US call centre software maker Genesys to buy Interactive Intelligence for $1.4 bn

Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, a call centre software maker, yesterday struck a deal to buy rival Interactive Intelligence Group Inc for about $1.4 billion.

Genesys, whose clients include online payment processor PayPal and Red Hat, is offering to pay $60.50 per share, a 36-per cent premium to Interactive's 28 July closing price.

The California-based company plans to fund the deal through a combination of cash on hand and debt.

Genesys was acquired in 2012 by private equity firms Permira Funds and Technology Crossing Ventures from Alcatel-Lucent for $1.5 billion. (See: Alcatel-Lucent to sell Genesys for $1.5 billion to PE group Permira: report) 

Genesys said that the Interactive deal will accelerate its cloud and on-premise product portfolios.

Based in Indiana and with more than 2,000 employees worldwide, Interactive is a global leader of cloud services designed to help businesses worldwide improve service.

It has 150-plus pending patent applications and more than 6,000 customers globally.

''This is a milestone transaction that combines industry-leading expertise and capabilities to enable lasting customer relationships, accelerate innovation and drive growth,'' said Paul Segre, CEO of Genesys.

''Our combined product portfolio will provide the broadest set of transformative customer experience solutions optimized for customers of all sizes and sophistication levels, available both in the cloud and on-premise,'' he added.

Dr Don Brown, chairman, president and CEO of Interactive said, ''The combination of Genesys and Interactive Intelligence provides a complete portfolio to address all market segments by combining Interactive Intelligence's PureCloud, Cloud Communications-as-a-Service (CaaS), and Customer Interaction Center (CIC) with Genesys' offerings.''

Genesys, which began as a computer telephony integration supplier in 1990, makes software that is used in call centres and video conferencing and focuses on software to manage customer interactions over the phone, web and in e-mail.

Its software directs more than 25 billion customer interactions every year in the cloud and on premises for 4,700 companies and government agencies in 80 countries.