Ion Solutions, a media technology company based out of Ireland, was acquired in July 2019 by Creative Technologies, in a development that will have ripple effects across the industry.
The NEP Group, based in Pittsburgh, PA, is the owner of Creative Technologies. Even though Ion Solutions will continue to be based in Dublin, the ownership change means at least some shifting of wealth and assets away from Ireland and into the United States.
Within the industry itself, the acquisition speaks to the larger NEP vision of becoming a global leader in Live Event services. Ion’s success, going back to their founding in 1967, has been technology engineering.
Over the ensuing 50-plus years, Ion Solutions has developed its broadcasting capacity, content creation and AV system integration, and offers a wide range of audio-visual services. Today, they focus on bringing their expertise to the presentations at live events, both indoor and outdoor. This includes conferences and video production, with Ion able to handle digital video production, computer graphics systems and much more.
Creative Technology has been the live events unit for the NEP Group and has established a footprint in both Europe and the Middle East. Ion will fold neatly into this structure as Creative Technologies’ Irish arm.
Optimism is high on all sides of the acquisition. Creative Technologies is looking forward to having a base in Dublin and Ion will bring new assets to the table that will also benefit the European and Middle Eastern parts of the company.
Those advantages range from individual talent that will transfer over to adding more services that Creative Technologies can offer to prospects and clients.
Ion sees the merger as a natural next step in their growth as a company and believes joining the team at Creative Technologies, along with becoming a part of the NEP Worldwide Network, will not only aid their growth but improve their offerings to current Ireland-based clients.
