Genband dipped into the M&A pool again on Tuesday to pick up a unified messaging specialist that could help Genband and its stable of cable operator customers tack on the kind of advanced commnications features that can ward off Skype and other over-the-top threats.
Roughly five months after acquiring mobile IP communications services firm Fring, Genband has inked a deal to buy uReach Technologies, a provider of voice, video and unified messaging services. Its product suite includes Advanced VoiceMail, VideoMail, and an app called VirtualReceptionist.
uReach’s known customers include Sprint Nextel, Verizon Communications, and América Móvil. Cox Communication is among uReach’s and Genband’s shared customers.
Genband declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal. A spokeswoman said Genband has extended job offers to the “majority of the uReach team.” Among them, uReach co-founder and CTO David Ittner will be joining Genband, while uReach CEO Krishnamurty Kambhampati will stay on as a consultant during the transition.
Genband, a top supplier of VoIP gear and software to several major operators including Comcast, said the addition of uReach will enable it to enhance its own platform with a comprehensive messaging portfolio that can be delivered to partners via the cloud or in-network.
“uReach has earned the trust of the service provider community, enabling today’s leading tier 1 carriers to modernize legacy voicemail systems with transformative mobile messaging and calling solutions,” said David Walsh, CEO of Genband, in a statement. “Their technology aligns with our software-driven, open standards-based approach to network transformation – enabling a graceful migration away from expensive and aging voicemail technologies to real-time communications solutions of the future.”
Genband has become a key supplier to the cable industry in recent years following its acquisitions of Cedar Point Communications and the VoIP unit of Nortel Networks. In addition to Comcast and Cox, other Genband MSO customers include Liberty Global, Charter Communications, Kabel Deutschland, Shaw Communications, Videotron, and Rogers Communications.
Holmdel, N.J.-based uReach was founded in 1998.
