GLOBAL: Panasonic Projector & Display Corporation has announced the acquisition of UK-based media technology company HIVE Media Control Ltd., a move that significantly expands Panasonic’s capabilities in media playback, synchronisation, and control for immersive environments and fixed-installation visual applications.

Through the acquisition, Panasonic has secured 100% ownership of HIVE, further accelerating its transition from a hardware-centric manufacturer into a broader visual solutions ecosystem provider spanning projection, displays, software, workflow infrastructure, and integrated media delivery technologies.

The deal reflects Panasonic’s growing strategic focus on delivering end-to-end visual ecosystems rather than operating solely at the hardware layer. By integrating HIVE’s media server and control technologies into its wider portfolio, Panasonic strengthens its position within fast-growing sectors including immersive attractions, museums, themed entertainment environments, and large-scale permanent installations.

Importantly, HIVE will continue operating as an independent business while maintaining its vendor-neutral market philosophy. Panasonic confirmed that HIVE will preserve its open ecosystem approach and continue supporting existing customers and partners, including deployments involving third-party projector and LED display brands beyond Panasonic itself.

Media servers have become increasingly central to modern immersive experiences and large-format visual installations, handling playback, synchronisation, mapping, and control of content across multiple displays and surfaces. Through the acquisition, Panasonic extends its involvement deeper into the visual workflow chain; moving beyond display hardware into content management, deployment, and operational infrastructure.

Central to HIVE’s offering is its BeeBlade platform, built around the Intel Smart Display Module (SDM) standard. The SDM-native architecture allows direct integration with projectors, professional displays, and direct-view LED systems while reducing infrastructure complexity and external hardware requirements.

“This is a strategically important step for Panasonic as we continue to evolve our business beyond a hardware-oriented model toward broader visual solutions and workflow value,” said Yousuke Adachi, CEO of Panasonic Projector & Display Corporation. “Under MEVIX, our visual solutions brand, we have been clearly articulating our commitment to contribute to customers across the total workflow, not just at the hardware endpoint. This acquisition is a major step in that direction and an important step forward in growth guided by the spirit of the MEVIX brand. HIVE brings proven expertise in media playback and control, and when combined with our projector and display portfolio, we believe it can create meaningful customer value through simpler deployment, greater flexibility and a better end-user experience. At the same time, we fully respect HIVE’s position as a standalone business open to working with the wider market, and we look forward to the synergies from HIVE’s continued growth also creating value for Panasonic.”

HIVE Co-founder and CEO Mark Calvert emphasised that the acquisition would allow the company to scale while preserving the openness and flexibility that have defined its market positioning.

“We are inspired and honoured by the opportunity to work with Panasonic, while continuing to grow HIVE as an open and independent ecosystem,” said Calvert. “In nature, the most powerful systems are interconnected, adaptive and free to evolve – a philosophy that sits at the heart of HIVE. This partnership gives us the scale to accelerate our vision while preserving the openness and platform-agnostic approach our customers rely on. I would also like to thank my co-founders, Dave Green and Trey Harrison, and our incredible HIVE team – whose belief and dedication mean we move into this next chapter together.”

Panasonic views the media server and immersive systems sector as a significant long-term growth area, driven by increasing demand for experiential attractions, museums, themed environments, corporate experiences, and large-scale visual storytelling installations. Within that market, HIVE has developed a reputation for compact, scalable, and future-focused deployment architectures centred around open ecosystem compatibility and SDM-native integration.

For integrators and end users, the combination of Panasonic’s display technologies with HIVE’s media control platform is expected to deliver benefits including reduced infrastructure footprints, fewer external processing devices, simplified cabling, improved deployment flexibility, and more streamlined installation and operational workflows.