PacketLight Networks (www.packetlight.com), a developer of advanced optical service transport systems, has opened a European sales office in Paris to handle demand for the company's integrated optical transport system for the metro. Heading PacketLight's European sales operations will be Marcel Dridje, a 20-year veteran of European sales and marketing for U.S. Fortune 100 companies and high-tech startups; he joins the company as Vice President Sales Europe.
The PacketLight system combines data, voice, storage and video connections to support a wide variety of services, including SDH and the emerging data and storage area network services. Based on PacketLight's patent-pending technology and architecture, the flexible new system includes the PL-16000 platform with its service collection function, SiteLight; service sorting and aggregation, CentraLight; and the network management applications, BrowseLight and ControLight.
"We've developed our system from day one to be suitable for the European market. After getting an overwhelming reaction to our systems by multi US carriers, we feel it is now the time for us to respond also to the demand we see in Europe," said Meir Kollmann, PacketLight's CEO. "Europe is a strategic market for PacketLight, and Marcel Dridje's long experience there - especially in the communications industry - will be an extremely valuable asset."
Dridje comes to PacketLight from Corvis Corp., a leading Long Haul links and All-Optical networks supplier, where he was vice president of sales EMEA. Prior to that, he was director of service provider business development at Lucent Technologies' data networking unit in Europe. His background also includes executive sales and marketing positions at Quantum, Memorex-Telex and Andrew Networks. Dridje holds a BS degree in electronics from Portsmouth Polytechnic, England.
"With its Integrated Optical Transport system PacketLight is helping carriers to increase efficiency, lower Capex and Opex and transform planning into a process that responds to current and future demands, and I look forward to extending the PacketLight solution to Europe," said Dridje. "European service providers will now be able to fully exploit their fiber and offer any service on any wavelength, with a smooth migration path to the all-optical network."
PacketLight's European headquarters is located at CNIT Services Affaires, 2 Place de la Defense - BP240, 92053 Paris La Defense Cedex, France. Telephone is +33-1-46922424; fax +33-1-46922400; e-mail [email protected].
Since its inception in early 2000, PacketLight Networks has been developing its advanced integrated metro optical transport system. Created with the carriers need for flexibility in mind, this system's innovative optical networking technology enables carriers to efficiently provide businesses with a variety of high-bandwidth services in a dynamic, ever-changing environment.
PacketLight is backed by strategic investor ADC Telecommunications, an international supplier of transmission and networking systems. Venture financing was raised in June and November 2000 from Carlyle Europe Venture Partners, Pitango Venture Capital, and Portview Communications Partners. More information is available from [email protected].