Tekelec

Tekelec, Inc.

Company type	Public (until 2012), then private
Industry	Telecommunications
Founded	1971 in Calabasas, California, United States
Founder	Jean-Claude Asscher
Defunct	2013
Fate	Acquired by Oracle Corporation
Successor	Oracle Communications
Headquarters	Morrisville, North Carolina , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Jean-Claude Asscher (founder), Philip Black (CEO), Peter N Vicars (CEO), Michael L. Margolis (CEO), Frederick M. Lax (CEO), Ronald J. de Lange (CEO), Franco Plastina (CEO)
Products	Telecommunications hardware and software solutions, including network signaling, policy management, subscriber data administration, softswitches, media gateways, signaling gateways, Diameter Signaling Router
Parent	Oracle Corporation (from 2013)

Tekelec, Inc. was a telecommunications firm headquartered in Morrisville, North Carolina, specializing in both hardware and software solutions for fixed-line, wireless, and packet-switched networks. The company delivered IP services tailored to mobile network operators, concentrating on areas such as network signaling, policy management, and subscriber data administration.

Originally established in Calabasas, California in 1971, Tekelec was eventually purchased by Oracle in 2013, following its ownership by Siris Capital Group.

Origins under Jean-Claude Asscher

In 1961, Jean-Claude Asscher founded Tekelec-Airtronic, SA, a French electronics enterprise focused on aviation technologies. Tekelec, Inc. was later created in 1977 as a sales branch representing Tekelec-Airtronic. By 1979, Asscher teamed with Philip Black to launch Tekelec as a North American telecommunications company specializing in network testing and simulation equipment. The company initially operated out of Santa Monica, California before moving its headquarters to Calabasas in 1984.

For many years, Jean-Claude Asscher held the roles of president, CEO, and chairman for both Tekelec-Airtronic and Tekelec before transitioning primarily to chairman responsibilities.

Tekelec entered the public market in May 1986 on NASDAQ under the ticker TKLC with Philip Black as CEO, Michael Leigh as COO, and Phillip Alford serving as CFO.

Philip Black’s spin-off and public offering

In the early 1980s, Asscher launched Philip Black to re-establish Tekelec’s presence within the U.S., focusing on distributing Tekelec Airtronic products and developing proprietary testing tools. The team at Philip Black developed protocol simulator analyzers named Chameleon and Chameleon II, which significantly contributed to Tekelec’s sales growth for over ten years. Surpassing competitors such as Atlantic Research and Idacom, Tekelec emerged as the leading provider in this specialized test equipment sector. The company went public during the mid-1980s and later pivoted towards Signalling System 7 (SS7) product development under CEO Peter Vicars, who succeeded Philip Black.

In 1985, Tekelec expanded internationally by establishing a subsidiary in Tokyo, Japan, followed by its public listing in 1986.

Leadership of Peter N Vicars

Peter N Vicars held the positions of President and CEO at Tekelec from July 1987 until January 1994. During his tenure, the company’s revenue increased from $13 million to $58 million while maintaining six consecutive years of double-digit profit margins. These gains were largely driven by testing solutions that comprised approximately 85% of total revenue. Vicars enhanced Tekelec’s market standing through the acquisition of Protocol Technologies, an SS7-focused firm that enabled entry into cellular and switching technology sectors. Under his direction, the Eagle platform was introduced and generated $12 million during its inaugural year. Additionally, he implemented cost-saving measures to regain profitability amid startup expenditures.

In March 1992, Tekelec further expanded by opening a subsidiary in Canada.

Michael L. Margolis assumed the CEO role in March 1998.

In 2001, Tekelec secured a contract with T-Mobile Germany aimed at upgrading its signaling infrastructure.

Frederick M. Lax took over as CEO in February 2003.

By May 2003, Tekelec had acquired a majority stake in Santera, broadening its product range to include softswitches, media gateways, and signaling gateways via this acquisition.

The company continued its international growth with the establishment of a subsidiary in India in 2004.

That same year saw Tekelec purchase Taqua Systems—a softswitch manufacturer based in Richardson, Texas—for $85 million. This acquisition complemented Santera’s Class 4 packet switch offerings by incorporating smaller Class 5 switching solutions. At this time Fred Lax was CEO and the company maintained its headquarters in Calabasas, California.

In August 2005, Tekelec agreed to acquire Steleus Group for $65 million to enhance its portfolio with additional switch products.

Ronald J. de Lange

Ronald J. de Lange became part of Tekelec in July 2005, taking on the role of executive vice president for Global Business Solutions, and was elevated to CEO in May 2011.

On August 3, 2005, Tekelec enhanced its IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) capabilities by acquiring iptelorg GmbH, a company based in Germany and the Czech Republic specializing in advanced Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) routing software.

Franco (Frank) Plastina

In February 2006, Franco Plastina assumed the positions of president, CEO, and director at Tekelec, succeeding Fred Lax shortly after the company moved its headquarters to Cary. Plastina stepped down in January 2011 following a sharp drop in sales of the core Eagle product before the full rollout of new offerings such as policy management solutions. Krish Prabhu, a member of the board, was named interim CEO.

In April 2006, Tekelec divested its IEX Corporation subsidiary for $200 million. Additionally, the company revised its financial statements for the years 2003 through 2005 due to identified accounting inaccuracies.

Acquisitions

By 2008, Tekelec’s number portability technologies supported service providers with a combined subscriber base of 750 million worldwide, maintaining relationships with 79 clients across 28 nations and securing contracts including T-Mobile Germany.

On February 5, 2008, Tekelec acquired the majority of assets from Estacado Systems, LLC, a software firm pivotal in SIP technology development.

Later that year, on December 17, Tekelec completed the purchase of mBalance, a mobile messaging company from the Netherlands, for $38 million; however, significant workforce reductions followed by May 2011 before this business segment was eventually sold off.

In May 2010, under CEO Frank Plastina’s leadership, Tekelec expanded its offerings and market presence through acquisitions of Camiant and Blueslice Networks, a subscriber data management specialist.

Shareholder class action lawsuit

A securities fraud class action lawsuit was initiated on January 6, 2011 on behalf of Tekelec shareholders who claimed the company had provided misleading information about its operations in emerging markets—India notably—resulting in an artificial inflation of TKLC stock prices and considerable investor losses.

The stock value declined from roughly $18 in late 2010 to near $7.75 by mid-2011. In November that year, a group led by Siris Capital Group agreed to purchase Tekelec for $780 million, transitioning the company to private ownership. At this point, Tekelec was headquartered in Morrisville, North Carolina with Ron de Lange as CEO. The acquisition by Siris Capital Group and its affiliates was finalized on January 27, 2012 for approximately $780 million.

Acquisition by Oracle

On March 25, 2013, Oracle announced it would acquire Tekelec and integrate it into Oracle Communications. This move broadened Oracle’s telecommunications portfolio and reinforced its capabilities in network management solutions.

Recognition

Tekelec’s Diameter Signaling Router earned Frost & Sullivan’s "New Product Innovation Award" for Diameter Routing in March 2011 due to its effective handling of LTE network signaling challenges amid an expanding LTE market projected to encompass over 60 networks by 2012.

In October 2010, MetroPCS selected Tekelec’s Diameter Signaling Router for deployment on its first LTE network within the United States.

By June 2012, Pipeline Publishing honored Tekelec as the Most Innovative Company based on endorsements from service providers and industry analysts recognizing its dedication to innovation.

Analysys Mason identified Tekelec as the worldwide leader in real-time connection number portability solutions with a market share of 35%.