Mobile value-added services (VAS) provider Altruist Technologies Pvt Ltd has acquired US-based Web and mobile technology firm RelayStrategy LLC in an all-cash deal for an undisclosed amount.
With this acquisition, Altruist enters the 3G data applications space and gains RelayStrategy’s clients in healthcare, finance and insurance markets. The company has recently invested seed capital in a Mumbai-based mobile gaming start-up Vegam for a minority stake.
Altruist will monetise RelayStrategy’s technologies by creating and hosting India-focused apps on app stores like iTunes, Android Marketplace, BlackBerry Store, etc.
RelayStrategy is into technology and product development, and also offers financial services. The company builds mobile applications for Android, BlackBerry and iPhone platforms. It has offices in Washington, D.C., and Pittsburg, as well as a development centre in Chandigarh, India. RelayStrategy’s technology enables the delivery of 3G VAS across multiple smartphone platforms through a quick deployment of middleware, which does away with the manual process of porting and transcoding for various devices.
Altruist’s subsidiary Mobile2win expects to augment its position by building upon the technology capabilities acquired from RelayStrategy.
Anuj Aggarwal, co-founder, and managing director of Altruist, said, “Over the past six to 12 months, there has been a huge surge in the mobile data usage and this is likely to leapfrog further, with the 3G rollouts now in full swing. The Altruist group, with billing integrations with all telcos, is poised to pioneer the next wave of data applications built through the capability acquired along with us. We will now be able to leverage the strong software development capabilities of RelayStrategy to diversify our IT capabilities in high growth markets such as healthcare and IT.”
“The acquisition by Altruist/Mobile2Win enables RelayStrategy to exponentially expand the market for its mobile and web-based products/services. We are now able to leverage Altruist’s existing telco relationships to provide cutting-edge mobile solutions for the Indian market,” said Navneet Gosal, CEO and founder-promoter of RelayStrategy.
