Australian telecom giant Telstra has acquired Company85, a UK-based technology services provider, the company announced. The sale price was not disclosed.
Company85, which provides data center, workspace, cloud, security and network services, has big-name business and government clients including BBC, London City Airport, Royal Mail, AstraZeneca, J.P. Morgan and Roche.
In a statement released Monday, Telstra said Company85’s capabilities are strongly aligned with the services its Business Technology Group offers Australian customers. The acquisition is also in line with strategic investments Telstra has made in the Australian market to grow this area of the business.
Those acquisitions include Kloud, which helps enterprises transition their workloads and applications to the cloud, and Readify, a provider of application development and software-focused consulting and managed services.
Growth in Multinational Hubs
The acquisition is part of Telstra's strategy to grow business services in regions that are key hubs for multinational corporations.
"We see the U.K. as an important market and a strong platform to expand into Europe," Chris Smith, executive director of business technology services for Telstra Global Enterprise and Services, said in a statement. "The acquisition of Company85 will significantly enhance our service offering for U.K. and European-based business and government customers."
Headquartered in London, Company85 offers end-to-end, enterprise-class infrastructure consulting to clients and partners. The company says its methodology is at least 25 percent faster and 30 percent more cost effective than larger consultancies.
Telstra said Company85's reputation and broad set of consulting capabilities will help differentiate its own offerings, as well as help it engage in IT transformation conversations with prospective customers early in the proposal stage.
The telco also expects the acquisition to strengthen its position in the U.K. and create demand for its network services in the region.
About Telstra
Telstra is Australia's largest telecommunications company and mobile provider, serving 17.4 million mobile customers, 6.8 million fixed voice customers and 3.5 million retail fixed broadband customers.
The company also has an international presence spanning some 20 countries, with a focus on the Asia-Pacific region.
In February, Telstra announced plans to build out a nationwide Internet of Things (IoT) network in Australia in partnership with Ericcson. In March, the company said it would launch a suite of managed security services, as well as two new cybersecurity centers in Melbourne and Sydney. Both are expected to debut July 19.
The company is currently in the process of restructuring its Enterprise Services business to improve customer service by reducing "process and production variation." CIO reported last week that the move will result in 87 Australian job cuts.
