Motorola Solutions buys WatchGuard for mobile video solutions

Motorola Solutions yesterday announced that it has acquired WatchGuard, a provider of mobile video solutions such as in-car video systems, body-worn cameras and evidence-management systems and software.

A Motorola Solutions spokesperson today confirmed that the deal is complete. Because WatchGuard was a private company, the transaction is not subject to shareholder approvals or regulatory reviews that can delay the closing of an acquisition. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“An integrated, secure mobile video solution can enhance safety and efficiency for public safety users,” John Kedzierski, Motorola Solutions’ senior vice president for video security solutions, said in a prepared statement. “WatchGuard provides industry-leading capabilities, from capturing an incident from more than a dozen vantage points to technology that enables users to recover and upload video from events hours or days after they happened.”
Purchasing WatchGuard marks Motorola Solutions’ third significant video-related acquisition in recent years. The public-safety-communications giant previously bought license-plate-recognition (LPR) vendor Vigilant and Avigilon, which provides fixed cameras and advanced video analytics, according to a Motorola Solutions press release.

WatchGuard has more than 300 employees and is based in Allen, Texas, which is where the company’s products are manufactured, according to Motorola Solutions. WatchGuard’s solutions let law-enforcement users “capture, manage, store and share high-quality video evidence,” according to the press release announcing the deal.

Robert Vanman, WatchGuard’s founder, CEO and chairman, expressed enthusiasm about the company becoming part of Motorola Solutions. Vanman is continuing to lead WatchGuard after the acquisition, according to a Motorola Solutions spokesperson.

“We are excited to join the Motorola Solutions team,” Vanman said in a prepared statement. “This acquisition enables us to continue providing market-leading mobile video solutions to existing customers while also leveraging Motorola Solutions’ global footprint and growing video security solutions portfolio.”