|
[Read
the Systemonic Press Release] [Read
the Raytheon Press Release]
Summary of the Joint Press Conference between Systemonic and Raytheon
Date: November 7th, 2001
Time: 11 AM
Location: The Seaport Hotel, One Seaport Lane, Boston MA
02210
Press Conference Summary
Systemonic, Inc., (San Jose, CA) and Raytheon Corporation held a
joint press conference in Boston on November 7th to explain the
pact signed by each to join forces in offering chipset solutions
to the 5 GHz wireless communications market. Systemonic's
press release and that of Raytheon
are a click away. The news conference was rather hastily called;
nevertheless there was representation from the news and technical
media, as well as from industry analysts. The press conference took
place at 11 AM at the Seaport Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts and
was Webcast with telephonic audio so that journalists from around
the world could attend. These "attendees' were able to see
the slides being presented, hear the speakers present, and participate
in the Questions and Answers session after the speakers' remarks.
Press Conference Speakers from left to right:
Nik Bahram, V.P., Corporate Ventures, Systemonic, Inc.
Ruediger Stroh, President and CEO, Systemonic, Inc.
Jeff Fryling, V.P., Business Development, Raytheon Commercial
Ventures, Inc.
John Harbison, President, Raytheon Commercial Ventures, Inc.
Charles Stott, V.P., Business Development, Raytheon Commercial
Electronics
Jeff Fryling, V.P., Business Development, Raytheon Commercial
Ventures, Inc.
Mr. Fryling welcomed the attendees, present and online; he introduced
the day's program and gave a historical perspective on the amiable
negotiations between the two companies, which were ongoing for 3+
months. Both companies recognized the importance of the high-speed
wireless communications market, and both realized the market dynamics
that prompted the full commitment necessary by both to make this
agreement swiftly, robust and lasting. He indicated that either
company, acting singly, would have a difficult time building market
share alone, but together with a complete solution they could both
flourish. He cited three market factors that prompted the agreement:
- The need for end-to-end solutions
- The speed at which the market is moving
- The need to be price-competitive
Raytheon, he said, is delighted with the partner they chose
and felt that the companies would succeed jointly, as Systemonic
succeeds.
 Ruediger
Stroh, President and CEO, Systemonic, Inc.
Mr. Stroh gave Systemonic's welcome and special appreciation for
those responding positively to the invitation. He indicated that
Systemonic is a little over two years old, and this agreement represents
a formidable milestone for it. He gave statistics on the considerable
talent in the various functions in the company, as well as naming
the investors who have provided $35M for the startup. The company
profile includes an amazing amount of intellectual property, and
40+ patents have already been applied for. This number has increased
as a result of the agreement with Raytheon. Mr. Stroh gave a breakdown
of the functional responsibilities present in the now three (3)
sites where Systemonic resides: Dresden, Germany, San Jose, California
and Marlboro, Massachusetts.
Mr. Stroh stressed that only two (2) firms in the world are testing
their complete chipsets, and only one of which will be able, in
the foreseeable future, to deliver a full 54 Mbps 802.11a solution.
He described the markets that Systemonic would be addressing, in
the order of: Enterprise, Home Networking, AV-LAN and WAN. The flexibility
of Systemonic's complete solution (PA, RF, IF, and Systemonic's
baseband and MAC positions it well to be able to meet the specifications
of multiple standards and to rapidly change as the standards evolve.
The agreement with Raytheon is very much a strategic one,
as Systemonic now has the capability to respond in a timely manner
(802.11a development boards this December) to emerging and accelerating
demand with a complete chipset solution and tested reference design
- the baseband, RF analog front-end subsystem and the software.
With the current and growing east coast presence and the existence
of the superior engineering, right fabs, manufacturing, marketing,
sales, logistics and finance, Systemonic has positioned itself as
a viable player in the market. It has the most complete and flexible
solution existing or on the horizon.
Systemonic will be sampling the complete 802.11a solution
by the end of December and will be in volume production in late
Q1/early Q2. It has access to world-class CMOS, SiGe and GaAs technologies.
Prior to the agreement with Raytheon, Systemonic was able to demonstrate
leadership in transparent connectivity. And with its aggressive
pricing ($35 for the complete chipset; $65 BOM), Systemonic offers
the best performance, longest range (54 Mbps for 100 feet) and most
flexible solutions in the market.
View
Ruediger Stroh's Slides
 John
Harbison, President, Raytheon Commercial Ventures, Inc.
Mr. Harbison said that Raytheon had found a perfect match for strategic
relations. Both companies have now expanded their total available
market through geographic coverage and increased marketing and sales
channels. Expansion has been exceptionally strong in the U.S. and
European markets and focus on the Far East will soon follow. Both
companies understand the strategic importance of this growing market
and thus the agreement has facilitated aggressive pricing that will
quickly gain Systemonic large market share. The flexibility of the
Systemonic solution will extend our market share beyond laptops
and hotspots quickly growing popular with 802.11b implementations,
to PDAs and cell phones, perhaps at the expense of the 3G implementations.
Raytheon, said John, has found the right partner in Systemonic,
that has the right timing and the right team to be successful.
 Nik
Bahram, VP, Corporate Ventures, Systemonic, Inc.
Mr. Bahram outlined the key components of the partnership from the
Systemonic perspective. Systemonic acquired the assets of
the RF Networking business from Raytheon. This includes the: 2 generations
of the IF and RF chips, samples, WIP, packaging technologies and
processes, the RF subsystem design, the antenna design, patents,
trade secrets and the Tondelayo™ name. Additionally,
Systemonic has the right to design-in and resell the PA, as an integral
part of its chipset - for an integrated, optimized and flexible
solution. In addition, the RF engineering, logistics and marketing
team have joined Systemonic. Raytheon will supply SiGe wafers, logistical
support and IC design services. This provides a clear roadmap for
RF technology and integration targets have already been set. Also
Systemonic can ramp its manufacturing and cost-effectiveness. With
a merger of clients, prospects, and sales channels Systemonic can
leverage new synergistic customer relationships. Having the complete
solution yields more than the sum of forecasted revenues and gives
Systemonic the ability to garner significant market share quickly.
Systemonic knows it has gained a significant, capable strategic
ally and influential investor in the wireless networking industry.
View
Nik Bahram's Slides
 Charles
Stott, VP, Business Development, Raytheon Commercial Electronics
Mr. Stott described Raytheon Commercial Electronics as a portfolio
of businesses that seeks to capitalize on the considerable engineering
excellence in the Company. The goal is to find commercial applications
for the technologies. The agreement with Systemonic provides a nice
model for proceeding, and a number of deals are in process.
The partnership with Systemonic enhances Raytheon's considerable
investment in communications technologies and broadens its coverage
- to optical components, compound semiconductors, and the wireless
complete solutions that were the basis for this partnership.
Raytheon Commercial Electronics is very pleased with the
agreement and looks forward to collaboration in this and other ventures.
View
Charles Stott's Slides
Q & A
Questions were received from those in physical and cyber attendance
Q. What is the size of the Systemonic, Marlborough, Massachusetts
group?
A. (R, Stroh) This group consists of local management, RF engineers,
software engineers, marketing and operations personnel. We expect
to remain in New England and to grow the investment there. We are
not revealing the exact number of employees in the group.
Q. What are the future applications for the technology?
A. (J. Harbison) First laptops - business, travel, home; then the
handheld devices which might well include telephony applications.
Q. Why the need for 802.11a?
A. (R. Stroh) 2.4 GHz is getting crowded.; need for more bandwidth;
cost of ownership. There is a large market for 54 Mbps at 100 feet.
(N. Bahram) Two of the key differentiators for this market will
be backward compatibility and interoperability. Systemonic will
accommodate for both of these.
Q. Is Systemonic planning to reside in its own facility?
A.(N. Bahram) A condition in the contract allows Systemonic to
use the Raytheon Marlborough facility for some time, but the goal
is to move to its own facility in the reasonably close future.
Q. What specific baseband IP has Raytheon committed to Systemonic?
A. (C. Stott) Most of the IP as stipulated. This is a portal relationship.
All the linkages are established. We have endeavored to do all we
can to foster mutual success.
Q. What is the manufacturing relationship?
A. (R. Stroh) We are developing the baseband in silicon through
Systemonic, the IF and RF in SiGe and the PA at the GaAs fab through
Raytheon Andover (RF Components).
Q. In the baseband, is it an integrated modem and MAC?
A. (N. Bahram) In December the modem only will be a hardware solution;
the MAC is a software implementation on the host processor. This
Pentium processor solution provides lower cost to the customers.
The customers who wish can have their own value-added software on
the processor. Future generations will provide some level of integration.
Q. When will there be volume shipments?
A. (R.Stroh) 802.11a sampling by the end of this calendar year,
volume shipments in Q3, 2002.
Q. Are there a lot of changes necessary to the RF front-end
so that it can interface with the HS1 baseband?
A. (R. Stroh) Systemonic currently has evaluation boards for both
the baseband and the front-end. We are working hard to modify the
software so that the complete system front-end will be available
for testing by year-end.
After the Press Conference
The meeting concluded with a luncheon hosted by Systemonic.
[Public
Relations Contact Information]
|
