Australian telco Telstra has acquired video platform company Ooyala for $270m (£161m).

Telstra already owned a 23 per cent stake in Ooyala after investing $61m over the past two years, but once the new deal is approved by US regulators, its ownership will leap to 98 per cent.

Ooyala will continue to run as an independent business team under the leadership of its existing management team, and will become a subsidiary of Telstra. It will retain the Ooyala brand and will continue to be based in Silicon Valley.

The acquisition makes Ooyala one of the best-capitalised video and analytics technology companies in the world, and is the culmination of a long standing investment relationship between the two companies.

“With this investment, Ooyala is poised to extend our leadership in the rapidly expanding market for personalised cloud TV and video technology,” said Jay Fulcher, CEO of Ooyala. “With todays news, we combine the backing of one of the strongest telecommunications companies in the world with the intensity and agility of an independent Silicon Valley company.

“This combination accelerates our growth and pace of innovation, while we remain laser-focused on helping media companies everywhere win in an industry undergoing massive transformation.”

“Telstras global customer relationships, our established presence in Asia and proven integration capabilities, combined with our expertise in online video and investment in Foxtel provide us a unique opportunity to succeed in this growth market,” said David Thodey, CEO of Telstra.