Aricent Group is a global innovation and technology services company. The company develops software and provides technology services to application, infrastructure, and service providers with operations in 19 countries worldwide.

 

The company claims to be one of the largest privately held companies in Silicon Valley, with 800 customers, and employs more than 10,000 consultants, designers, and engineers at 36 locations worldwide. The company licenses its own software products for use in telecommunications design, manufacturing, and service with 40+ years' design experience through frog, including products for Apple, Disney, GE, HP, Sony, and many other Fortune 500 brands. Aricent has been ranked as 17th in the Top 20 IT services export firms in India in terms of total revenue in the 24th annual survey conducted by Dataquest, CyberMedia group journal in July 2010. Aricent Technologies is ranked #19 in Indian IT companies and overall #451 in the Fortune India 500 list in 2011.

 

Aricent Group is the successor to Hughes Software Systems, which was established in 1991, as well as Flextronics Software Systems, which was created in 2004 after the parent company's acquisition. In 2006, Flextronics sold 85% of the company to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) and Sequoia Capital. Flextronics retained 15% ownership.

 

Frog, acquired by Flextronics in 2004, is a company of the Aricent Group.

 

History

• 1991: Established as Hughes Software Systems (HSS) in New Delhi developing software solutions in the areas of VSAT-based networks for voice and data, cellular wireless telephony, packet switching, and multi-protocol routing.

• 1995: Moved to Electronic City, Gurgaon, a suburb of New Delhi, India.

• 1998: Established a development center in Bangalore, India to develop software for the Internet and Internet Protocol-based solutions and applications.

• 1999: Began a voice-over-packet business, went public via India's first book building issue, and opened several offices in the U.S.

• 2000: Opened offices in the U.K. and Germany.

• 2001: Opened offices in Japan

• 2003: Established a wireless equipment development center in Nuremberg, Germany.

• 2004: Was acquired by Flextronics, and changed its name to Flextronics Software Systems

• 2004: Acquired frog design for approximately $25 million.[8]

• 2005: Expanded development operations in Kiev, Kherson and Vinnytsia in the Ukraine; Randburg, South Africa; and Beijing, China. Was delisted from India's stock market in preparation for sale.

• 2006: Was acquired by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Sequoia Capital as part of a $900 million sales of software companies.[10] The transaction represented the 

largest private equity buy-out in Indian history.

• 2006: Renamed Aricent with headquarters in New Jersey.

• 2008: The Family Office, a multi-family office company with headquarters in Bahrain also joined in funding Aricent.[12]

• 2009: Aricent Approved for Latest CMMI Level 5 Certification.[13]

• 2011: Rebranded to Aricent Group.

 

Products

Aricent Group licenses more than 125 software frameworks to equipment manufacturers, device manufacturers and service providers, including:

• Femtocell/Picocell software

• General Packet Radio System (GPRS) Service Node

• IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS)

• Media Gateway Framework

• Mobile TV (DVB-H) solution

• Music player application

• PacketCable Call Management Server

• SIP Server framework

• Softswitch

• DirectShow Filters for Mobile and PC

• Video/Audio codecs

• Streaming Multimedia Content

• UMTS terminal stack

• aTCA-cRNC

• Voice Call Continuity server

• Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

• WiMAX ASN Gateway framework

• Long Term Evolution (LTE)

 

Clients

Aricent Group lists large telecommunications clients, while others come from consumer electronics, financial services, energy, healthcare, data equipment manufacturers, device makers, and service providers, including: Airtel, Alcatel-Lucent, Alltel, Cisco Systems, Comverse, Disney, Ericsson, HP, Hughes Network Systems, Inmarsat, Juniper Networks, LG Electronics, Motorola, MTV, NEC, Newport Networks Limited, Nokia, Nokia Siemens Networks, Panasonic, Pantech, Polycom,Samsung, Siemens, Sony Ericsson, Tekelec, Tellabs, Texas Instruments, Verizon, Virgin Mobile, Vodafone, Wireless and Convergence.

 

Standards Organizations

Aricent Group is a contributing member of standards bodies in the communications industry, including:

• International Telecommunication Standardization Sector

• 3GPP

• European Telecommunication Standards Institute

• Internet Engineering Task Force

• International Multimedia Telecommunication Consortium

• OMA Open Mobile Alliance

 

Board of directors

• Adam H. Clammer

• Joe Forehand

• James H. Greene, Jr.

• Paul Read

• Nathaniel H. Taylor

• Arun Sarin