April 12, 2004 Reston, VA -- λOPTICALSYSTEMS today announced that it has secured $14 million in Series B funding from Sevin Rosen Funds and ComVentures, two venture firms with strong track records in the telecommunications sector. The funding follows $10 million in Series A capital awarded to the company in March 2003.
"This second round of funding reflects λOPTICALSYSTEMS' strong performance to date, in introducing the first all-optical networking solutions to the government and carrier markets. It also indicates the high level of confidence our investors have in our technology and management team's ability to deliver innovative solutions that meet market requirements," said Dr. John C.W. Taylor, chairman, λOPTICALSYSTEMS. "With ever-increasing demands for higher bandwidth and the proliferation of IP, telecommunications carriers are pressed to deliver enhanced services as cost effectively as possible. At the same time, government agencies have growing requirements for fast, high-bandwidth data delivery, particularly in the realm of homeland security."
"Sevin Rosen Funds has confidence in λOPTICALSYSTEMS management team," said Amra Tareen, partner, Sevin Rosen Funds. "We believe λOPTICALSYSTEMS will help carriers and government agencies meet their unique challenges."
"λOPTICALSYSTEMS has the ability to truly transform optical networking as we know it today," said Cliff Higgerson, partner, ComVentures. "We are pleased to be a part of this exciting organization."
λOPTICALSYSTEMS offers a family of optical networking products, including the λCREATE software suite of integrated network management tools and the λNODE all-optical switching family. The company's λOptical Control Plane (λOCP) enables integrated visibility and management of the entire end-to-end network from a single dashboard or operation center.
λOPTICALSYSTEMS' key differentiator is its ability to deliver an all-optical network by integrating true optical switching with DWDM technology. DWDM technology allows data from different sources (SONET, IP, ATM, etc.) to travel together at the same time on one optical fiber, with each signal on a separate wavelength - maximizing network speed and optimization. However, when the signal reaches a node in a traditional DWDM network, it must convert to an electric signal before switching and routing to its next location - a process that is time-consuming and requires expensive transponder equipment.
λOPTICALSYSTEMS solutions enhance the benefits of DWDM technology with the capability to switch at the wavelength level. Signals do not have to convert from optical to electric and back to optical again at each node. Instead, all signal conversion and protocol-specific functions occur on the edge of the network, allowing core transmissions to be rapidly switched, routed, protected, and managed at the individual wavelength level - unobstructed by traditional switching technology. This capability enables customers to realize significant cost savings, as it reduces network capital requirements by up to 80%, according to the company.
Additional benefits of λOPTICALSYSTEMS technology include:
• Protocol independence. The core network is protocol and bit-rate independent, carrying each signal on its own wavelength and enabling cost-avoidances through the elimination of dedicated protocol conversion equipment.
• Fixed latency. The technology addresses the Federal market's requirement for non-variable delivery of critical data. It eliminates the random delays caused by signal processing at the nodes in traditional optical network topologies. Point-to-point delay is fixed, allowing the delivery of previously unattainable real-time, high-speed services throughout the network.
• Transparency. Because λOPTICALSYSTEMS solutions are designed to operate in an overlay fashion across existing network configurations, network components provide genuine transparency without any disruption of existing signals
• Simplicity and scalability. Network managers can plan, build, and manage new networks easily from one remote interface. For example, managers can provision new accounts or bring third party access or long-distance equipment online rapidly and remove these services with the same ease. The solutions' scalability enables organizations to expand capacity without large capital expenses, addressing the carrier market's requirement to increase bandwidth and availability at the lowest possible cost.
λOPTICALSYSTEMS was incorporated in March of 2003 by Sevin Rosen Funds and ComVentures. The company has developed and brought to market a complete family of optical networking products which allow end-to-end services delivery and network management over all-optical networks at the individual wavelength level. Headquartered in Reston, VA, λOPTICALSYSTEMS also operates an additional product development location in Holmdel, NJ.