SUNNYVALE, CA--(Marketwire - June 12, 2008) - Finisar Corporation (
NASDAQ:
FNSR), a global
technology leader in fiber optic communication and test and measurement
solutions for high-speed networks, today announced that it had completed a
transaction whereby it spun-off certain assets of its Network Tools
business associated with its NetWisdom® business to an investment group
of storage and software sector veterans, led by Mark Urdahl, a former IBM
executive who co-founded the Fibre Channel Systems Initiative, Jim
Davidson, a founding partner of Silver Lake Partners, and Steve Mankoff, a
former senior executive at Siebel Systems. Finisar will retain a minority
stake in the spin-off.
The NetWisdom product line, an industry-leading software and hardware
solution, is used for monitoring and analysis of SAN environments within
enterprise data centers. NetWisdom provides real time monitoring and
proactive analysis of complex SAN issues. The award-winning solution has
been adopted by leading Global 500 enterprise data centers to ensure
uninterrupted access to business critical information.
"Our commitment to customers is always a top priority, and we believe a
dedicated, stand-alone entity will better serve our customers. We expect a
smooth transition for existing NetWisdom customers as a result of this
transaction," said Jerry Rawls, Chairman and CEO of Finisar. "We have made
excellent progress in this part of our business, but we have confidence
that this team of private equity investors will provide the growth capital
and singular focus desired for this business grow rapidly and satisfy
customer demand in the enterprise data center market."
"I have known and worked with Jerry Rawls and Finisar since 1993 when we
started the Fiber Channel SAN initiative," said Mark Urdahl. "The scale
and complexity of today's Storage Area Networks has far exceeded our
expectations. The NetWisdom product line solves a critical challenge for
today's rapidly growing data centers. I am excited about the opportunity
to invest significantly in this product platform and work closely with our
partners and systems integrators to better serve needs of customers."
About Finisar
Finisar Corporation (
NASDAQ:
FNSR) is a global technology leader for fiber
optic components and subsystems and network test and monitoring systems.
These products enable high-speed voice, video and data communications for
networking, storage and wireless applications over Local Area Networks
(LANs), Storage Area Networks (SANs), and Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs)
using Ethernet, Fibre Channel, IP, SAS, SATA and SONET/SDH protocols. The
Company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, USA. More information
can be found at
www.finisar.com.
SAFE HARBOR UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACTS OF 1995
The statements contained in this press release that are not purely
historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including statements
regarding Finisar's expectations, beliefs, intentions, or strategies
regarding the future. All forward-looking statements included in this press
release are based upon information available to Finisar as of the date
hereof, and Finisar assumes no obligation to update any such
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from
those projected. These risks include those associated with the rapidly
evolving markets for Finisar's products and uncertainty regarding the
development of these markets; Finisar's historical dependence on sales to a
limited number of customers and fluctuations in the mix of customers in any
period; ongoing new product development and introduction of new and
enhanced products; the challenges of rapid growth followed by periods of
contraction; and intensive competition. Further information regarding these
and other risks relating to Finisar's business is set forth in Finisar's
Annual Report on Form 10-K and other interim reports as filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Contact Information: CONTACTS:
Steve Workman
Chief Financial Officer
408-548-1000
Investor.relations@finisar.com
Victoria McDonald
Corporate Communications
408-542-4261
Victoria.mcdonald@finisar.com