Colin C. Haley

In a blockbuster telecom equipment deal underlining the growing importance of network security, Juniper Networks will buy NetScreen Technologies for $4 billion in stock. Under the deal, expected to close in the second quarter, Juniper will exchange 1.404 shares of its stock for each share of NetScreen. The companies’ directors have approved the merger; shareholders […]

Consumers aren’t the only ones betting on Vonage. As demand for VoIP moves forward and regulators increasingly step back, investors are calling the Edison, N.J., VoIP company with cash. The development is quite a switch from the last two years when venture capitalists steered clear of telecom firms. Today, less than three months after banking […]

Amtrak and AT&T Wireless have signed a five-year deal that will put Wi-Fi access points in six of the railroad’s busiest train stations. The networks will be operational in early summer in the following depots: Boston Route 128 Station; Providence; New York Penn Station; Philadelphia 30th Street Station; Wilmington; and Baltimore Penn Station. “We want […]

Seeking savings as its wireline telecom business slips, Sprint has awarded five-year, multi-billion-dollar call center outsourcing contract to IBM . Big Blue will manage several Sprint call centers with a goal of reducing call times and increasing the number of queries handled by automated phone and Web self-help systems. As part of the overhaul, the […]

An improving economy and contributions from its storage, security, wireless and IP telephony groups led Cisco Systems to higher second-quarter sales. As part of the company’s fiscal second quarter, CEO John Chambers also said he would like to eventually have offerings in 12 promising niches, either through acquisition, partnership or internal development. The company is […]

With 4 million dial-up subscribers and 1 million broadband users, EarthLink knows that the slower form of Internet access service will be around for years. Given that, it is doing what it can to keep those narrowband users satisfied, so they’ll stay with the Atlanta-based Internet service provider when they’re ready to upgrade to high-speed […]

In a merger of supply chain specialists, software maker Verticalnet has purchased privately held consulting firm Tigris Corp. for about $9.2 million in cash and stock. For Verticalnet, of Malvern, Pa., the acquisition is expected to double its 2004 revenue and triple its customer base. The combined company will operate under the Verticalnet name. There […]

Extending its relationship with an important customer, communications semiconductor specialist Agere Systems has signed a new $200 million supply contract with mobile phone maker Samsung. The Agere-powered handsets will support a number of applications including high-speed Internet, video downloads and Java-enabled video games. “We go back as far as 2000 with Samsung,” Glen Haley, a […]

Inflexion Communications has launched with a new approach to selling Voice over Internet protocol services to cash-strapped municipal governments and nonprofits. The Detroit firm’s Xtend IP program aims to help public sector decision-makers answer two questions: How do we spend dollars more effectively for communications services? How do we redirect those savings to create commerce […]

In a bid to stem its losses and bolster its low-cost PC offerings, Gateway is buying eMachines for about $235 million in cash and stock. The deal — consisting of $30 million cash and 50 million Gateway shares — creates the third-largest PC company in the United States (behind Dell and Hewlett-Packard) and the eighth-largest […]

In a move that will end an acrimonious lawsuit between the two companies, The Thomson Corporation is buying the remaining 90 percent of Corporate Communications Broadcast Network (CCBN) it doesn’t already own. Terms of the deal between the financial information and data giant and online investor services firm were not disclosed. The agreement is expected […]

AT&T Wireless has solicited an acquisition bid from minority stakeholder NTT DoCoMo in an effort to increase the field of suitors and its selling price, according to regulatory filings. The company is also reportedly weighing a $30 billion cash offer from Cingular, the mobile joint venture between SBC and BellSouth . DoCoMo already owns 16 […]