Canada's Vecima Set to Acquire Nokia's Cable Access Business

Nokia and Vecima Networks have announced plans for Vecima to acquire key, next generation technology and products for cable service providers.

As part of the agreement, Nokia’s Gainspeed portfolio along with all supporting technology and assets will transition to Vecima Networks. The planned deal is expected to close quickly subject to customary closing conditions. Financial details are not being disclosed.

Vecima Networks is a global leader focused on developing integrated hardware and scalable software solutions for broadband access, content delivery and telematics. Nokia’s Gainspeed cable access portfolio is well-aligned with Vecima’s Entra™ family, both of which address the migration to cable’s 10G platform, including DAA (Distributed Access Architecture) and 10G-EPON (Ethernet Passive Optical Network).

The Nokia Unified Cable Access solution, featuring the Gainspeed portfolio of products, includes a centrally controlled Distributed Access Architecture solution with unified support for Flexible MAC DAA nodes for Hybrid Fiber-Coaxial (HFC) networks and DOCSIS Provisioning of EPON (DPoE) nodes for fiber-to-the-home and business. The portfolio also includes a DAA video engine and a chassis based EPON/DPoE solution for non-HFC network implementations.

Employees who currently support the Nokia DOCSIS DAA and EPON/DPoE portfolios are expected to transition to Vecima. Nokia will retain cable-related products and solutions not listed above. The companies intend to maintain an ongoing business relationship, including resell agreements for key, enabling technologies, to address unified cable access opportunities.

“Our cable access solutions have played a very important role in helping to redefine next generation cable solutions and our customers' strategies for addressing evolving network demands using distributed architectures,” said Sandra Motley, President of Fixed Networks at Nokia. “However, the industry continues to go through significant shifts, and we believe the timing is right to transition our cable access business to Vecima Networks. Vecima has the focus, resources and complementary product portfolio needed to support these changes and help operators move toward a Distributed Access Architecture.”

“Nokia’s portfolio to be acquired aligns perfectly with Vecima Networks’ strategy to provide open, independent, and future-proof cable access solutions that support a multi-vendor ecosystem,” said Sumit Kumar, President and Chief Executive Officer at Vecima Networks. “The addition of these products and world-class talent broadens our DAA platform and adds 10G-EPON products to our portfolio. In addition to expanding the products and services we are providing to existing customers, we look forward to partnering with service providers around the globe we don’t currently do business with.”