In a move to expand its European presence, Philadelphia-based StarCite announced in May that it had acquired Travent Limited, EMEA, a U.K.-based distributor of its MeetingView enterprise meeting-management technology. The acquisition marks a significant step for StarCite in its plans to expand globally and broaden its base of corporate customers in Europe. Travent was the sole distributor of StarCite's MeetingView solutions in Europe.

In addition to customers such as Pfizer and HRG, Travent's staff and leadership will be joining StarCite, including managing director Ray Thackery. Thackery was co-founder of seeUthere Technologies, which originally developed the MeetingView platform. SeeUthere merged with PlanSoft in 2004 to become OnVantage, and OnVantage merged with StarCite in 2006. StarCite has continued to offer MeetingView.

Travent customers will get access to new services as a result of the acquisition, says John Pino, StarCite founder and president of StarCite International, including round-the-clock customer service and increased RFP and sourcing functionality.

StarCite's road map includes plans for further global expansion, adds Pino. “As strategic meetings management continues to gain momentum worldwide, there are going to be more and more customers who are interested in a global services approach to meetings. Our acquisition strategy and growth strategy take that into consideration as a primary motive.”

Although terms of the agreement prevent Pino from disclosing Travent's revenue or total employee count, the Travent staff, who mainly work virtually and in client offices in the U.K., will now report into StarCite's European headquarters in Düsseldorf, Germany. With the Travent acquisition, nearly 20 percent of StarCite's business is now generated outside the United States.