Ericsson acquires TouchWave, Inc. provider of enterprise IP-telephony solutions

Ericsson acquires TouchWave, Inc. provider of enterprise IP-telephony solutions Ericsson acquires TouchWave, Inc., a Silicon Valley based provider of enterprise IP-telephony solutions. Under the terms of the agreement, Ericsson paid USD 46 million (SEK 380 million) in cash. The TouchWave product range targets small and medium sized businesses and branch networks of larger organizations. TouchWave products are designed to deliver significantly lower costs for communications, ease of management and administration and offer end-user services on a single, IP-based network platform. The acquisition gives Ericsson fully featured Internet Protocol (IP) PBX systems that support with voice over IP, wireless LAN terminals, existing analogue handsets and third party software applications for office use. "The IP-PBX market is driven by the need to reduce costs and to consolidate scarce networking resources," said Haijo Pietersma, executive vice president and head of Ericsson's Business Segment Enterprise Solutions. "It offer users new and enhanced IP-enabled network services. The TouchWave products are particularly attractive to Internet Service Providers (ISP) who need to add value to their present data network services." TouchWave's WebSwitch 2000 and WebSwitch 1608 complement Ericsson's Business Phone 250, MD110 PBX product lines and offer telephony solutions to customers building IP-centric networks. The WebSwitch family has received favorable reviews and numerous awards. Through this acquisition, Ericsson can enhance its presence in the US and target new distribution channels. TouchWave's IP PBXs are turnkey network appliances that provide full feature PBX services, voice mail and auto attendant across IP networks. The TouchWave products can be managed remotely from a Windows 95/98 or NT PC from any location on the network. The products plug directly into the IP network through an Ethernet port and connect to the public switched telephone network (PSTN) through a variety of standard analog and digital interfaces. Ericsson also plans to use TouchWave's technology and technical expertise to accelerate and enhance its existing developments in IP-telephony. Ericsson plans to integrate TouchWaves' IP-telephony technology with Ericsson's range of IP access products (the Tigris multi-service access platform) for easy scalability and smoother integration of enterprise networks to the carrier edge. This new product line will create a family of all-in-one network products supporting voice, data and video services. Ericsson is the leading provider in the new telecoms world, with communications solutions that combine telecom and datacom technologies with freedom of mobility for the user. With more than 100,000 employees in 140 countries, Ericsson simplifies communications for its customers - network operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers - the world over. Please visit Ericsson's Press Room at: http://www.ericsson.se/pressroom For further information about TouchWave, please visit: http://www.touchwave.com FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT Per Zetterquist, Communications Director, Enterprise Solutions Phone: +46 8 422 2424, + 46 70 571 0475 E-mail: per.zetterquist@lme.ericsson.se