The DNEG Group has completed acquisition of Prime Focus Technologies.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. PFT was a subsidiary of DNEG’s parent company, Prime Focus Limited. It has offices located across North America, the United Kingdom and India.
The acquisition, which was previously announced with the issue of a memorandum of understanding last year on April 13, 2023, boosts the DNEG Group’s technological capabilities with PFT’s media workflow and automation software suite, CLEAR, and CLEAR AI, a multi-modal Gen AI platform powered by patented ‘Machine Wisdom’ technologies. Purpose built for the M&E industry, CLEAR and CLEAR AI offer streaming platforms, studios, broadcasters, and brands transformational solutions to help manage content, video collaboration and automation in the content production and distribution process.
Acquiring the software-as-a-service business of PFT strengthens the DNEG Group’s status as an end-to-end solutions provider and will help it expand into media tech and distribution services, including fulfillment, localization, and marketing.
The completion of the acquisition also follows the announcement last week of a $200 million investment in the DNEG Group by leading Abu Dhabi-based investor United Al Saqer Group. The investment accelerates the DNEG Group’s strategy of innovation and diversification, including the activation of a new division, Brahma, which is developing a comprehensive AI-powered, photo-real CGI creator which will democratize photo-real content creation in a wide range of applications.
“We are ushering in a new era with an AI-first approach across the content value chain,” said Ramki Sankaranarayanan, founder and Global CEO at PFT. “Over the years, our customers have experienced notable productivity enhancements from our AI models and applications, and our Gen AI initiatives are poised to transform their content to meet new revenue opportunities. Partnering with DNEG strengthens our capacity to innovate rapidly and deliver exceptional value to our clients.”
“Investment in our proprietary technology underpins everything that we do in the DNEG Group and ensures our continued and future success,” added DNEG chairman and CEO Namit Malhotra. “The acquisition of PFT and its market-leading technology and services adds another string to our bow, bringing further opportunities and advantages to our global partners and clients, and extending our capabilities across the entire content lifecycle. Our technology vision begins at home, and just like our new Brahma AI division, PFT’s CLEAR and CLEAR AI will also support our own teams as we invest in, develop, produce, shoot, finish, and deliver the highest-quality content across the world, including in our newly announced Abu Dhabi hub.”
With the completion of the deal, the DNEG Group describes its operations are follows:
- DNEG - Academy Award winning visual effects, animation, and associated creative services to Hollywood and global visual entertainment creators. DNEG is known for its work on numerous high-profile movies and animations, such as Dune, Oppenheimer, Interstellar, Tenet and Blade Runner 2049, as well as the Harry Potter, James Bond, Fast and Furious, Mission: Impossible and Marvel Cinematic Universe franchises.
- Brahma - developing the industry’s leading AI-powered, photo-real CGI creator.
- Prime Focus Studios - content and IP investment and development across live-action, animation, and gaming. Prime Focus is currently co-producing a number of high-profile feature films, including Animal Friends, Indian epic Ramayana, and The Angry Birds Movie 3.
- Prime Focus Technologies, a leading provider of AI technology and media services powered by the Cloud.
