Tech Dealmaker Awards

What can developing a unique 10Gb/s C-Band Tunable Chirp Managed Laser (CML) get you in the telecommunications market? Over $20 million. In March 2007, Wilmington-based telecommunications optics maker AZNA LLC was purchased by Sunnyvale, Calif.-based fiber-optics and network test technology firm Finisar Corp. for approximately $21 million.

For Finisar, the new technology improves both the performance of the laser and enables the ability to access applications at a significantly lower cost point.

For AZNA, the decision was more difficult. According to AZNA COO Farhang Sakhitab, its technology was innovative but it might have a short window of opportunity for mass adoption within the telecommunications industry. The company could seek a second round of financing and take its manufacturing facilities overseas to reduce costs, but that would delay its use by another three to four years.

“We first looked at Finisar as a customer, but then figured out that they were the leader in one side of the telecom industry. And it had incredibly low cost manufacturing infrastructure, internationally. We thought if we could be bring the technology and they would use their manufacturing capabilities, we could greatly expanding out into market,” said Sakhitab.

Finisar agreed to pay AZNA $19.7 million in initial consideration with $2.7 million in cash and two convertible promissory notes of $15.6 million and $1.4 million, payable in cash or in shares of Finisar common stock. At the time of the sale, AZNA had a staff of 58.

— Stephen Desantis is a freelance writer in Roxbury.

Category

Top Hardware M&A Deals Sell Side

The Deal

AZNA LLC sells to Finisar Corp. of California for about $21 million. Closed on March 26, 2007.

Key Executives

Parviz Tayebati, CEO and co-founder, AZNA; Farhang Sakhitab, COO, AZNA; Daniel Mahgerefteh, chief technology officer and co-founder, AZNA; Steve Workman, CFO, Finisar; Joe Young, general manager of optics, Finisar.

Deal advisers

Legal: Wyatt Tarrant & Combs; Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo PC (Finisar).

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