Aperto Networks Raises $20 Million in Series D Funding
Company to expand global sales and support, complete WiMAX
certification and a comprehensive range of 802.16 solutions
Milpitas, Calif., March 8, 2004 - Aperto
Networks, a leading provider of WiMAX-class broadband wireless
access systems, announced today a $20 million Series D financing
round. Led by JK&B Capital and with participation from Aperto's
key existing investors including Canaan Partners, Alliance Ventures,
Innovacom, Tyco Ventures, Labrador Ventures, and Satwik Ventures,
this funding brings the company's total financial backing to $77
million.
Aperto will use the Series D funds to expand its
sales initiatives, further develop its technology portfolio to
complete certification of 802.16/WiMAX-compliant products, and
increase support for Aperto's global customers, which already
number over 120 service providers in over 40 countries.
"Aperto Networks is an excellent fit with our
investment criteria in the communications sector," said Al
DaValle, a long-standing partner with JK&B Capital. "Aperto
is a strong, revenue-stage company which has proven its ability
to win key carrier contracts, scale to volume delivery, and extend
its innovation to keep ahead of the pack with a highly differentiated
solution. The company's strong momentum in European, North American
and other international wireless carrier markets also strongly
validates its original strategy of focusing on carrier-class solutions
for business-grade multiservice delivery."
"We are pleased to have won the support of
JK&B Capital," emphasized Reza Ahy, Aperto Networks Chairman
and CEO. "The JK&B team represents some of the most selective
limited partners in the world and its principals hold a high bar
for performance. As former vice-president of Ameritech/SBC, Al
DaValle has tremendous depth in broadband access delivery, very
large-scale operations and RBOC network platform deployment. He
will be a strong addition to our board at this next critical phase
of Aperto's expansion."
Aperto Networks' WiMAX-class base stations and subscriber
units enable both licensed and unlicensed frequency broadband
wireless access for business-grade users. Providers use PacketWave®
systems to deliver wireless T1/E1 and Fractional T1/E1
speeds, wireless VPNs and VLANs, disaster recovery and Hot Spot
backhaul, as well as VoIP and streaming media.
About Aperto Networks
Aperto Networks is a leading provider of WiMAX-class multiservice
broadband wireless access systems for global markets. The company
was founded to provide a breakthrough solution to one of today's
critical network bottlenecks - last-mile broadband access. The
PacketWave system provides a family of base stations, subscriber
units, and associated radios and antennas in 2.5, 3.5 and 5 GHz
frequency bands for global point-to-point and point-to-multipoint
deployments. Its scalable systems and patent-pending technologies
support new wireless builds and complement existing wireline broadband
access technology. Aperto systems have been deployed by service
providers in 40 countries, meeting their needs for ease of installation,
IP-rich network functionality and cost effectiveness, while enabling
rapid provisioning and interference resilient operation in dense
urban to suburban locations. The company is a founder and leading
contributor to IEEE 802.16a/d as well as to ETSI-BRAN standards,
and a board member of the WiMAX Forum. For more information on
Aperto Networks, go to www.apertonet.com.
About JK&B Capital
JK&B Capital is a venture capital firm based in Chicago with
$900 million under management. The firm was founded in 1996 with
the belief that in addition to capital and financial savvy, successful
venture investing requires unique relationships and in-depth industry
and technical expertise in order to identify the most attractive
investment opportunities and consistently add value to portfolio
companies. For more information, visit the firm's website at www.jkbcapital.com.
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