Wants to add to network performance and applications suite
Tekelec today announced it has entered into a definitive
agreement to acquire privately held telecommunications solution provider, Steleus Group, Inc. Tekelec, a leading global supplier of telecommunications products for next-generation fixed, mobile and packet networks, is purchasing the company to advance its network and service performance management capabilities, enhance its applications portfolio and extend the company’s global reach.
Steleus is a real-time performance management company that
supplies network-related intelligence to telecom operators. Tekelec will purchase 100 percent of Steleus’ outstanding stock for approximately $56 million, consisting of approximately $29 million of cash and $27 million of Tekelec’s stock. The acquisition is expected to close in Tekelec’s fiscal fourth quarter, pending regulatory and contractual requirements.
As strategic partners, Tekelec and Steleus have collaborated on commercial deployments with tier one, two and three operators. The company and its personnel and products will form the cornerstone of Tekelec’s new Communications Software Solutions business unit, which also will include existing Tekelec applications, and will be led by Rick Mace, current president, CEO and Chairman of the Board of
Steleus.
According to Fred Lax, Tekelec president and CEO, “Steleus has proven that its software-centric approach reduces time to market for new services and speeds the migration to next-generation networks, while lowering the risk, because operators can monitor the quality of new services immediately. Consequently, operators are able to achieve higher average revenue per user, increase profitability and reduce customer churn. Tekelec has enjoyed a successful partnership with
Steleus, delivering value-added solutions to premier operators around the globe, and we have already begun aligning our product roadmaps as part of this relationship.
“As a leading developer of General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) solutions, Steleus reinforces Tekelec’s commitment to offering a wide range of applications to further enhance and differentiate the company’s next-gen switching and signaling product offerings. Steleus supplies key business intelligence applications with which operators can ensure quality of service, detect fraud and analyze customer behavior and service usage.
“With robust real-time monitoring and management capabilities for legacy and next-generation networks, Steleus strengthens our ongoing commitment to supplying value-added applications, providing our customers with critical network, service and customer-related information to drive decision-making, application delivery and enhance the subscriber experience with proactive customer care. Ultimately,with these unparalleled capabilities, operators realize substantial cost savings.
“With a customer base of 100 operators in over 35 countries and operations in the United States, Europe and Asia Pacific, Steleus further enables our global expansion,” Lax concluded.
After closing, on a GAAP basis, Tekelec expects the transaction to reduce its Q4 2004 EPS by approximately $0.01 – $0.02, excluding any potential in-process research and development charge. Tekelec expects the 2004 earnings reduction to include amortization of acquired intangibles and the amortization of deferred compensation totaling approximately $1.0 million, pretax. For 2005, on a GAAP basis, Tekelec expects the transaction to be approximately $0.01 – $0.02 accretive to
its EPS. Tekelec expects 2005 expenses to include amortization of acquired intangibles and the amortization of deferred compensation totaling approximately $2.0 million, pretax.