Monday, June 23, 2008

Digimarc Gets $300M Cash Offer for Secure ID Unit

Beaverton, Ore.-based Digimarc Corp., a provider of software and services used to produce identification documents, announced Sunday evening that it has received an unsolicited offer to sell its secure ID business for $300 million in cash to French company Safran S.A. Earlier this year, Digimarc agreed to sell its ID Systems business for some $263 million in stock and cash to L-1 Identity Solutions Inc. That agreement, Digimarc said, is still in effect and has already passed one regulatory hurdle—on June 12, the Federal Trade Commission terminated the early waiting period as mandated by the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act. Nevertheless, Digimarc said its board of directors and its financial and legal advisors are considering Safran's proposal since it represents a potentially superior deal. Toward that end, Digimarc added, it will provide Safran with information in an effort to assist its due diligence process. Safran’s offer of interest is non-binding and, if accepted, would require board and regulatory approval.