Yes, it was announced:
biz.yahoo.com
Thursday July 27, 4:19 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
MRV Announces Second-Quarter Results and the Acquisition of AstroTerra Corp.
Unification of Optical Wireless Activities to Take Place Under Newly Formed Optical Access Inc.
CHATSWORTH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 27, 2000-- MRV Communications Inc. (Nasdaq:MRVC - news) today announced closing the acquisition of AstroTerra Corp., a pioneer in the development of free-space optical wireless technology.
This acquisition, together with the acquisition of JOLT, announced earlier this year, propels Optical Access Inc. into a premier position as the leading supplier of optical wireless solutions.
Newly formed Optical Access Inc. develops, manufactures and markets optical wireless systems that enable a fundamental shift in the design of the access network. The company's products create an unconstrained optically meshed networks with intelligent switching, provisioning and aggregation Features.
Together with its WDM fiber solutions, Optical Access eliminates the bottleneck between the user's premises and the backbone network. This allows a provider to bypass the incumbent carrier's copper access network, to quickly and cost-effectively establish enhanced high-speed broadband services.
The Optical Access solutions enable faster deployment and increased bandwidth over competing solutions. The company's switched meshed architecture and redundant features provide service availability in all weather conditions.
AstroTerra was founded in 1992 and quickly established itself as the recognized leader in the high-speed optical wireless communications field. The company's strong intellectual property includes patented technology that uses multiple transmit apertures to avoid atmospheric scintillation fade. This allows wireless optical transmission up to 5 kilometers.
In partnership with Lucent Technologies, AstroTerra was the first to demonstrate a working laser communication system capable of transferring data at rates of 2.5 Gbps over a range of 2.4 kilometers. AstroTerra's new TerraLink Fusion systems combine an optical communication link with an automatic radio frequency back-up to provide 100 percent wireless availability, even in the worst weather conditions.
AstroTerra has shown great success in developing high-speed satellite laser communications technology, most notably with the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization and U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command.
The Space Technology Research Vehicle -2 (STRV-2) is the first satellite-to-ground experiment capable of transmitting information at Gigabit speeds over a distance of two thousand kilometers.
Dr. Eric Korevaar, president of AstroTerra, commented: ``We are very excited to join forces with an innovative, forward-thinking company like MRV Communications. Combining our expertise in optical wireless technology with the comprehensive solution that Optical Access offers represents a strong step forward in bringing ultra high-speed wireless solutions to the last-mile telecommunications arena.''
Noam Lotan, president and chief executive officer of MRV, commented: ``Acquiring AstroTerra Corp. establishes Optical Access as the leader in optical wireless technology. This technology is poised to make a strong impact on the last mile broadband access. Wireless access is cheaper and faster to install than fiber and can deliver the high bandwidth that users require.
``With our robust product line, the experience of thousands of optical wireless installations, and substantial ownership of intellectual property, MRV stands to capitalize on the emerging opportunities in this field. We intend to file for an Initial Public Offering of Optical Access within 90 days.''
Separately, MRV announced closing the acquisitions of Optronics International Corp. (``OIC'') and Quantum Optech Inc. (``QOI''), now part of Luminent Inc.
Organizational Changes in Management
The following changes took place in the management of Luminent. Dr. William R. Spivey, former president of the Network Products group of Lucent Technologies, was appointed president, chief executive officer and director of Luminent.
Eric Blachno, former managing director of Research and a financial analyst for PMG, was appointed vice president of Finance and chief financial officer of Luminent.
Khalid (Ken) Ahmad resigned his position as general manager of Luminent and in so doing, is no longer an officer at MRV.
Dr. Mark Heimbuch was appointed vice president and chief technology officer of Luminent.
In addition, Dan Avida, former chairman and CEO of Electronics for Imaging, Richard S. Hill, chairman and CEO of Novellus Systems and Amos Wilnai, chairman of MMC Networks, joined the newly formed board of directors of Luminent.
The following changes in management took place at MRV and its subsidiaries. At iTouch Communications, Philippe Szwarc was appointed CEO, Mary Jane Gruninger was appointed executive vice president of Research and Development and Engineering and Francois-Henri Worm, founder of CES, was appointed chief technology officer. Ofer Iny, vice president of Engineering at Zuma Networks, is no longer an officer of MRV. In addition, Guy Avidan will head Optical Access Inc.
Financials
Revenues for the quarter were $73,935,000, up from $73,251,000 in the second quarter of 1999. Including non-recurring charges, net loss for the second quarter of 2000, was $27,750,000 compared with net income of $525,000 in the quarter ended June 30, 1999.
Including non-recurring charges, basic and diluted loss per share for the second quarter of 2000 were 44 cents compared with basic and diluted earnings per share of 1 cent in the second quarter of 1999. Excluding non-recurring charges, basic and diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2000 were 2 cents, compared with basic earnings per share of 8 cents and diluted earnings per share of 7 cents in the second quarter of 1999.
Revenues for the six months ended June 30, 2000, were $139,007,000, compared with $143,367,000 for the corresponding six-month period in 1999. Including non-recurring charges, net loss for the six months ended June 30, 2000, was $33,614,000 compared with a net loss of $384,000 for the corresponding period in 1999.
Excluding non-recurring charges, net income for the six months ended June 30, 2000 was $1,502,000, compared with net income of $6,488,000 for the corresponding period in 1999. Including non-recurring charges, basic and diluted losses per share for the six months ended June 30, 2000, were 56 cents compared with basic and diluted losses per share of 1 cent, for the six months ended June 30, 1999.
Excluding non-recurring charges, basic earnings per share were 3 cents and diluted earnings per share were 2 cents for the six months ended June 30, 2000, compared with basic and diluted earnings per share of 12 cents, for the six months ended June 30, 1999. |
