Optical component manufacturers CODEON Corp. and Quantum Photonics today announced the completion of a merger that will result in the creation of a new company, Covega Corp., which company representatives hope is aptly named. "Covega" means "the union of two to form a bright star."
Amid a flurry of mergers and acquisitions, this particular strategy stands out. "Rather than one entity absorbing another, we felt that bringing together the companies into a new entity with a new name creates a fresh start and a fresh focus," explained Paul Yazge, vice president of marketing for Covega Corp., in an interview today with Lightwave. "This is truly a merger of equals."
CODEON's initial product offerings included the Mach-10, a family of Lithium Niobate external modulators for OC-192/STM-64 applications; and the Mach-40, a 40-Gbit/sec external optical modulator designed for use in OC-768/STM-256 transport systems.
Quantum Photonics, meanwhile, developed semiconductor source laser products and modules, including semiconductor optical amplifiers, booster optical amplifiers, high-power Fabry-Perot laser diodes and single-angled facet laser diodes.
"The combination of CODEON's Lithium Niobate modulation technology and Quantum Photonics' Indium Phosphide technology, coupled with a state-of-the-art wafer fabrication and device packaging facility, will enable Covega to develop low-cost, high-performance solutions for the telecom, datacom and CATV markets," asserted Covega president Dan Petrescu in a press release distributed by the company today.
The complimentary nature of the companies' technologies will provide Covega with "a bigger toolkit to develop integrated solutions" in the future, added Yazge.
The new company has also raised $17 million as part of its Series A financing--money that will be used for continuing operations, working capital, and expansion of sales and marketing, said Yazge. Investors include New Enterprise Associates, OCG Ventures, Boulder Ventures, Core Capital Partners, EDB Ventures, Intersouth Partners, Kinetic Ventures, and Siemens Venture Capital.
Robert Harvey, formerly the chief executive officer of CODEON, will hold the same position in the new company. Petrescu, the chief executive officer of Quantum Photonics, will serve as president of the company. The company's headquarters will be located in Jessup, MD. For more information, visit www.codeoncorp.com or www.quantumphotonics.com.