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5by5 Networks Acquired By ServionTMCnet Contributing Writer
India-based Servion, one of the fastest growing companies specializing in customer interaction management, has reportedly acquired 5by5 Networks, a privately held technology company that converges legacy voice and data networks with existing and emerging devices. In an all cash deal for an undisclosed sum, Servion will incorporate employees of 5by5 Networks into a new regional R&D and business center in Milpitas, Calif. K. Balakrishnan, managing director and CEO of Servion, refused to disclose the amount paid for the acquisition on the basis that he was bound by a non-disclosure agreement. Since 1999, 5by5 Networks has continuously developed products that converge legacy voice and data networks with existing and emerging devices. It has successfully developed an extensive portfolio of innovative contact center technologies by integrating the power of Internet Protocol (IP) for managing and routing telephone calls, e-mails, faxes, SMS and chats. By incorporating these services into its core software suite, Servion can help enterprises to seamlessly scale their contact centers to span multiple sites across the globe. According to Datamonitor, Servion, with its global clientele in 41 countries and over 1000 installations, will grow to $2.6 billion market by 2008.The company has provided support to many corporations like banking and finance, government, healthcare, hospitality, insurance, manufacturing, outsourced Call Centers, retail, telecom, transportation, and utilities. Balakrishnan said by entering into the partnership with 5by 5, Servion can enable its customers with a powerful business communications infrastructure for customer interaction management. The innovative technologies by 5by5 are sure to enhance Servion’s already established suite of products and analytical expertise. He feels that the combined strengths and resources will allow both the companies to address emerging opportunities and deliver enhanced capabilities for their growing base of global customers. “In the US, where the contact center market is mature, Servion will leverage the new technologies to compliment our professional services and systems integration offerings with Avaya, Nortel, Microsoft, Nuance and others,” said Chris Mills, general manager, Americas, for Servion. “We’ve been proactively reaching out and demonstrating this technology to our partners’ senior technology and business managers over the past three months and the feedback has been extremely positive. Their customers are demanding this type of interaction environment today and we’ll be working closely with them to deliver a seamless solution. According to Balakrishnan, the acquisition will be at a discount to the amount invested in 5by5 Networks by the venture capital firms. Servion will fund the acquisition using the company’s own funds and some equity that it raised some time back. Anuradha Shukla is a contributing writer from India. To see more of her articles, visit her columnist’s page. |