Convergys acquires Cygent, quietly

Cincinnati-based billing and customer care provider Convergys Corporation acquired Cygent this week for just under $5 million in cash. Convergys reserved comment on the deal and plans to offer more detail in the coming weeks.

A Convergys spokeswoman said decisions on staffing arrangements have not been announced up to this point. The company will pick up real estate from Cygent’s offices in San Francisco, and Vienna, VA.

The early take on the benefit of this acquisition to Convergys is access to Cygent’s Tier 1 clients, including BellSouth, Qwest and WorldCom. Cygent also does business with Genuity (recently acquired by Level 3), Telecom Italia, Bell Canada Enterprises, Teleglobe and Looking Glass Networks.

“We have a strong wireline customer base and have been profitable for about a year,” said a Cygent spokesman. Convergys said the acquisition would increase its installed base of global Tier 1 wireline and next generation providers and would be neutral to its earnings in 2003.

Cygent, which changed its name from Bluedot Systems in March of 1999, found early success selling e-commerce solutions that provided Web-enabled access to carriers’ order management, customer care and other operations supports systems applications. The company broadened its market share when its third product release in March of 2001 found a home with Tier 1 carriers.

“The president of Cygent feels it is very hard for any company right now that does less than $100 million in revenue to be viable as a standalone business,” Cygent’s spokesman said.