Editor’s Notice: RCR Wi-fi Information goes all in for “Throwback Thursdays,” tapping into our archives to resuscitate the highest headlines from the previous. Hearth up the time machine, placed on these sepia-tinted shades, set the date for #TBT and benefit from the reminiscences!
NetScout makes main community monitoring acquisition of Danaher property
The information that community efficiency monitoring firm NetScout is shopping for $2.6 billion price of community testing, monitoring and safety property from worldwide tech and science conglomerate Danaher units the network-monitoring ecosystem up for substantial change. The transfer primarily triples NetScout’s workforce, and is being completed by means of a swap of $2.6 billion in NetScout frequent inventory that can be prolonged to Danaher so as to pay for the property of Tektronix Communications, elements of Fluke Networks, and community safety firm Arbor Networks, which had been all working as entities beneath the umbrella of Danaher’s communications enterprise. NetScout’s most up-to-date fiscal 12 months revenues had been $397 million, in comparison with the Danaher operations’ $836 million. Though the acquisition performs into present traits in community evaluation and the need for end-to-end capabilities, that is additionally in some methods a case of deja vu. This isn’t NetScout’s first acquisition of a a lot bigger entity than itself by means of a serious stock-based buy. Some historical past: In 2007, the corporate made a really related transaction with Community Basic. The privately held firm with a concentrate on deep-packet inspection for community evaluation and information mining had about 4,000 clients, in comparison with about 1,000 clients for NetScout on the time. … Learn extra
MasTec buys WesTower
Consolidation within the wi-fi infrastructure companies area continued this week with MasTec’s buy of WesTower Communications. Florida-based MasTec stated it paid $199 million in money, or about .45-times projected 2014 income, for 100% of WesTower’s fairness. Since 2011, WesTower had been owned by Canada’s Change Earnings Company. WesTower and MasTec each construct and preserve towers and deploy infrastructure for wi-fi carriers, and are a part of AT&T’s turf vendor program. WesTower not too long ago introduced that its contract with AT&T had been renewed for 3 years beginning Sept. 1. The corporate is energetic within the northwestern a part of the US, in addition to in Alaska. MasTec has labored carefully with AT&T for various years, and is a accomplice in AT&T’s Tower Crew Augmentation Program, by means of which contractors preserve devoted tower crews for AT&T. MasTec, a public firm, is concerned in building initiatives outdoors the wi-fi business, additionally serving the electrical utility and vitality pipeline industries, reporting complete income of $1.2 billion final 12 months. … Learn extra
Dash cuts jobs at Kansas HQ
Dash is reportedly shifting ahead on plans to chop jobs at its Overland Park, Kan., headquarters, in line with revealed stories. The Kansas Metropolis Star reported late final week that the nation’s No. 3 wi-fi provider was set to chop 452 jobs this month, which might convey complete cuts for the 12 months at its headquarters to greater than 900 jobs. In keeping with the report, which was based mostly on a submitting with the Kansas Division of Commerce, the newest cuts could be everlasting and that extra had been deliberate. In a Securities and Change Fee submitting late final month, Dash introduced plans to chop an undisclosed variety of jobs all through the month. Dash stated the strikes and would “cut back prices,” serving to Dash “turn into extra aggressive within the market.” “The plan is anticipated to incorporate steps to, amongst different issues, enhance operational efficiencies and cut back prices, because of which the corporate expects to incur materials expenses beneath typically accepted accounting ideas,” Dash famous within the submitting. The fabric expenses will embrace recognizing an roughly $160 million cost for its second fiscal quarter, which ended Sept. 30, including “nonetheless, further materials expenses related to future labor reductions could happen in future durations.” … Learn extra
Cell broadband use rises
A brand new report from the Nationwide Telecommunications and Data Administration displays the very fact that People have been quickly adopting cellular broadband use. NTIA’s report “confirms skyrocketing demand for gadgets that permit customers to entry Web purposes almost wherever,” in line with Lawrence Strickling, who’s assistant secretary of commerce for communications and knowledge at NTIA. The report relies on information from the U.S. Census Bureau collected in late 2012, and includes greater than 53,000 U.S. households. The info itself is not any shock to the cellular business, which has seen exploding information use for years now, nevertheless it does put some official census numbers to cellular utilization and likewise has some stats to mirror cellular know-how’s function in narrowing the so-called “digital divide” between well-off households and people of decrease socio-economic standing. For example, the report discovered that amongst households with household incomes beneath $25,000 per 12 months, cell phone use grew from 73% to 77% and amongst disabled Americas, cell phone use elevated from 68% to 72% – each reflecting will increase of 4%. The census information noticed the identical quantity of improve of cell phone use by senior 65 and older, from 68% to 72%. … Learn extra
FCC seems at 600 MHz bidding guidelines
The Federal Communications Fee late final week rolled out a discover of proposed rulemaking linked to bidding plans for the deliberate spectrum public sale of 600 MHz licenses. The NPRM consists of the potential to alter guidelines tied to the FCC’s controversial designated entity program, which gives bidding credit to pick entities based mostly on their dimension and possession construction. A part of the proposal seems to take away boundaries stopping DEs from leasing spectrum to different non-DE operators. The FCC can also be trying to re-classify the monetary threshold on potential DEs to offer a 35% bidding credit score for enterprise with common annual gross revenues not exceeding $4 million for the previous three years; a 25% bidding credit score for common annual gross revenues not exceeding $20 million for the previous three years; and a 15% bidding credit score for companies with lower than $55 million in common annual gross revenues for the previous three years. As well as, the FCC will look to re-visit the “defaulter rule” that requires increased up-front down funds from firms with a historical past of defaulting on funds to the federal government company tied to earlier spectrum auctions. The FCC not too long ago introduced plans to loosen up the defaulter guidelines for the upcoming AWS-3 public sale scheduled to start Nov. 13. The FCC can also be shifting ahead with plans to look into the present allowance of joint bidding in spectrum auctions, one thing that was not too long ago introduced up as a part of the FCC’s seeming makes an attempt to dissuade an try by Dash to accumulate smaller rival T-Cell US. … Learn extra
Hype and hope for sensible grids
CHICAGO – Cisco Methods tackled head on the notion that some elements of the much-hyped “Web of Issues” had been certainly over-hyped, internet hosting a panel session at this week’s Web of Issues World Discussion board asking if the “sensible grid bubble” was extra hype or hope. The panel, which was moderated by Cisco’s RJ Mahadev, who’s enterprise improvement lead for the corporate’s IoT companies, appeared to conclude that the market was maybe a little bit of each. Don Stucket, who’s VP of know-how at Canada’s BC Hydro, indicated that from his standpoint as a public utility, “there may be a number of hype in a number of the segments,” although what he termed “maturity” in others. “It is a very complicated enterprise with a number of algorithms with a number of hype round completely different know-how and companies that may assist in determining these points,” Stucket defined. BC Hydro has dipped its toe into the sensible grid area having rolled out 1.8 million sensible readers throughout its service footprint. Scott Harden, who’s VP of consulting at BitStew Methods, stated he thought utilities had been principally by means of the hype cycle and are wanting on the sensible grid alternatives extra pragmatically. Harden defined that many utilities are coping with getting old infrastructure that’s arising for alternative, and that utilities want to see if it made sense to spend the funding {dollars} on plugging in new gear that might function in a wise grid surroundings. … Learn extra
Try the RCR Wi-fi Information Archives for extra tales from the previous.