Airspan
Networks Completes Acquisition of ArelNet
BOCA
RATON, Fla. - June 16, 2005 —
Airspan Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: AIRN)
announced today that it has completed the acquisition of all of the outstanding
shares of ArelNet Ltd (TASE: ARNT)
for
$8.7 million. In accordance with the definitive purchase agreement signed by
the
companies on March 29, 2005, Airspan has paid the price comprised of $4.0
million of cash and 1,001,325 shares of common stock of Airspan.
The
consideration is expected to be delivered to ArelNet’s shareholders on or about
June 22, 2005. For information regarding the transaction applicable to Arelnet’s
shareholders, including information pertaining to a tax ruling from the Israel
Tax Authority, readers may view Arelnet’s filings with the Israel Securities
Authority at http://www.magna.isa.gov.il/.
Airspan
Networks is a leading provider of broadband wireless access solutions for both
licensed and unlicensed operators worldwide. A founding member of the WiMAX
Forum, Airspan has a broad portfolio of wireless access products, including
its
recently-announced new AS.MAX product family that is compliant with the IEEE
802.16-2004 standard (WiMAX) and upgradeable to the 802.16e version of the
standard. Airspan’s WiMAX and WipLL product portfolios also support the Voice
over Internet Protocol (VoIP).
ArelNet
Ltd. is a pioneer in VoIP network infrastructure equipment and solutions,
including soft switches and gateways supporting all major VoIP standards.
ArelNet has extensive experience worldwide, having installed network equipment
with a capacity exceeding two billion minutes per year.
“This
acquisition represents a major milestone for the growth of Airspan,” said Eric
Stonestrom, president and chief executive officer of Airspan Networks. “With the
addition of the ArelNet product line to our portfolio, our leadership position
in wireless VoIP and WiMAX will be considerably strengthened. We expect
ArelNet's switching and gateway technologies will allow us to develop
carrier-grade voice telephony solutions for WiMAX and WipLL systems. We believe
that our customers who use WiMAX will require voice services as a very important
feature of their service offerings, and with ArelNet products integrated with
our solutions, we will now be able to offer them an end-to-end solution with
quality of service at a level consistent with that provided by traditional
telephone company voice services.”
ArelNet
Purchase - page 2of
2
Heli
(Rachel) Ben Nun, ArelNet’s chief executive officer, commented: “We are
delighted about the completion of the merger with Airspan and look forward
to a
fruitful future. We believe that our shareholders have and will benefit greatly
from this merger. With ArelNet’s products and skilled employees, Airspan will
continue to be a leader in the arena of VoIP solutions over WiMAX
networks.”
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About
Airspan Networks
Airspan
Networks is a worldwide leader in Broadband Access wireless communications,
having delivered systems with more than 1 million lines of capacity to over
300
customers in more than 95 countries. Airspan's products are being used by
carriers, service providers and in enterprise networks to deliver carrier-class
voice, high-speed data and Voice over IP (VoIP) services. Airspan's product
portfolio contains an extensive range of Point to Multipoint (PMP) and
Point-to-Point (PtP) products covering both licensed and unlicensed bands
between 700MHz and 6GHz, including both PCS and 3.5GHz international bands.
Airspan is at the forefront of WiMAX development as a founding member and Board
member of the WiMAX Forum(TM). Airspan is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida
with its main operations centre in Uxbridge, United Kingdom.
For
more
information, please visit http://www.airspan.com
This
press release contains forward-looking statements as that term is defined in
the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements made in this press
release that are forward-looking are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Without limiting the
generality of the foregoing, words such as “may”, “will”, “to”, “plan”,
“expect”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “could”, “would”, “estimate”, or
“continue” or the negative other variations thereof or comparable terminology
are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking
statements also include statements concerning Airspan’s ability to seize growth
opportunities, earn cash and add to revenues and earnings, and are subject
to
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially.
Investors and others are cautioned that a variety of factors, including certain
risks, may affect our business and cause actual results to differ materially
from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. These risk factors
include, without limitation, (i) a slowdown of expenditures by communication
service providers; (ii) increased competition from alternative communication
systems; (iii) the failure of our existing or prospective customers to purchase
products as projected; (iv) our inability to successfully implement cost
reduction or containment programs; (v) a loss of any of our key customers,
and
specifically with respect to this announcement, our ability to successfully
integrate ArelNet’s operations into our business, and to successfully sell its
products The Company is also subject to the risks and uncertainties described
in
its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004.
For
media and
Investment inquiries,
contact:
Airspan
Networks:
Peter
Aronstam
Chief
Financial Officer
Tel:
+1
561 893-8682
Fax:
+1
561 893-8671
Email:
paronstam@airspan.com