKR is excited to support North Plains in its acquisition of Xinet" said Rob Palumbo, Managing Director of Accel-KKR. "We believe that by combining two innovative and industry leading rich media management providers, who serve clients that span from small creative groups to the global marketing teams in some of the worlds largest companies, we strategically position North Plains for continued and sustained growth”
 
According to Mukul Krishna, Global Director, Digital Media at Frost & Sullivan,  “The need to manage an organization's digital assets is arguably the most critical part of any workflow in today's business environment. It is imperative to have persistent management of digital assets through their lifecycle spanning creation to distribution. Such a complete solution that meets the need at the workgroup level and at the enterprise level, has been very challenging to provide by any single vendor. This acquisition provides a combined set of products and services that more completely address much more of the rich media lifecycle, and sets-up North Plains as the largest pure-play DAM vendor based on revenue.”
 
The Xinet WebNative Suite enhances collaboration and accelerates rich media workflows between staff, vendors or clients in industries like advertising, publishing, prepress, retail and corporate communications.
 
TeleScope is North Plains’ modular, award-winning digital asset management platform. It enables the secure access, management and distribution of all digital and rich media content in virtually any file format, across any size organization in any industry.
 
For more details regarding the acquisition, as well as North Plains and Xinet’s products and services, please go to www.northplains.com and www.xinet.com. 
 
North Plains will also demo both solutions at the upcoming Henry Stewart DAM event in New York on May 10-11, 2012.