Solution Works With Existing WLAN Environment, Enterprise Applications, and Handsets
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., April 17, 2006- DiVitas Networks today announced that it is entering the enterprise communications market with a new class of unified mobile communications solutions that extends the reach of the enterprise by providing seamless roaming between WiFi and cellular networks. DiVitas' solution works in any WLAN environment, with any PBX, and over any type of fixed, mobile, or wireless network; it also integrates with business and communications applications. A privately held company, DiVitas has raised $8 million in Series A funding from Clearstone Venture Partners and other private investors. DiVitas is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and has an office in Bangalore, India.
DiVitas was founded by president and CEO Vivek Khuller and CTO Venkat Kalkunte. Khuller was previously a venture partner at Clearstone Venture Partners, entrepreneur in residence at Matrix Partners, and an executive at Sycamore Networks and Verizon. Kalkunte formerly worked at Cisco, and was founding engineer of Transmedia Communications, which Cisco purchased in 1999. He also worked at Alteon, Stratacom, and other technology companies.
"Today's enterprise workers want to stay connected with their customers and colleagues, yet more than 70 percent of them don't have access to mobile solutions," said Khuller. "Enterprises have had to rely on disparate, costly, and unreliable approaches, including cellular and wireless VoIP. DiVitas' unified solutions let enterprise users stay connected and stay engaged, and put the enterprise in control of its mobile communications at a cost that will enable it to mobilize all workers."
"Convergence is now the core driving force in the evolution of communications - both wired and wireless," said Craig Mathias, a Principal with the wireless and mobile advisory firm Farpoint Group. "The idea is to provision a common set of services across a variety of networks, from cellular to wireless LANs to landlines. DiVitas is positioning themselves for leadership in this very exciting space."
DiVitas Addresses Gap in Market
DiVitas addresses a major gap in the communications market-the lack of a mobility solution for the full scope of enterprise workers and functions. Cellular is ubiquitous but expensive and device driven, and cannot be managed by the enterprise. Wireless VoIP has limited reach, performance, and device support. Neither addresses the need of enterprises to control communications, hand off Wi-Fi-cell calls seamlessly, and integrate applications with communications. As a result, mobile communications has limited penetration in enterprises. Enterprises pay for mobile voice service for far fewer than half of their employees, and the number of those employees with mobile email is even smaller.
"Clearstone sees a tremendous market opportunity for enterprise mobility solutions, and DiVitas is the first company to take advantage of it by letting enterprise being in control," said Sumant Mandal , a member of DiVitas' board and managing director at Clearstone. "By delivering voice, text, and enterprise applications on one handset, the DiVitas platform promises to cut down on voice mails and missed calls and greatly improve end users' productivity."
The DiVitas solution works in every network environment, whether it is cellular, WiFi, Internet/IP WAN, or wireline, and with every type of mobile phone, including dual-mode phones, WLAN phones, cellular phones, smartphones, and softphones. The company's solution also serves as an application platform for enhanced communications such as CRM, assuring end users of their presence and participation in business operations, irrespective of the underlying network.
Because enterprises own the DiVitas solution, administrators can control and manage communications centrally, without having to depend on service providers. End users need only one wireless handset to access voice, email, and applications as they roam between enterprise and cellular networks, giving them the type of "presence" previously unavailable with mobile communications.
DiVitas Solutions Interoperate with Mobile Phones, Networks
To make it easy for enterprises to adopt its solutions, DiVitas plans to conduct interoperability tests with a range of ecosystem vendors to ensure that the DiVitas solution works in every network environment, with every type of handset, and with every PBX. The company will announce interoperability with a range of wireless LAN, handset and IP/PBX partners.
"Symbol's wireless LAN solutions enable enterprises to cost-effectively increase penetration of mobile voice and data solutions. With the availability of dual-mode phones such as Symbol's MC70, which work both over WiFi and cellular networks, users can be accessible and productive beyond the four walls of the enterprise," said Chris McGugan, senior director of marketing at Symbol Technologies' wireless infrastructure division. "Symbol is closely working with DiVitas to develop end-to-end seamless voice and application handoff solutions for the enterprise across wireless LAN and cellular networks."
About DiVitas
DiVitas Networks is developing a new class of enterprise appliance that provides seamless voice and data mobility over disparate networks to all enterprise employees by taking advantage of disruptive technologies such as WiFi, the Internet, and dual-mode phones. DiVitas is the first company that enables such mobility while giving enterprises complete control of the system. The DiVitas solution enables seamless roaming and WiFi-cellular handoff and extends enterprise security, management, and cost control to mobile communications. End users are assured of their presence and participation in business operations, irrespective of the underlying network, whether it is cellular, WiFi, Internet/IP WAN, or wireline. Headquartered in Mountain View, California, DiVitas Networks is backed by Clearstone Venture Partners. More information is available at http://www.divitas.com .
