Benchmark Capital Invests $20m In Openet Telecom
November 23, 2001 - Openet
Dublin, 23. November 2001, Benchmark Capital, the leading global early-stage technology venture capital firm, today announced its investment in international software company Openet Telecom.
Benchmark Capital has invested US$20m second-round funding in Openet to accelerate the company's global expansion and allow for additional sales and marketing programmes to enhance the adoption of Openet's flagship product, FusionWorksTM, in its international market. This is the first investment in an Irish company by Benchmark Capital and the largest investment by its European fund to date.
Established in July 1999 and with headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, Openet Telecom is a world leader in providing software that extracts customer usage data from telecommunications networks, supporting network operators' business infrastructure such as billing, CRM and fraud management
Barry Maloney, General Partner at Benchmark Capital and on the Board of Openet said: "IDC has predicted that the mediation market will be valued at over US$1 billion in 2005. This market dynamic, together with Openet's strong technical approach, makes it a very attractive opportunity for Benchmark. In just two years, Openet has established itself in this fast-growing area of telecommunications and, at a time of immense turbulence in the market, has built a strong customer base including BT Ignite, Essent and Nextra."
Commenting on the investment, Declan Conway, Chairman Openet Telecom said: "this investment will strengthen Openet's position as a world leader in the fast-growing mediation industry. We closed our second year of trading with revenues of ¤10 million from US and European customers and are targeting continued aggressive growth in the coming year". Barry Murphy, CEO Openet Telecom, welcomed the investment stating: "we are delighted that Benchmark has decided to invest in Openet. It is a testimony to the hard work and ability of Openet's staff. This investment will help to propel Openet to the very top of the mediation market within the next two years".
About Benchmark Capital
Benchmark Capital was founded in 1995 with the mission of helping talented entrepreneurs build major technology enterprises focused on long-term growth. Benchmark takes a labour-intensive, team-oriented approach to venture investing in order to deliver a superior level of service to its portfolio companies.
Benchmark's portfolio includes franchise companies such as Ariba, eBay, Handspring, Juniper Networks, and Red Hat Software. Managing more than $2 billion in committed venture capital, Benchmark focuses on earlystage investing in markets where the partners have direct, relevant experience. In Europe, Benchmark Capital manages a $750m fund. For more information on Benchmark, visit its web site at www.benchmark.com
About Openet
About Openet
Openet is a leading worldwide provider of event processing and transaction management solutions. The Transactional Intelligence of the company's solutions extracts increased value from diverse service provider networks, enabling rapid introduction of new services and reliable, cost-effective management of existing services. Openet is focused on delivering best-in-class network edge solutions and specialized engagement processes that create business value from network activity. A global company, Openet's implementations include long-running engagements with the world's leading service providers such as British Telecom, Orange, AT&T and Verizon Wireless. For more information, visit www.openet.com.
