News Article
Oclaro makes $7.5m strategic investment
Oclaro has announced a $7.5 million investment in ClariPhy.
Optical products developer Oclaro has announced an investment of $7.5 million (£5.17 million) in privately-held fabless semiconductor company ClariPhy.
The company stated that a surge in demand for broadband services over recent years has meant increased bandwidth and improved performance is now required to meet the needs of consumers and this investment is a step in the process of making this happen.
The rise in demand for services such as social networking, video sharing, voice over internet protocol [VoIP] and cloud computing have all played a part in the growth of the broadband sector and Oclaro has built itself into a market leading position in the 40 Gb per second (Gbps) sector.
However, the firm is now looking to break into the 100 Gbps long-haul and ultra-long-haul markets, with its partnership with ClariPhy forming the bedrock of this new venture.
Alain Coulder, president and chief executive officer of Oclaro, said: "Through our investment and alliance with ClariPhy, Oclaro believes it will be able to offer its customers best-in-class electronics and optical technology as a complete solution from a single source."
He stated that the company expects to see a rise in the number of transceiver solutions for optical networks comprising of digital signal processing and mixed-signal electronics as the market matures.
"By leveraging the significant 40 nm CMOS technology innovation from ClariPhy, Oclaro will focus on optimising our future optical products to further increase bandwidth, improve network performance and lower the total cost of ownership for customers," Mr Coulder added.
The company is headquartered in San Jose, California and specialises in optical communications and laser components, modules and subsystems. It was formed in 2009 through the merger of Bookham and Avanex.
Meanwhile, ClariPhy is a developer of mixed-signal, advanced digital signal processing integrated circuits. It is also based in California and the firm's other investors include Norwest Venture Partners, Onset Ventures, Allegis Capital and Pacific General Ventures.
