Justice OKs GeoEye-DigitalGlobe merger

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HERNDON, Va., Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The U.S. Justice Department has given the "all-clear" to anti-trust issues pertaining to the proposed combination of GeoEye Inc. and DigitalGlobe Inc.

GeoEye is a leading source of geospatial information and insight, DigitalGlobe, with its own constellation of satellites, also provides high-resolution Earth imagery. The boards of directors and stockholders of both companies have approved the merger, which is expected to occur at the end of this month.

GeoEye is a leading source of geospatial information and insight for decision makers and analysts, who need a clear understanding of our changing world to protect lives, manage risk and optimize resources," GeoEye said.

The combination of DigitalGlobe and GeoEye creates a global leader in Earth imagery and geospatial analysis," said Jeffrey Tarr, president and chief executive officer of DigitalGlobe said at the announcement of the proposed merger.

"Together we will create a more efficient, more diversified and more capable company, better positioned to thrive in a time of unprecedented pressure on our nation's defense budget.

"Once the merger is complete, we will emerge as an industry-leading, geospatial information business that does even more to help our customers better understand our changing planet. In so doing, we will further enable our customers to save time, save money and save lives."

Once the transaction is completed, the combined companies will be named DigitalGlobe, with a 10-member board of directors -- six initial members from the current DigitalGlobe board and four from the board of GeoEye.