Avocent acquisition targets Linux

KVM switch and network infrastructure management specialist Avocent plans to add Linux expertise to its portfolio with the acquisition of Cyclades.

Avocent this week announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Cyclades, which makes out-of-band management tools. The deal calls for a total cash purchase price of about $90 million plus the assumption of liabilities and payment of certain transaction costs.

Cyclades, a privately held company, had unaudited revenues of about $60 million in 2005. It has a long list of customers, including FedEx, Ford, Wells Fargo and Yahoo. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter, company executives say.

John Cooper, chairman and CEO of Avocent, says Cyclades’ products will be complementary to those from Avocent. In particular, Cyclades’ AlterPath remote management line of products has broad adoption in Linux environments, he notes.

“We expect the acquisition to introduce us to a significant number of new customers, broaden our IT infrastructure management capabilities and enhance our research and development resources,” Cooper said in a statement.