DigitalGlobe to acquire the Radiant Group

DigitalGlobe, which specializes in imagery of the earth, today said it has agreed to buy the Radiant Group for $140 million from private-equity fund Aston Capital.

Walter Scott, DigitalGlobe's founder and chief technology officer, told Inside Defense in an interview the company was interested in the Radiant Group's expertise in cloud computing, big-data analytics and open-source software, among other areas.

Additionally, the deal would diversify DigitalGlobe's customers and its contract vehicles, Scott said.

The Radiant Group counts among its customers intelligence agencies, including the National Reconnaissance Office, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency, according to DigitalGlobe.

Scott said the Radiant Group has more than 80 contracts, of which 20 are prime contracts. "It gives us a footprint with agencies we have not historically done business with or not done as much business with," he said.

The purchase would be integrated into DigitalGlobe's services unit, according to Scott.

DigitalGlobe estimated Radiant would have 2016 sales of about $100 million. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the year.