Given that Chipcom Corp is in the process of being acquired by 3Com Corp (CI No 2,716) and Xylogics Inc is being bought by Bay Networks Inc (CI No 2,744), Chipcom’s licensing of Xylogics’ Remote Annex 4000 remote access system for incorporation into modules for its ONline System Concentrator and ONcore Switching System (CI No 2,747) makes the deal essentially a Bay-3Com alliance. The two companies being acquired developed the Chipcom Communications Server Modules, which are said to combine terminal server, dial-in remote access via modem or ISDN terminal adaptors, and shared dial-out to on-line services and dial-up routing, use technology drawn from Chipcom’s OpenHub Program (CI No 2,502). Specifically, they use Chipcom’s carrier technology, which is said to provide support for any number of daughter boards or third-party products, and which uses a common interface to all of Chipcom’s switching systems. The modules come in 16- and 32-port versions, and are said to provide multiprotocol terminal server support for connection to Unix, Digital Equipment Corp or IBM Corp host machines. Dial-in access to TCP/IP, IPX and Apple Remote Access networks is also supported, while for management, there is a resident SNMP agent. Due to ship in 60 days, the 16-port ONline module is priced at $3,900, with the 32-port version at $5,000, while the 16-port ONcore module will cost $4,400, and the 32-port is $6,400. Chipcom admits that the company went with Xylogics – despite the fact that it will shortly be owned by a major rival to Chipcom’s own future parent – because it felt the quality of Xylogics’s technology made the deal worthwhile. The talks between Chipcom and Xylogics were initiated before the latter’s takeover by Bay was announced, but after consultations between Chipcom and 3Com, it was decided to proceed anyway. The fact that Xylogics will be run as an independent operating unit of Bay Networks is also said to have contributed to the deal being approved.
