Matisse Aims to Make Impression

Stealth mode startup Matisse Networks is filling out its management team as it prepares to launch its first switch product later this year (see Matisse Discloses Mgt. Team).

Former Amber Networks CEO Sam Mathan is the man charged with bringing Matisse out of the shadows. The Hyderabad, India-born exec has a strong track record building switch vendors. Amber Networks was sold to Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) for $421 million in July 2001. Prior to that, Mathan worked for Ascend Communications., which was snapped up by Lucent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LU) for a cool $24 billion in 1999.

So, what does Matisse actually do? The Mountain-View, Calif.-based vendor is still keeping its flagship technology under wraps, although execs tell NDCF that it's working on a multiprotocol, distributed Layer 3 switch. The technology has been in alpha test in customer environments for the last nine months, and Mathan confirms that it will be generally available in the second half of this year.

My role is to lead the company to a successful product launch and filling out [Matisse] for growth,” he says.

Matisse is targeting its switch at “any of the sectors that require high-performance switching for distributed computing”, according to Mathan. This includes large enterprises, the Federal Government, and portal providers such as Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG) and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO), he adds.But the switch market is a tough one for a new competitor to enter, with the likes of Extreme Networks Inc. (Nasdaq: EXTR), Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO), and Nortel Networks Corp. (NYSE/Toronto: NT) already well established. In addition, startup Force10 Networks Inc. has compiled an impressive customer roster.

Timon Sloane, Matisse’s vice president of marketing, was formerly director of product management at Extreme, and, like Mathan, is unwilling to give too much away about his new baby. However, he promises that the switch will be notable for its port density, scaleability, and distance features.

Although a newcomer, Matisse has been able to rack up some decent funding. Back in September 2003, the firm clinched $21 million worth of Series A investment in a round that included Menlo Ventures, Walden International Investment Group, and Woodside Fund.

Mathan says there are plans to go for a Series B round, although “we haven’t picked a time yet. We have more than enough cash to take us through our product [launch].”

Matisse currently has 45 employees, most of whom are in Mountain View, with 15 in India and one in Israel. Mathan says there are plans to expand the workforce in areas such as engineering, marketing, and sales.The Israeli link is a key one for Matisse. The company was founded by Claude Hamou, a graduate of the Technion, which is Israel’s Institute of Technology. Prior to founding Matisse, Hamou was executive vice president and general manager of the Data Cable Division at Terayon Communication Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: TERN).

— James Rogers, Site Editor, Next-Gen Data Center Forum