Nuance Communications has made a tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of
Zi Corporation for $0.40 per share in cash, in addition to its previously announced acquisition proposal for a total transaction value worth approximately $20 million.
The cash tender offer represents a 25 percent premium over the closing price of Zi common shares on NASDAQ on August 13, 2008, the last trading day prior to the public disclosure of Nuance's initial proposal to Zi's Board of Directors, and a 38 percent premium over the closing price of Zi common shares on November 25, 2008. Nuance proposes to finance the offer through existing cash on hand.
"We continue to believe that our all cash offer is a compelling opportunity to create value for the stakeholders of both companies," said Paul Ricci, chairman and CEO of Nuance, in a statement.
Ricci said that the revised offer reflects recent adverse changes in market conditions and Nuance's assessment of Zi's valuation following completion of a due diligence review.
“While we had hoped to work cooperatively with Zi's board, we are confident that Zi shareholders, when given the chance to reach their own conclusion, will recognize the immediate value and attractive liquidity opportunity this proposal represents and will tender their shares in favor of our offer," stated Nuance.
Nuance is a provider of speech and imaging solutions for businesses and consumers around the world. Its technologies, applications and services make the user experience more compelling by transforming the way people interact with information and how they create, share and use documents.
By leveraging the expertise and assets of SNAPin, Nuance will be able to offer pioneering, scalable solutions that revolutionize the way operators and enterprises provide real-time customer care on mobile devices.
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