PLANET TO ACQUIRE TERRA BELLA FROM GOOGLE, SIGN MULTI-YEAR DATA CONTRACT

NEWS

Planet Labs is thrilled to announce that we have entered into an agreement with Google, wherein Planet will acquire the Terra Bella business including the SkySat constellation of satellites, and Google upon closing, will enter into a multi-year contract to purchase Earth-imaging data from Planet.

I can speak for everyone at Planet when I say that we’re incredibly excited about this opportunity. We’ve long admired what the team at Terra Bella has achieved and we think the SkySat constellation of 7 high resolution satellites is highly complementary to Planet’s existing medium resolution 60-satellite fleet. The former enable regular, rapidly updated snapshots of select areas of the globe at sub-meter resolution; the latter regular, global coverage at 3-5 meter resolution. The two systems under one roof will be truly unique and will enable valuable new capabilities.

San Francisco Bay, captured on December 27, 2016. Image: Terra Bella.

Planet will distribute SkySat data through Planet’s suite of geospatial offerings. Planet’s global medium-resolution imagery has proven to be of great value in the commercial market, enabling us to exceed our revenue goals in 2016. With Terra Bella, Planet will diversify its available data and solutions and be able to serve new customers and markets.

As part of this agreement, a number of Terra Bella employees will join Planet to continue their great work within our combined organization. We’re honoured and pleased to welcome Terra Bella to the Planet family and look forward to working with the Google team.

“When we thought about a company that shares Terra Bella’s passion and strengths in high frequency satellite imaging, Planet was a natural home,” said Jen Fitzpatrick, VP of Product and Engineering, Google. “Terra Bella has accomplished a lot in the past two years—including the design and launch of five more satellites. We’re excited to see what’s ahead for Terra Bella, and look forward to being a long-term customer.”

“From the start, Planet and Terra Bella have shared similar visions and approached aerospace technology from a like-minded position, and while our on-orbit assets and data are different, together we bring unique and valuable capabilities to users,” said Terra Bella Co-Founder John Fenwick. “Planet and Terra Bella together enables the continuation of our mission and makes for an ever-stronger business.”

With this acquisition, rapid business growth, and the largest launches yet for both Terra Bella and Planet scheduled for this year, this will no doubt be Planet’s most impactful year yet!

Here is a selection of SkySat imagery, courtesy of Terra Bella:

Istanbul captured on September 29, 2016. Image: Terra Bella.

Decommissioned aircraft “boneyard” outside of Tucson captured on October 19, 2016. Image: Terra Bella.

Aix-en-Provence captured on October 20, 2016. Image: Terra Bella

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals in the US.