LaserComm, a supplier of photonic components and modules for managing chromatic dispersion in optical networks, today announced it has secured $21 million in fourth-round funding from internal investors, led by Morgan Stanley Venture Partners and Index Ventures. The new capital will allow LaserComm to support its growing customer base, scale manufacturing, expand its Hi-Mode dispersion management product line, and introduce new products based on the company's core technology.
In addition to the round's leaders, many of LaserComm's previous investors joined in the round, including Cedar Fund, GE Equity, Gilde Investment Funds, Giza Group, Link Technologies, and SSM Ventures. This additional funding brings LaserComm's cumulative financing to $77 million.
Giuseppe Zocco, general partner at Index Ventures, joins LaserComm's Board of Directors with this round of funding. "Based on its unique technology, LaserComm provides a powerful and elegant solution to the problem of chromatic dispersion, which is already a key issue in today's 10 Gb/s optical networks and will become even more critical in the emerging 40 Gb/s optical networks environment," said Zocco.
LaserComm's first commercial product line, the Hi-Mode Dispersion Management Device (DMD), reverses the negative effects of chromatic dispersion--a "blurring" of light pulses in fiber--that causes data errors in optical networks. The Hi-Mode DMD actually changes the relative speed of light, resulting in clear data signals at rates 4 to 16 times faster, with hundreds of channels, over thousands of miles. The Hi-Mode DMD enables system vendors and service providers to improve performance, lower transmission costs, and realize greater value from existing fiber infrastructures.
Ghassan Bejjani, an executive director at Morgan Stanley, said, "Our investments in LaserComm reflect our continued confidence in the company's superior technology, its strong management team, and its proven ability to deliver on product and customer objectives."
LaserComm is currently delivering its Hi-Mode DMD to leading dense wavelength division multiplexing system vendors worldwide.
LaserComm Inc., a privately-held company, is a developer and manufacturer of innovative components and modules for advanced optical networks. Based on its new photonics technology, LaserComm's chromatic dispersion management solutions enable optical systems manufacturers and communications service providers to carry more data at faster rates and over longer distances, at reduced cost. The company has headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Plano, Texas, and a Product Development & Photonic Research Center in Tel Aviv, Israel.
For more information, visit www.lasercomm-inc.com.