More Secret Than It
Procket Networks, a Silicon Valley start-up that continues to keep its research and development hand close to its vest, has lured away yet another of its competitors executives. Randall Kruep, formerly senior vice president of worldwide customer operations at Redback Networks, has been named president and chief executive. Prockets management team includes a number of former Cisco Systems and Juniper Networks execs, as well as the engineer who developed key software for both companies. The buzz is that the company will make a run at Cisco and Juniper with next-generation networking gear.
Gig-Easy Money
The flow of venture capital and private investment hasnt slowed for Gigabit Ethernet networkers Yipes Communications and Telseon. Yipes just closed on a $200 million round of financing that included investments from Intel and Soros Private Equity. Telseon, based in Denver, wound up with $100 million in equity investments and $75 million in supplier financing from Cabletron Systems, DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, Foundry Networks and U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray.
Good Deal
Troubled Lucent Technologies had some good news last week: Verizon Communications will buy equipment, software and services to help build its $1 billion global optical network.
Smart Deals
Smart-antenna maker Metawave Communications and the Samsung Group say they will develop a wireless base station that includes Metawaves signal-boosting technology. The new gear should boost capacity and improve performance of existing and new Code Division Multiple Access networks. The technology is particularly important in the deployment of third-generation networks, says Marconi Mobile, which recently acquired a 10 percent stake in smart-antenna software developer ArrayComm.
