The Sunnyvale, California-based startup also announced it had raised $9m in its first round of venture capital financing, which it will use on product development and sales and marketing.
Agito claims its mobile platform is the first to enable a seamless WiFi-cellular handoff – while a user is on the same call – based on set geographic locations within a building or on an enterprise campus.
We’re filling the gaps in enterprise dual mode, said company cofounder and VP of marketing Pejman Roshan. I do believe we’ve stumbled onto one of the last great white spaces in networking technology.
Agito’s location-based platform differs from other convergence technology that tracks the location of a handset every 30 seconds or so, Roshan said. Instead, Agito creates a routing location where the handoff occurs as soon as the handset passes it.
For example, an IT administrator can mark a doorway using Agito’s client tool that captures all the RF information at that particular location. The software then creates a report about that location and sends it to Agito’s single-rack router. The router coalescences that information and distributes it to all the clients installed on handsets. So, whenever a phone detects that area then the call is routed from any carrier’s cellular network to the enterprises’ WiFi network, or vice versa.
Other convergence platforms determine which network to use based on the strongest-available signal. Roshan said these methods have resulted in poor user experience as Motorola and Avaya have found because deployments vary too much.
Agito’s so-called RoamAnywhere Mobility Router 4000 Series and client software is slated to launch in the US by year’s end, and will be scalable to 1,000 simultaneous users. Pricing starts at $24,995. A smaller version, the 20000 Series, will support 100 users and costs $9,995.
European availability is planned for late 2008.
Agito, which was formed by ex-Cisco engineers, hopes to add global positioning system capability to its platform next year for GPS-enabled phones, Roshan said. The company, which is working with Microsoft and Nokia, also plans to expand support for more PBXs and Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, he said.
Agito’s technology also will work with WiMax, 3G and 4G networks, Roshan said.
The company, which employs about 40 staff, plans to expand outside the US sometime next year, Roshan said. It would not be unreasonable to assume either EMA or Asia Pacific, he said.
Our View
One potential barrier to Agito’s success would be carriers blocking this type of technology in order to keep up usage minutes on their cellular networks. However, as Roshan pointed out, handset makers are beginning to bypass carriers now. He pointed to Nokia and HTC having inked US and international distribution deals with companies like Dell.
The enterprise purchasing model for mobile phones is also changing. With the advent of smart phones, IT departments are beginning to procure phones, rather than corporate purchasing departments that buy standard office supplies. This would work in Agito’s favor if carriers do become uncooperative.
But the vast majority of enterprises still buy the bulk of their mobile phones directly from carriers, which gives them the power to disable technologies like Agito’s.
