Manfrotto parent company, Vitec, acquires motion control company Syrp

Vitec Imaging Solutions, a division of The Vitec Group, has acquired New Zealand based camera slider and motion control company Syrp. The acquisition actually happened on January 23rd, although it seems to have received very little coverage.

In a press release, Vitec states that “the acquisition of Syrp adds electronics and software features that control cameras to Vitec’s current product portfolio”. A portfolio that includes Manfrotto, Joby, Teradek, SmallHD, Lastolite, Lowepro and many more besides.

Syrp has brought some fantastic products to market since their creation in 2012. Their camera sliders combined with the Genie range of motion control units have been praised by filmmakers and timelapse shooters all over the world. And their Slingshot cable cam is one of the easiest-to-use solutions we’ve ever seen for that particular cinematography task.

We are continuously improving our commitment to offer our customers solutions for creating and delivering great content by helping them to unleash their creativity. Syrp designs exceptional products that allow independent content creators and photographers to capture extraordinary images and for this reason, it represents a perfect complement to our extensive brand line up. We are proud to welcome a talented pool of R&D engineers and passionate content creator specialists to our Imaging Solutions Division.

– Marco Pezzana, Divisional CEO of Vitec Imaging Solutions

Vitec believes that Syrp’s camera slider & motion control systems are the ideal complement to Manfrotto and Gitzo (yes, they own them, too) tripods and heads. And snapping up Syrp should also allow Vitec to provide better global distribution for Syrp products, with wider appeal, which hopefully, ultimately means better prices for consumers.

But Vitec isn’t just buying up Syrp, taking their tech and going home. No, they say that Syrp’s New Zealand facility will become “Vitec’s R&D centre of excellence for mechatronic and motion control products”, and Syrp’s entire R&D team will be sticking around. So, even though the brand is under new ownership, we can likely expect the same level of quality as we’ve seen in Syrp’s previous and current model products.

It will be interesting to see how this acquisition helps bolster the products of Vitec’s other brands, and what technologies may be shared between them.