Livingstone Technologies agrees to acquire Cloud Optics as part of its continued investment in the Software Lifecycle Management Space
London UK, October 31, 2019 – Livingstone Technologies supported by global investment firm The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) today announces that it has agreed to acquire Cloud Optics as it continues to invest in the Software Lifecycle Management market.
Equity for the investment will come from Carlyle Europe Technology Partners III (“Carlyle”) and reinvestment from the founders and Livingstone Management. Financial terms of the transaction are not disclosed.
Cloud Optics is a leading independent consultancy, providing cloud and software license and consulting services across mega-vendors including Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, SAP and Salesforce.
Cloud Optics’ lifecycle services align perfectly to those already provided by the Livingstone Group, which support global organisations in the public and private sector to procure and govern their IT estate effectively, based on trustworthy data and asset intelligence. Cloud Optics’ best in class commercial and contractual solutions strengthen the group’s portfolio of services, allowing it to help clients to optimise their software and cloud estates and align them to their actual requirements.
This strategic acquisition will enable Livingstone to assess a client’s current and future software needs to produce an optimal Bill of Material. It will then support clients through vendor negotiations with benchmarking support services, allowing clients to optimise their licensing, product and contract positions.
This investment represents the fourth significant investment that Carlyle has made in the Software Asset Management (SAM) sector in the last eighteen months, with the previous acquisitions of Livingstone Technologies (UK) enabling the further acquisitions of Siwel (USA) and more recently Derive Logic (UK).
Trevor Rolls, Chairman, Livingstone Group, said: “Livingstone Group will now be able to offer a comprehensive range of services that provides real value and tangible outcomes to our global clients, through the provision of trustworthy data and the intelligence that keeps them compliant. The acquisition of Cloud Optics enables us to deliver the best commercial outcomes from their cloud & software vendors, through our negotiation support services. These are truly exciting times for our business and our clients around the world.”
Harmeet Assi, Chief Executive Officer, Cloud Optics said: “We are delighted to be joining the Livingstone Group, with our combined skill sets and portfolio we will have much greater breadth, depth and reach to deliver best in class end to end outcomes for our Clients. Our combined services are hugely complimentary and as a team we are very excited to join the Livingstone family.”
Fernando Chueca, Managing Director, Carlyle Europe Technology Partners, said: “In a relatively short period of time, Cloud Optics has established itself as a leading provider of software licencing advice to blue-chip customers and built a promising cloud advisory proposition. We are delighted to support the combination of Livingstone and Cloud Optics, which will deliver best in class services to all its joint customers. We welcome Harmeet and his team to the enlarged Livingstone family and look forward to working with them.”
Transcend Corporate (Corporate Finance), Osborne Clarke (Legal) and Spencer Gardner Dickins (Tax) advised Cloud Optics.
About Cloud Optics
Cloud Optics is a team of highly experienced and skilled Software License Consultants that deliver a range of Software License Consulting and Managed Services across Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, SAP and Salesforce. Using a unique underpinning methodology, it advises, develops and implements solutions that improves and optimises client’s software license position from a contractual and commercial perspective. Its solutions drive measurable and tangible results for its clients, whilst always meeting responsibly their short and long-term technology requirements. Cloud Optic’ consultants are recognised as some of the most experienced and skilled in the world having provided services to Fortune 500 global clients regularly and having worked on some the largest, complex and sophisticated software license negotiation’s in the world Cloud Optics is headquartered in Richmond, UK.
Web: www.cloud-optics.com
About Livingstone Technologies
Livingstone Technologies Limited is an independent, data and tool agnostic provider SAM managed services and a trusted partner to complex multinational corporations. The company combines proprietary technology, large vendor licensing expertise and proven methodologies to produce accurate SAM intelligence. Rapid onboarding of Livingstone’s managed service means that the company can deliver comprehensive reports within the first six weeks of an engagement. The reporting helps CIO/CTOs, IT Procurement, SAM and ITAM professionals, make smart business decisions on software. Livingstone’s customers are its greatest advocates and represent some of the world’s largest and most complex organisations. For them, the company has delivered hard cost savings, quantifiable risk mitigation, licence optimisation and vendor audit readiness.
About The Carlyle Group
The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across four business segments: Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions. With $222 billion of assets under management as of September 30, 2019, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,775 people in 33 offices across six continents.
Web: www.carlyle.com
Contacts:
Livingstone
Chris Lewis
+44 203 817 4880
Chris.lewis@livingstone-tech.com
The Carlyle Group
Rory Macmillan
+44 207 894 1630
roderick.macmillan@carlyle.com
