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3Com Spinning Off US Robotics

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the restructuruing dept.

DaveHowe writes, "According to the 3com press release they are spinning off their US Robotics modem line into a new company, shared jointly between them, Accton and NatSteel Electronics. It is also farming off its LAN router customers to Extreme Networks but will be keeping support for them as part of a "strategic alliance". " Hmmm...perhaps they had such a nice team with the PalmPilot IPO that they figure, hey why not do it with everything?

2 of 74 comments (clear)

  1. Clarifications by igjeff · · Score: 4

    Let me see if I can clarify a few misconceptions here...

    Extreme is getting 3Com's CoreBuilder line...this is very high end routers and switches.

    Motorola is get most of the PathBuilder and most of the NetBuilder lines (3Com will retain a few of the products in each of these lines). NetBuilders are the more traditional routers, PathBuilders are workgroup and specialty switches.

    NatSteel and Accton (sp?) get the modems, NetSteel also gets the manufacturing facility in the Chicago suburbs (nice facility...toured it in October) and will manufacture 3Com equipment under contract there. This facility manufactures all of the Total Control line of equipment I believe, as well as cable modems, and DSL modems (3Com only does CPE DSL modems at this point). I believe they also do whatever the Sportster line is called now at that facility, and probably a couple of other things I'm forgetting. :)

    The modems will be spun off into their own company called "USRobotics" (what goes around comes around) in conjunction with NatSteel and Accton. Its important to note that the purchase of USRobotics approximately 3 years ago included Palm, and the Total Control line...Palm, of course, is already spun off, and Total Control is being retained by 3Com, so this really isn't the same USRobotics from days or yore. Personally, I tend to think its better...more focused...USRobotics had trouble executing on the Total Control back then (we used the line back then even), focusing on only consumer analog modems may allow them to return to the quality of USRobotics modems that many of us remember from years gone by. I hope.

    So...now the question that a lot of people ask when they hear all this..."What does that leave?"

    Well...as I mentioned...Total Control, which is really a whole line of products and is aimed at Carriers and ISPs, is still gonna be there. I suspect the part of the PathBuilder line that they are keeping as well is being held on to in order to complement the Total Control.

    This also leaves home networking and small business networking (nics, ISDN routers, small hubs, etc.), I also suspect the part of the NetBuilder line that they are retaining will be there to complement this part of the business...the low end of the NetBuilders.

    The last part that is still there is the VOIP product lines and related products. The NBX 100 and 3Com's ethernet phones are supposed to be pretty nifty...though I haven't had a chance to try any out yet. A couple of the acquisitions that were announced were to beef up this area...unified messaging, etc.

    As a 3Com customer...particularly of the Total Control line...I see all of this as a very good thing. I do find it interesting though. When I think of what 3Com is...I think of NetBuilder and CoreBuilder...its almost like 3Com is selling off their identity and becoming a totally new company in the process. The new logo almost confirms this idea (note I'm *definitely* in the realm of my own personal opinion here, take it for what you will).

    I've always thought the Total Control line was the "ugly step-child" of 3Com...and now they seem like they want to make that the core of their business...I say more power to them! :)

    Any way you look at it, there are interesting days ahead.

    Jeff

  2. Isn't USR a dead company? by Randy+Rathbun · · Score: 4

    Same with Zoom, etc? Modems are going to be going away pretty fast over the next few years, and I would think that perhaps 3Com pretty much milked USR for everything they could. Sure, they are still making money for them, but how can a modem compete with DSL or Cable, or whatever new broadband service that is going to be showing up soon. It can't.

    It sounds to me like 3Com sees this (if they can't then they are pretty bloody stupid) and is now letting them float out there for someone to buy in the next few years.