Hi, Lexie here, also known as MaiOnHigh.
Have you ever heard of the OrqaFPV glasses? Of course you have! But did you know that Orqa recently acquired ImmersionRC?
OrqaFPV is a Croatian company known for the Orqa fpv.one goggles as well as their own HD system, beginner-friendly gear and a free simulator - OrqaFPV SkyDive. I personally love their Bluetooth system for the spark, which allows me to play the simulator on my phone!
ImmersionRC, on the other hand, is a Swiss-based company to whom we owe the Ghost system, RapidFire and most of the timing systems used in races around the world (MultiGP, DCL, Aircrasher, etc.). I don't know about you, but I used to love their IRC Tramp with the magic wand that allowed me to change channels on all the quads at the same time. (Well, almost. Faster than a LUA script or similar, anyway)
Although ImmersionRC has been established in the FPV space for a very long time, they have now merged with OrqaFPV on April 28, 2022 to form an FPV powerhouse.
Well... i can guess what might seem strange to you now: Why then does the headline say "Orqa acquires ImmersionRC", even though it appears to be a merger? Here is the official statement from Orqa:
Under the terms of the agreement, Orqa will acquire 100% of ImmersionRC, whose CEO Tony Cake will join the Orqa team as CTIO (Chief Technology Innovation Officer). All existing IRC products will continue to be sold, developed and supported.
In plain language, this really means that Orqa is taking the lead on the whole thing. What does that mean for us pilots? Apparently not much. According to the press release, all previous IRC products will continue to be developed and supported. Tony Cake (the ex-owner of IRC) will join Orqa as Chief Technology Innovation Officer. This means that none of the existing or new IRC products will continue to be developed by Toby Cake with his 20 years of experience in measurement technology and over 10 years of experience with FPV systems. Whether they will be released under the IRC or Orqa name remains to be seen.
Srdjan Kovacevic, CEO of ORQA, said:
With the acquisition of the IRC portfolio, Orqa now has one of the most complete drone technology portfolios in the world and is the only company in the Western Hemisphere that manufactures all drone building blocks in-house. We are delighted to welcome Tony - already a long-time partner and friend - to the Orqa team and look forward to moving forward together in these exciting and innovative times.
What could this mean? Is Orqa planning to develop its own FPV systems and drones for beginners and advanced pilots? It would be nice to have some competition to the DJI FPV drones, simply to bring more choice to the market. Producing the technology entirely in Europe is one of the steps that could make us (as Europeans and maybe the world) less dependent on Chinese products and the bottlenecks in China. Orqa prides itself on producing all its building blocks in-house. Does this mean that IRC products, some of which were previously manufactured in China, are now 100% manufactured in Europe?
In order to clarify these questions, we have no choice but to pursue the IRC - Orqa merger - or shall we just call it Orqa's new beginning. We'll keep you up to date!
Until then, your Lexie
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