BAY MICROSYSTEMS ACQUIRES PARAMA

Packet network processor firm Bay Microsystems had a good week last week, announcing it first-time profitability and acquiring system-on-a-chip maker Parama Networks. This week, it hopes to keep the positive vibe in place with a live demonstration of triple-play service support at Supercomm 2005.

Bay raised funding — $8.4 million — from new and existing investors to get the deal for privately held Parama done, though the financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Chuck Gershman, president and CEO of Bay Microsystems, said the two companies had similar philosophies about where public network switching and transport gear is headed. “In network transport, we are looking at a vision for a new type of carrier-class box — smaller, more modular and highly scalable,” he said. “[Parama] give us a more diverse product portfolio and the capability for a single product to support multiple protocols.” Those protocols include Sonet, ATM, frame relay, Ethernet, IPv4, IPv6 and others.

“Ethernet is emerging as a very viable access protocol for carriers, but we're not seeing it today as an end-to-end protocol,” Gershman said. “There is a need for more.”

The Supercomm technology demonstration will involve Bay Microsystems, Marconi (see related story on page 20), Network Equipment Technologies and Naval Research Laboratories. “We'll demonstrate a full triple-play packet solution on 10 Gigabit transport,” Gershman said. “We'll show simultaneous voice, video and data in high-resolution and jitter free.”