August - 1999 - issue > Cover Feature

In 1987 Suresh Nihalani co-founded ACT Networks, provider of hardware and software for the frame relay access segment of the global networking industry. Today, ACT is a $500 million company, the fourth largest provider of integrated frame relay access solutions behind Motorola, Cisco and Nortel.
Now, Nihalani is at it again, with Accelerated Networks, a company he founded in 1996 in Southern California. After the 1996 deregulation of the telecommunications industry created increased acceptance of the Internet, the phone companies jumped in on the action. The resulting demand for web-based communications technologies and services created a tremendous number of market opportunities. Nihalani saw one of those opportunities, and he knew how to seize it.

"The key is in identifying an opportunity at the right time," says Nihalani, "and then putting an execution plan together that has an excellent chance of success." Within four weeks of contacting VCs, he got a commitment from New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and U.S. Venture Partners, for a total of $5.6 million. The second round followed within a year, and the third round in 1998.

Accelerated Networks develops systems solutions that allow access providers to offer multiple voice and data services over a single access line. The company just finished its first quarter of product shipments and developed an OEM agreement with Siemens. Clearly, Nihalani is on yet another promising road, and we look forward to watching his latest venture come into its own.