Aruba Networks goes outdoors with Azalea acquisition

Wireless networking company Aruba Networks just announced that it’s acquiring a Chinese startup with the similar-sounding name Azalea Networks. Aruba said the deal not only expands its reach in China, but also brings Aruba into some less obvious areas for WiFi.

Azalea makes “mesh” networks for outdoor industrial locations. By allowing data packets to jump from radio to radio, mesh networks can bring fast, high-quality connections to areas like oil fields, ports, malls, refineries, and more. One recent success story involved deploying an Azalea network in downtown Beijing during the 2008 Olympics, where it delivered surveillance footage to security teams.

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“Think of anywhere where rock solid video surveillance traffic is a requirement,” said Peter Cellarius, Aruba’s vice president of Global Partner Development and Operations.

Aruba, a publicly-traded company based in Sunnyvale, Calif., will pay $27 million in stock and up to $13.5 million in cash for the deal. “Virtually” all Azalea employees will remain as part of the acquisition, giving Aruba a development team in Beijing. Even though they’re not salespeople, Aruba said that kind of presence is important because it allows Aruba to rapidly customize its technology to local needs.

Azalea previously raised around $27 million in funding from Innobridge, Softbank Capital, Rayson, and others.