George Pyne’s Bruin Sports Capital is getting into the video streaming business, having bought Italy-based deltatre, which provides streaming tech for leagues and TV networks and has deep ties in international soccer. Financial details are not publicly available. deltatre CEO & co-Founder Giampiero Rinaudo will remain CEO of the company. He and co-Founder Luca Marini also will retain a “significant minority investment,” the execs said. With clients like UEFA, FIFA and the EPL, the 30-year old deltatre has developed a strong sports media business in Europe, in particular. The company of about 500 employees has offices in Asia and Australia as well.
In addition to streaming, deltatre also designs websites, video players and mobile apps, as well as graphics for broadcasts on TV and scoreboards. With an influx of investment dollars from Bruin Sports, deltatre hopes to reach “the next level of growth,” Rinaudo said. A major priority will be growth in the North America, where it would compete with companies like MLBAM, NBC Sports Group's Playmaker Media and Turner's iStreamPlanet. Pyne said Bruin is attracted at the potential of being in the middle of the sports media business as it transitions from linear TV to digital services like video streaming and over-the-top TV.
Pyne: "Media is changing, and media consumption is changing. We’re always trying to find growth segments. We see deltatre as a platform to build other businesses with.” In addition to expanding further into the U.S. and Asian markets, Pyne said deltatre can be integrated with some of WPP's businesses and clients. WPP is a significant investor in Bruin Sports. deltatre’s other sports clients include the ATP, BBC, BT Sport and Fox. Pyne: "They have a great business as it is."
The deltatre acquisition, about nine months in the works, is the sixth major move in Bruin's 18 months as an operating company. Significant investments in On Location Experiences, Anthony Travel and Jon Bon Jovi's Runaway Tours gave Bruin a strong hospitality and sports travel play, while Engine Shop was Bruin's big move into marketing services. Earlier this year, Pyne partnered with Cavaliers Owner Dan Gilbert and WPP to create Courtside Ventures, a $35M venture investment firm with a focus on technology start-ups.
