Sierra Wireless to buy In Motion Technology for $21 million

From a public-safety perspective, In Motion Technology has developed products that have been used in demonstrations in federal government testing on a demonstration network using 700 MHz Band 14 spectrum, Morris said. Development in this area is expected to increase after the acquisition by Sierra Wireless, he said.

“Public safety is about people laying themselves on the line for the rest of us, and both companies have a track record of working with [first-responder entities] and a commitment to that community and market,” Morris said. “One of the things that I think is very exciting from the In Motion side is the opportunity to be part of a company that really shares that view and that commitment to these markets.”

Sierra Wireless officials are anticipating exciting product advances after the deal is completed, which is expected to occur in March, Anderson said. At that time, they will begin relocating the research-and-development team for In Motion Technology to the nearby Sierra Wireless facilities so that both companies’ engineers can brainstorm ideas for future offerings.

“With a combined company, we’ve got a lot of great technology assets, and we’ll be able to bring those assets together geographically in a good way,” Anderson said. “A lot of times with acquisitions, you end up with R&D all over the place, and it’s hard to get people to be centralized. This one’s going to be relatively easy.”