Looking to become a primary supplier of software and systems that help service providers determine how bandwidth is deployed and allocated, service broker and signaling gateway provider Tekelec (TKLC) said it is making two acquisitions, of Camiant, Inc. and Blueslice Networks Inc., totaling about $165 million.
Based in Marlborough, Mass., Camiant provides policy control software to mobile carriers. Blueslice is a leader in subscriber-data management tools.
Together, the pair of acquisitions (the Blueslice has already closed) will allow Tekelec to “help shape the definition of next-generation core networks as global service providers evolve to all-Internet protocol (IP) architectures such as long-term evolution (LTE) and IP multimedia subsystem (IMS).” Tekelec aims to combine several back-office policy management and control functions – including the management of sessions and subscriber data, service brokering, network and business intelligence, as well as mobile messaging – into one package to become a leader in the market for what some have taken, unfortunately, to calling Service Provider IT, or “SPIT.”
Wall Street, meanwhile, is hammering Tekelec’s share price after the company reported its quarterly earnings. While earnings-per-share rose 11 percent over the same period a year ago, revenues were down 1 percent, at $116.0 million, and the company lowered its forecasts for year. Tekelec shares are off nearly 20 percent today.
Faced with unprecedented amounts of data traffic, particularly over mobile networks, service providers are seeking new tools to monitor and control their networks and service platforms. Tekelec is pushing the concept of “Intelligent Data Management,” which uses software algorithms to sample network traffic in real-time and enable more dynamic responses to network performance issues, demand for personalized services, and application support requirements.
The company is also spinning the Camiant purchase as a response to the tough Net-neutrality stance from FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, who said he plans to reclassify broadband access as a telecommunications service, giving the commission more regulatory control over operators. Camiant’s software, Tekelec CEO Frank Plastina told Dow Jones, gives operators new tools to manage network resources without having to throttle bandwidth to high-use customers.
