Mumbai:
Citrix Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTXS), a leader in access
infrastructure solutions, today announced it has completed
the acquisition of privately held NetScaler Inc., a global
leader in high-performance application networking.
The
transaction is valued at approximately $300 million in
cash and stock and includes the assumption of approximately
$23 million in unvested stock options.
This
acquisition strengthens Citrix's customer value proposition
by improving the performance of any application delivered
through the Citrix Access Platform, the industry's most
complete and integrated system that seamlessly connects
users, devices, and networks to enterprise resources.
NetScaler
accelerates the performance of Web browser-based applications
and e-commerce and consumer web sites by as much as 15
times. NetScaler technologies will enhance the Citrix
Access Platform by significantly improving application
security, manageability, reliability, and availability
of any application while lowering the cost of operations.
"With
this acquisition, we are extending our best access experience
value to the entire range of Web-based applications, including
enterprise, browser-based, XML Web services, and others,"
said Mark Templeton, president and chief executive officer
for Citrix.
Templeton
adds,"With the addition of the 'Citrix NetScaler
application accelerator' and 'application switch', the
'Citrix access platform' can significantly optimise the
customer's entire set of client / server, web, desktop
or legacy enterprise resources. This reduces their IT
costs through increased server scalability and availability,
reduced back-end server loads, and increased network bandwidth
efficiency, all while increasing user satisfaction and
productivity."
NetScaler,
will continue to operate from San Jose, Calif., as the
'application networking group' of Citrix. B V Jagadeesh,
previously president and chief executive officer for NetScaler,
will now report to Mark Templeton as group vice president
and general manager.
In
early 2003, Citrix outlined a strategy to expand its coverage
of the overall Access Infrastructure category by penetrating
into adjacent high-growth markets such as collaboration
and VPN. Since that time, Citrix has completed three acquisitions
of best-of-breed companies. In 2004, Citrix acquired Expertcity,
now the Online Group, moving the company into the real-time
collaboration, desktop access and on-demand assistance
market segments.
Citrix
also acquired Net6, now the Gateways Group, extending
Citrix's reach in the SSL VPN (secure socket layer virtual
private network) and IP (internet protocol) telephony
market segments. NetScaler is the latest acquisition,
adding innovative application networking technologies,
including application acceleration and optimisation; application
traffic management, and application security.
These
technologies will allow end users to access enterprise
resources
faster; they'll improve the service levels that IT departments
provide to the organizations they support; and they'll
increase agility for businesses that run on the Citrix
Access Platform.
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