Avaya gets their first offer on the table. Will it be the only offer?
I just caught this on LightReading
Avaya Agrees to $8.2B TakeoverPBX vendor Avaya Inc. (NYSE: AV - message board) has agreed to be acquired for $17.50 per share by private equity firms Silver Lake Partners and TPG Ventures in a cash deal worth about $8.2 billion. (See Avaya Agrees Takeover.)
The deal was widely expected after numerous media reports Monday followed last week's speculation that a number of players, including Nortel Networks Ltd. (NYSE/Toronto: NT - message board), were hoping to buy Avaya. (See Nortel: Kissing Avaya Goodbya? and Should Nortel Buy Avaya?.
I watch Avaya for personal reasons. If we remember our history, and mine date's through the life and death of the old Bell System, AT&T spun off Lucent Technologies, and later Lucent spat out Avaya. I worked for AT&T, then Lucent, but I left Lucent in 1996 and never worked for Avaya. But I still have friends and former co-workers there.
Most have left for greener pastures. I'm not all that convinced that Lucent separating Avaya was the best move for either. Both have had challenges since, but in the throes of industry-wide challenges. Avaya has definitely stumbled a time or two, and I hear grumbling all the time about how poorly they've handled their technical transition to IP only connections between PBX modules. For some customers, they've been losing their luster. That isn't a good thing when you're that large an incumbent vendor.
This isn't a done deal as Avaya can still solicit other bids. They're a bit pricey. Some of us would say the offer is fat and generous. But there's been a rumbling of interest from several different places.
I'll be watching Avays for the next few months to see who really seals the deal.
Technorati Tags: Avaya, telecommunications, unified communications
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