Meru hits back at sellout rumours

Ahlawat: Rivals are spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt

Wireless LAN vendor Meru Networks has accused its rivals of mudslinging and refuted rumours the company is scouting for buyers.

Speculation over a sale has circulated for some time, with Juniper linked to a possible deal last summer. Recent channel hearsay suggested Meru is working with financial advisor Lazard to find a buyer interested in a deal worth about $120m (£81m).

Rachna Ahlawat, Meru’s vice president of strategic marketing, said that the privately held company was in solid financial shape.

“Companies that are publicly traded have to answer to Wall Street but as a privately held company, we are in a good position to survive the downturn,” she said.

“[Rumours of a sale] have been around for a couple of years and we need to ask why there are firms that go after one vendor and try to spread fear and doubt with no truth in it.”

Ahlawat claimed Meru would not be interested in floating publicly in the near future but would be open to exploring “other avenues” when economic conditions picked up. She added that the launch of four new products last year and the addition of 100 US customers last quarter spoke to Meru’s strength.

Jess Thompson-Hughes, managing director of React Distribution, claimed Meru was struggling to find a lucrative niche and was being squeezed out by Cisco, Motorola and Aruba. “Meru came to a gunfight with a knife,” he said.

“It is a great technology but we rarely compete against it as it is discounted very early. The Wi-Fi market is boiling down to just a few players.”