Santa Clara, Calif.-based 8×8, Inc. Tuesday said it has sold off its French subsidiary Centile to British investment company, Sunleigh Investments Ltd.
The deal worth an estimated $1.27 million (1.1 million Euros) will include cash payments to Sunleigh through the end of the year.
Centile, which is based in the French city of Sophia Antipolis, develops and markets hosted iPBX
Under the terms of the agreement, Centile Europe gains a non-exclusive technology license as well as an exclusive selling and marketing license in Europe and the United States for eighteen months after the deal closes.
The company said certain assets and employees of the Centile Europe business will remain with 8×8.
As the company formerly known as Netergy Networks, 8×8 has been adjusting its portfolio to compete better with likes of rivals Agere and Broadcom.
The company markets semiconductors and software that enable voice and video communication over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. Its Netergy Microelectronics unit designs and sells processors and software that compress and decompress signals for voice-over-IP and voice-over-packet transmissions. Third-party manufacturers make 8×8’s chips.
Recently, 8×8 announced plans to lay off about 40 percent of its staff in the face of tough market conditions.
An 8×8 spokesman told Dow Jones Business News the asset sale is in line with the company’s strategy shift, focusing more on its Packet8 broadband telephone service.
