Swedish network equipment provider Ericsson has completed its acquisition of UK media services provider Red Bee Media, following approval of the deal from the UK Competition Commission on March 27^th this year. The deal sees 1,500 Red Bee staff absorbed by Ericsson and the UK established as a “major global media hub” for Ericsson, the company said.

The acquisition brings with it a number of customer relationships with high profile players in the broadcast space, including the BBC, BSkyB, BT Sport, Canal Digital, Channel 4, mobile network EE, UKTV, UP and Virgin Media. Ericsson also gains facilities in the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Australia. The deal was first announced on July 1^st 2013.

Magnus Mandersson, EVP and Head of Business Unit Global Services at Ericsson, said: “We’re very happy to welcome our new employees to Ericsson and are confident they will help to take our broadcast services business to the next level and extend our global presence. We now have more than 5,000 employees in the UK and close to one-third of them work in broadcast services. As a result, the UK is now a major global media hub for Ericsson.”