ANN ARBOR – Long-time Michigan managed service provider Online Tech has been acquired by Schurz Communications, an Indiana-based news and information company that consists of broadband, newspaper publishing and digital media operations. CEO Yan Ness will step down. No financial details were provided in the press release issued Monday morning.
The press release said Online Tech plans to leverage the investment capabilities of Schurz to expand to new markets across the United States and expand their product offerings. In connection with the acquisition, Online Tech will add industry veterans Brad Cheedle and Tom Wilten to its leadership team to serve as the company’s new CEO and CFO, respectively.
“This transaction is truly win-win-win,” Ness said, who was not available for a phone interview before the story was published. “Online Tech gets the perfect capital partners to grow the business and reach more customers than ever before. The Schurz family gets an industry-leading platform to build on and to help diversify their family business. And our clients get a much more capable IT partner who will have a renewed focus on creating exceptional customer experiences.”
Yan Ness, Former CEO of Online Tech
Online Tech was originally started by Gary Baker, a long-time Michigan technology professional who co-hosts the Internet Advisor on WJR 760 AM.
Online Tech currently serves nearly 500 clients across the country with its network of seven data centers and full suite of hybrid cloud services including managed Microsoft Azure, Disaster Recovery as a Service, and Data Protection as a Service. With a focus on security and compliance, their expert engineers support mission-critical applications and their client portal provides a single pane of glass into managing their entire IT systems.
“Online Tech is an incredible company with great forward-looking people and an innovative approach to helping customers migrate to the Cloud. Their customer portal is a true differentiator in our industry and provides full visibility to their secure and compliant hybrid cloud and colocation solutions,” said Brad Cheedle, CEO of Online Tech.
Online Tech plans to further expand its national footprint, enabling access to secure and compliant hybrid cloud solutions, superior customer support and managed IT services to a broader range of companies.
“Our company is known for patient capital that assists growing companies realize their aspirations. Online Tech represents one of the most exciting opportunities in the cloud market today. The strong and proven management team has ambitious goals in this rapidly growing industry, and we are excited to provide the support necessary to achieve them,” said Todd Schurz, CEO of Schurz Communications.
DH Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for Online Tech.
Moorgate Securities, LLC acted as the exclusive financial advisor for Schurz Communications Inc..
More details will be provided as Online Tech and Schurz Communications makes spokespeople available.
