Versant has closed an agreement for its largest acquisition to date: a $530 million deal to acquire Full Swing, a sports technology company.
Full Swing is best known for its advanced golf simulators, tracking software, and analytics, although it also plays in other sports like baseball. Versant is paying $530 million in cash for the company, subject to customary purchase price adjustments.
Versant is purchasing Full Swing from Bruin Capital and a group of minority investors.
The deal will strengthen the company’s golf segment, anchored by Golf Channel, Versant’s flagship sports property, and a line of business that CEO Mark Lazarus describes as the best example of where he wants to take the rest of the company. After all, Versant’s Golf owns the linear cable channel, but it also owns GolfPass, a subscription and golf instruction product, as well as GolfNow, which provides tee-time booking software and helps golf courses manage reservations.
“Our golf business is roughly 50% pay TV and 50% other revenue and earnings. That’s a target for us against those other segments as well, where we’re more dependent today on pay TV revenue,” Lazarus said on a Mixed Signals podcast last year. “That’s why it’s a model for what we try to do at the rest of the companies.”
Full Swing adds advanced analytics and performance data, as well as Full Swing’s simulation entertainment business, to that portfolio. Versant has been looking for deals for companies that can leverage its existing verticals, as it did with Free TV Networks and its entertainment business, and StockStory, which joined CNBC. However, company executives have also expressed interest in adding other linear businesses, provided it fits into their future strategy.
