Newbridge Networks Inc has gone to Rennes, France, to acquire switched Ethernet, X.25 and Frame Relay specialist OST SA on undisclosed terms.The acquisition follows last October’s technical and sales partnership between the two companies. According to Eric Andrews, director of product management for Newbridge, there was two primary reasons for the acquisition: firstly Newbridge is anxious to increase its business in France – France Telecom is already a major customer, and Europe is an important region for the company, accounting for around 30% of its revenues – and secondly because the deal allows Newbridge to enter the burgeoning LAN switch market. OST offers the modular Xcellys switch, which uses a fault-tolerant Asynchronous Transfer Mode switched core, and which comes with options for Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Frame Relay and ATM connectivity. Newbridge plans to integrate this with its VIVID software, the bulk of the work being to provide support for the ATM Forum’s Multiprotocol Over ATM (MPOA) standard within Xcellys – despite the fact that MPOA is still at a very early stage in its development, Newbridge claims to have already implemented it. In this way, says Newbridge, the Xcellys will become a natural complement to its existing stackable edge devices. Because OST’s technologies take Newbridge into new areas, no job losses are expected as a result of the deal. Lionel Hovsepian, vp and general manager of Newbridge’s existing French subsidiary, will become general manager of the merged company. The current president of OST, Thao Lane, will become chairman, and will gain a seat on the Newbridge European Executive Committee. Newbridge says it does not expect the deal to materially affect its earnings.
