Re: Fiberless Optic Broadband: Jolt/MRV a la TeraBeam/Lucent?
"MRV's Jolt is another that seldom gets any mention. Gotta wonder."
Dave- As you say, not too many know about Jolt. I happen to follow MRVC fairly closely so that is the only way I knew about it. And yet, I can't figure it out anymore than I can TeraBeam? I guess I'm still not convinced any of this is for real(beyond trials). Are there actual deployments(P-MP) you can point me to for some more information. Something beyond a test size trial.
Now to really add confusion to the fiberless optic players, here's what appears to be some kind of copycat idea out of MRVC. Sounds like what the author is hinting at, a MRV Telecom SP, is not so far-fetched. And it may be patterned after the Lucent-TeraBeam agreement, as he implies.
Won't be the first time MRV has copied another idea. They seemed to have followed a similar course that Osicom(sym:FIBR) has taken. Shunted off the money making part of the business(LAN plays) to re-focus on the much larger telecom market using the brain-power, not money making, talent they had in their stables. IMHO, it was a great idea for both companies that constantly struggled to grow the top and botton line. As an incubator, making money is of little concern. -MikeM(From Florida)
PS1 I hi-jacked this conversation from over on the FCTF thread as I was approaching this more from an investment angle versus a technical view. Sorry for the confusion it may cause.
PS2 This is threaded to a post by jbe describing the Lucent/TeraBeam JV. So it does tie in to that.
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MRVC's Jolt: Davnet, South America, and an MRV Telecom(?)
Mark Savolainen Smith
6/15/2000-- Yesterday, in what only can be called a rousing company update, Chet White of First Security Van Kasper, raised his (split-adjusted) 12 to 18 month price target for MRV Communications (MRVC) to $158.
Near the front of the report, after the Luminent headlines, and tucked between glowing reports on Zaffire and iTouch is a short paragraph on Jolt, MRV's wireless optical subsidiary. Not only is the neighborhood good (both Zaffire and iTouch are hot), but the news is too.
Jolt's (expected) IPO is getting closer: now potentially as early as Q3/Q4 of this year. It ppears that MRV is not simply planning to ride the coattails of big-boys AirFiber and TeraBeam, but to beat them out of the gate for commercial rollout, and with significant revenues.
Jolt is expected to be combined with MRV's opti- switch and fiber driver lines prior to its IPO: "[such a combination] could cause [Jolt's] 2001 revenue to significantly surpass (by three to fourfold) our estimate of $25 million."
This is not to be taken lightly. Revenues of $75 to $100 million are well beyond simply trials. That such sums are named, reflects confidence in contracts and meaningful rollout of the technology- not a gradual ramp, as might be expected from such bleeding-edge technology. If Jolt has such major contracts close at hand, its IPO should be memorable.
Davnet using Jolt
Davnet, a Wall Street Australian favorite 49% owned by Nippon Telephone & Telegraph, has been wiring office buildings (from Sydney to Hong Kong) and then connecting them to the Internet backbone with high bandwidth wireless solutions made by Jolt.
The beauty of the Jolt technology being used is that the wireless portion is in the unregulated spectrum, so no licensing is required. Also, since it is wireless, there are no right of way permits required.
The broadband "backbone" to a building is wireless and then the building's wiring is used to deliver broadband services to the individual unit. If many buildings can be signed up, the high speed wireless optical connections between the buildings create a network in and of themselves.
In his interview with Israelinvestor, Dr. Medved, founder of Jolt, pointed to a significant South American deal pending. Davnet's corporate presentation lists South America under future operations with Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires highlighted. Could these two items be related?
MRV Telecom
There is another potential source for Jolt revenues: an MRV telecom company. As far-fetched as it might sound, such a synergy would not be without precedent. For instance, TeraBeam (itself a wireless optics equipment company), in partnership with Lucent, has formed a telecom company, TeraBeam Internet Systems. Lucent will own 30% and TeraBeam 70%.
Similarly, MRV has registered the site: israel-telecom.com. Could this be a sign of a nascent MRV Telecom? If so, what might MRV's Israel Telecom be up to? And are there big-name partners? |
