Vitesse Semiconductor to Buy Sitera

Vitesse Semiconductor Corp.its network processor capabilities for multiservice switches and routers under development, <%=company%> (Camarillo, CA) will acquire all of the equity interests of Sitera Inc. (Boulder, CO) for $750 million in common stock. The transaction is expected to be completed in the quarter ending June 30, 2000.

Sitera, founded in November 1996, is an early developer of intelligent network processors for the service provider, carrier edge, and large enterprise markets. Network processors allow network equipment manufacturers to introduce high performance systems while decreasing the cost and development time as compared to the traditional ASIC-based approaches. Sitera's hardware/software product line includes the network processors, an extensive library of networking software, and an integrated development suite supporting DS-3 (44.7 Mbps) through OC-48 (2.5 Gbps) data rates as well as Gigabit Ethernet.

Vitesse is a designer of high bandwidth communications integrated circuits for dense-wave division multiplexing (DWDM) and optical networking. The capabilities of Sitera's network processors, combined with the Vitesse switch fabric and physical layer components, will extend Vitesse's capabilities from OC-192 (9.9 Gbps) down to OC-3 and DS-3. The market for Network Processors is expected to be $2.9 billion by 2004, growing from $128 million in 1999, according to Cahners In-Stat Group (Scottsdale, AZ).

Edited by John Spofford