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Finally, Someone Is Buying Freedom Group

CNN reports via PR Newswire that Global Digital Solutions has filed a Form 8-K and announced an Unsolicited Letter of Intent to Acquire Remington Outdoor Company (aka Freedom Group) for $1.082 Billion.

Richard J. Sullivan, GDSI’s Chairman and CEO, commented on this move as well as two additional acquisitions.

“The GDSI team is extremely excited and confident about all three of these proposed acquisitions. There are powerful synergies between Freedom and the two other companies that will fuel our future growth along with the transformation of the cyber arms industry. Cyber-based technologies, coupled with enhanced digital product development and distribution, will be key factors in achieving results that could match – and probably even exceed – what we were able to produce at Digital Angel Corp and Applied Digital Solutions (“Applied”). At Applied, we saw our market capitalization reach $2.5 billion, roughly five times revenue and nearly 25 times EBITDA.”

GDSI is an interesting company to say the least, specializing in “cyber arms” and tracking. For instance, they patented the first-ever FDA-approved, human-implantable RFID tags that continue to be used by several foreign militaries as well as an implantable GPS tracking system for sheep and Gatekeeper, a small arms safety system. It offers, “Encrypted, password-protected, digital, trigger-locking capability;Secure, real-time online tracking; and Encrypted, cloud-enabled databases.” Are you rolling your eyes as much as I am yet?

CEO Sullivan discusses Gatekeeper in this quote:

“Our team plans to drive unprecedented consolidation and convergence in the cyber arms arena at least in part through the acquisition strategy outlined in our Form 8-K filing and elsewhere. We’ll also do this by leveraging technologies like GDSI Gatekeeper, which we announced on January 23, 2014. Gatekeeper represents a revolutionary suite of technology-enhanced services that offer personalized, digital small arms safety and security solutions in commercial and military-related markets.

I can already see the headlines on the tinfoil hat sites.

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32 Responses to “Finally, Someone Is Buying Freedom Group”

  1. straps says:

    Press release has all the cliches commonly used by people who make money by throwing it at one another.

    “Cyber.” Awesome.

  2. bulldog76 says:

    i dont like this …

  3. Sgt E says:

    I would have bought Freedom Group… but I haven’t got my tax return yet. Maybe next time.

  4. cy says:

    Sounds like a global conspiracy to track firearms and the owner. Is this the end of free American!!!!

  5. Black6ID says:

    Sounds a lot like Cyberdyne Systems. The machines will rule the earth….just sayin.

  6. Jesse says:

    Stupid to take that little.

  7. Will says:

    They’re gonna smart chip bolt action rifles, shotguns and some 22’s…

    Gun crime Over!

  8. Stan says:

    I would how this is going to affect Remington’s expansion into Alabama?

    • Haji says:

      Won’t make a bit of difference. Matter of fact, its possible that the deal was contingent on them moving.

  9. MadMonkey says:

    I’m putting on my tinfoil. This sounds underhanded.

  10. SMC tactical says:

    This doesn’t seem like a good thing. When you own the entire market you get to decide what’s available.

  11. Timmay says:

    The tinfoil crowd was wrong about the NSA listning to all our phone calls-oh wait…

    I have always wondered why you would want to put that much of the market in one package-Bloomburg and Soros could just buy controlling interest and declare they wer too busy fulfiling contracts for the Bolivian navy to sell to the unwashed or convert the whole industry to manufacturing solat powered turd seperators…

    The Cyberdine reference came to mind too, they’d start small of course like maybe simple droned to deliver flowers and such…Although if they are so damn good at tracking shit they ought to get into air traffic control in asia.

    • Timmay says:

      Wait thats not much money-publicity stunt by GDSI, Remington says FOAD but the story get front page on WSJ and Economist.

    • Haji says:

      Bloomberg or Soros likely couldn’t stand the negative political fallout from owning this conglomerate. They’d lose their influence on the issue and they’d be shunned by the True Believers of the left. Too high a price to pay when they’re greedy little capitalist pigs at their core.

  12. james says:

    Sure as h$&^ isn’t tinfoil hat stuff. They openly say that they plan to use the gatekeeper tech. The FREEDOM group , just the name should raise the hairs on the back of your neck- kinda like the PATRIOT act.

  13. Mike Nomad says:

    +1 on the birth of Cyberdyne Systems Corporation…

  14. Steve Feinberg owns Freedom Froup/Remington. Not bloomberg and not Soros. Remington just announced this morning that the press release from Global Digital Solutions was “attention seeking in its worst form” so apparently there is much more to this story.

    • james says:

      Don’t think they said they did own it, just that it being such a large chunk of the industry made it vulnerable to bad actors.

    • james says:

      I am glad they aren’t considering this.

    • SSD says:

      Oh jeesh

      • james says:

        Not sure how that’s incomprehensible….. happens all the time for financial reasons(buy a competing company and dismantle it) could be done for political reasons just as easily.

  15. Texas-Roll-Over says:

    FAKKKKEEEEE!

    • SSD says:

      Somebody is misleading. Question is, who?

      • Timmay says:

        Publicity pure and simple, good or bad it still gets the name out there-that’s a pretty simple why…which points to the who. Seems legal since the seem to have filed the document and it only announces intent. Smart gun bs in the news last week and the NJ law.

        Huntsville Chamber and AL Gov office say its BS also.

  16. Timmay says:

    Damn I’m Good!

  17. Sean says:

    Heard from some FGI guys I know and this is a bogus PR stunt by this company.

  18. dan says:

    When I first heard this today I was waiting for Remington and Freedom Groups response and now it turns out that that Rem/Freedom did not take the deal. People Need to remember unsolicited offers are just that Unsolicited, so unless they are big and the company really has to have the money there is no incentive for the company being offered the deal to take it.

  19. Bill says:

    I make a lot of unsolicited offers, too, after a couple drinks.

    Whatever they sell you, don’t press the red button.