Sema Group UK Ltd, the UK-based subsidiary of Sema Group Plc, the Anglo-French IT services and consultancy, has acquired Meridian Information Systems Ltd, the UK systems company for the bus industry, for 2.8m pounds in cash. Transport services currently earns 15% of Sema’s full year 1997 revenues, of 1.13bn pounds, and this purchase provides an entrance to another vertical for the UK transport arm, which is currently active in rail, airlines and public authority highways services. Meridian is the market leader in the UK bus market providing depot operations, fleet management and engineering, finance and administration systems, according to Sema. It saw revenues in 1997 of 2.9m pounds, although it did not disclose its profits, and employs 40 people in Stockport, Cheshire. It is currently in talks with travel agencies and telecom companies, among others, to discuss ways to incorporate e-payments, reservations via mobile phones, kiosks at terminals, smartcards for payments and intermodal payments into its transport services. Intermodal payment is the ability to use one ticket to use any form of public transport. The UK has deregulated its public transport systems further and faster than the rest of Europe, according to the company, and it is optimistic that it can use its experience to expand further into Europe.
