Quest Software Announces Agreement to Acquire BakBone Software
Highly Complementary Product Sets for Physical, Virtual and Application-Level Data Protection
ALISO VIEJO & SAN DIEGO, Calif., Nov 09, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Quest Software, Inc. (Nasdaq: QSFT) and BakBone Software Incorporated (OTC Bulletin Board: BKBO) today announced that they have signed a definitive agreement for Quest to acquire BakBone, a leading provider of data protection software with headquarters in San Diego, California. BakBone delivers real-time continuous data protection, deduplication, replication, disk-based and tape backup and recovery. With BakBone, Quest will acquire heterogeneous data protection technologies that complement its portfolio of solutions for virtual, database and application-level data protection including vRanger(R) Pro;LiteSpeed(R) for Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle; Recovery Manager for Microsoft Exchange; SharePoint; Active Directory; and SharePlex(R) for Oracle.
Quest expects to pay approximately $55 million, including the payment of certain debt obligations and net of anticipated cash on hand. BakBone shareholders will receive $0.33 per common share and $1.29 per preferred share following the closing of the acquisition.
"Quest continues to innovate by delivering data protection solutions to address one of the key pain points facing every organization - the ever-expanding amount of data being created," said Doug Garn, CEO and president of Quest Software. "Quest has a long and successful history of acquiring and building out technically strong products and development teams. BakBone meets these criteria. Our respective products are highly complementary, with minimal overlap. The value received from BakBone's employees, technologies, partners and customers is expected to be a key benefit as we seek to expand our market share in the data protection market by building upon our core portfolio."
Under the terms of the agreement, which has been approved by the boards of directors of both BakBone and Quest, the acquisition will be conducted by way of a statutory plan of arrangement under the Canada Business Corporations Act and will require approval of the BakBone security holders and the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta. The closing of the acquisition, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2011.
"We are pleased that we have been able to enter into this definitive agreement on behalf of BakBone's shareholders," said Steve Martin, interim CEO and CFO of BakBone. "Quest has a rich history of recognizing new technologies in emerging markets and bringing them to a wider audience through its network of worldwide customers. We are confident that we will see even greater success for our solutions as part of the Quest family, and pleased that Quest saw value in adding us as an integral part of its data protection portfolio."
Additional Information and Where to Find It
In connection with the proposed acquisition, BakBone will file a Proxy Statement with the SEC and Canadian securities commissions. ALL INVESTORS AND SHAREHOLDERS ARE ADVISED TO READ THIS PROXY STATEMENT IN ITS ENTIRETY WHEN IT BECOMES AVAILABLE, BECAUSE IT WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING BAKBONE, THE ACQUISITION, THE PERSONS SOLICITING PROXIES IN CONNECTION WITH THE ACQUISITION ON BEHALF OF BAKBONE AND THE INTERESTS OF THESE PERSONS IN THE ACQUISITION AND RELATED MATTERS. BakBone intends to mail the Proxy Statement to its shareholders once such Proxy Statement is no longer subject to SEC review. Investors and shareholders may obtain a free copy of the Proxy Statement when available and other documents filed by BakBone with the SEC on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. Free copies of the Proxy Statement may be obtained by contacting the Chief Executive Officer of BakBone at 9540 Towne Centre Drive, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92121 or by calling (858) 795-7525. In addition to the Proxy Statement, BakBone and Quest file annual, quarterly, and special reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC, and, in the case of BakBone, on SEDAR.
BakBone and its respective directors, executive officers and certain members of its management and other employees may be soliciting proxies from its shareholders in favor of the arrangement agreement, the acquisition and other related matters. Information concerning persons who may be considered participants in the solicitation of BakBone's shareholders under the rules of the SEC will be set forth in the Proxy Statement to be filed by BakBone.
About BakBone Software
BakBone makes data protection a simple, straightforward process with an award-winning product suite. From real-time data protection to deduplication, disk-based and tape backup and application protection, BakBone's solutions manage resources across all platforms, providing improved operational efficiency, reduced system downtime, improved data and application availability and enhanced security to support the business growth of enterprise environments. For more information about BakBone, visit www.bakbone.com or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .
About Quest Software, Inc.
Quest Software (Nasdaq: QSFT)simplifies and reduces the cost of managing IT for more than 100,000 customers worldwide. Our innovative solutions make solving the toughest IT management problems easier, enabling customers to save time and money across physical, virtual and cloud environments. For more information about Quest solutions for application management, database management, Windows management, virtualization management, and IT management, go to http://www.quest.com/.