Cobalt Networks
| Company type | Public (until acquisition) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Computer hardware, Server appliances |
| Predecessor | Cobalt Microserver |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Founder | Vivek Mehra |
| Defunct | December 2003 |
| Fate | Acquired by Sun Microsystems; product line discontinued |
| Successor | Sun Microsystems |
| Headquarters | Mountain View, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide (over 70 countries) |
Key people | Vivek Mehra (founder) |
| Products | Linux-based servers and server appliances (Cobalt Qube, Cobalt Cache, Cobalt RaQ, Cobalt NAS, Cobalt Management Console) |
| Parent | Sun Microsystems (from December 2000) |
Cobalt Networks was a manufacturer headquartered in Mountain View, California, specializing in affordable Linux-based servers and server appliances. Its products reached approximately 1,900 clients spanning over 70 countries.
Amid the dot-com bubble, the company's market value escalated to $6 billion, despite generating only $22 million in revenue annually. In 2000, Sun Microsystems acquired Cobalt and subsequently terminated the Cobalt product line by December 2003.
As an innovator in the server appliance sector, Cobalt introduced the earliest 1 RU rackmount server and played a significant role in shaping blade server technology.
History
Established in 1996 by Vivek Mehra under the name Cobalt Microserver, the firm adopted the name Cobalt Networks, Inc. in June 1998.
Notable product introductions were:
| Product | Launch date |
|---|---|
| Cobalt Qube | March 1998 |
| Cobalt Cache | July 1998 |
| Cobalt RaQ | September 1998 |
| Cobalt NAS | April 1999 |
| Cobalt Management Console | October 1999 |
The company went public on November 5, 1999, with its share price soaring up to 618% above the initial offering price of $22 per share.
On March 23, 2000, Cobalt completed the acquisition of Chilisoft by issuing 1.15 million shares valued near $70 million.
In September 2000, Sun Microsystems declared a $2 billion stock purchase of Cobalt, finalized on December 7. Following this transaction, numerous key engineers left the company. The Cobalt product line was discontinued by Sun Microsystems in December 2003.