💲Maritz Acquires Convention Data Services from Freeman

Former rivals, Maritz and Convention Data Services, have joined forces. Maritz has acquired the company from Freeman.

The Stand-Up July 9, 2024 by Miguel Neves View in browser Hi there,   Most of the U.S. was on vacation last week, but that did not stop two of the largest companies in events from working on a significant deal.   Freeman offloaded Convention Data Services (CDS) to Maritz for an undisclosed fee. The two-hundred-person company is now joining forces with Maritz rather than competing against it.   CDS was acquired by Freeman five years ago. It would appear that Freeman's plans for the company have since changed, as CDS president Darren Phalen shared with Andrea Doyle in a follow-up story.   Phalen credits Freeman with actively looking for solutions for CDS after it decided not to invest further in the company. This was despite CDS announcing a major deal with Informa Markets North America in April.   The next step is a summit gathering of Maritz and CDS leaders this week, where they will talk about the challenging process of integration. Phalen already shared that AI will be a big part of these conversations.   We look forward to learning more.   Read the story on Skift Meetings What's New for Meetings and Events Across the U.S. Explore what's new in terms of hotels, venues, airline routes and destination campaigns at 43 destinations across the U.S. The Must-Have Tools to Boost Your Networking Opportunities Created in partnership with Stova Networking is too important to an event's success to leave to chance. Working with the right technology and partners can generate connections that demonstrate the value a meeting or event provides attendees. Convention Data Services President Talks Next Steps After Maritz Acquisition The intricacies of absorbing a multi-million registration company is the focus of an upcoming internal Maritz tech summit. 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