Diebold buys Data Information Management Systems

Diebold Inc., a provider of electronic voting solutions, has acquired Data Information Management Inc., the company announced Jan. 23. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The acquisition will complement the suite of offerings that Diebold of North Canton, Ohio, offers in the electronic voting arena, said Thomas Swidarski, Diebold's vice president of strategic development and global marketing.

"The addition of DIMS will further streamline and enhance Diebold's proven capabilities of providing a total voting solution that integrates everything from voter registration and voter outreach, to poll worker training, the casting of ballots and the tabulation of results on election day," he said.

DIMS of Costa Mesa, Calif., is a provider of flexible voter registration solutions to both county and state customers, including Los Angeles County, Calif., where the company has installed a voter registration system that serves more than five million voters.

DIMS also has developed an electronic poll book solution that can electronically provide voter registration data at individual voting locations. The electronic poll book is designed to contain data on all voters within the entire jurisdiction, and eliminate the need for, and expense associated with, the printed registration book.

The poll book also electronically stories voter history information that can be uploaded to the voter registration system immediately following the election, eliminating the cost and time required to manually input information on voter history.

Diebold has more than 13,000 employees and annual sales of $1.76 billion.