May 17, 2013

Mellanox acquires silicon photonics developer for $82 million

When two companies come together to discuss M&A activity, the end goal is often not for one business to overpower the other. On the contrary, acquisitions can strengthen each organization's products and services.

Mellanox Technologies announced this week that it had purchased Kotura, Inc. at a total cash purchase price of approximately $82 million.

Mellanox officials said in a statement that the technology acquisition will help their company not only enhance its competitiveness in the industry, but also help it provide high-end interconnect solutions for servers and storage systems.

According to a press release, silicon photonics will play a significant role in the future of enabling high-speed networks.

Jean-Louis Malinge, president and CEO of Kotura, Inc., said in a statement that she is excited to work with Mellanox and continue moving her company forward.

"This acquisition is important for both companies to enable interconnect innovation for data centers that require solutions that move data faster and more efficiently," she said. "Together, we can execute faster and deliver better solutions based on Kotura's silicon photonics platform that delivers the demands of 100Gb/s interconnects and beyond."

Eyal Waldman, president, CEO and chairman of Mellanox Technologies, said in the press release that the acquisition will allow his company to produce 100Gb/s and faster interconnect solutions with higher-density optical connectivity at a lower cost.

As this transaction demonstrates, when two companies with similar goals are able to agree upon a mutually beneficial opportunity, it will help both organizations move forward. Furthermore, each firm's customers can receive better products. Especially as the business world continues to integrate more technology and software, companies that provide these options will have more chances to work together.