Rad Group
Encyclopedia
The RAD Group is a collection of independent companies that develop, manufacture and market solutions for diverse segments of the networking and telecommunications industry.
Each company operates independently, without a holding company, but is guided by the group founders under a collective strategic umbrella. Companies share technology, engage in joint marketing activities and benefit from a common management structure.
Five RAD Group companies are traded on the Nasdaq
Stock Market in the U.S.:
RADVISION, Ceragon Networks, Radware , RADCOM, and Silicom. The others are privately held by the Group's founders and several venture capital firms.
(born 1949), in Tel Aviv
, Israel. Both brothers studied electronics engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Yehuda started his career in the 1960s working for Motorola Israel
but in 1973 decided to start his own business importing and distributing computer networking equipment, a company called Bitcom. Later Yehuda parted company with his initial business partner and started a new company Bynet. The company’s main business was distributing Codex Corporation
’s products, the company soon became a market leader in Israel. In 1977 Codex Corporation
was acquired by Motorola
, but due to its success Bynet maintain the distribution rights for its products; however in 1981 Motorola
decided not to renew the distribution agreement with Bynet and sell the former Codex Corporation
’s in Israel directly.
to join him at Bynet to start working on the development of their own products. They started a new company at one corner of the Bynet offices and gave it the name RAD (which simply stood for Research And Development).
, the largest company within the RAD Group.
switch; one of the first to offer Ethernet
switching over simple twisted pair
telephone cables rather than expensive coaxial cable
s. In 1991 LANNAT had an initial public offering
on NASDAQ
, but in 1995, as their market was consolidating, it was decided to merge with Madge Networks
, in a deal valuing LANNET at $300 million USD.
By the end of 1995, the merged Madge-Lannet contained some 1,400 employees and achieved revenues of more than $400 million, but throughout 1996-7 there were disagreements about strategy a product developed between the former management teams of both companies; Benny Hanigal left the company and joined the Israeli Venture Capital
fund Star Ventures. In late 1997 Madge Networks
spun off its Ethernet
division into a separate subsidiary, once again named LANNET; and then sold it to Lucent Technologies
for $117 million in July 1998.
The group typically has a similar approach for starting new ventures; a business idea of an entrepreneur (an existing company employee or an outsider) or from the company’s management team, forms the basis of a Startup company
. Initial funding is provided by the company together with other Venture Capital
funds.
In this way companies such as: RADCOM
was established in 1990 and received funding from Star Venture and Pitango Venture Capital
funds. and RADvision in 1992, which was founded by Ami Amir and Eli Doron and received external funding from Evergreen and Clal venture capital funds, as well as from Siemens
.
, Internet Telephony Conference "Best in Show", Editor's Choice Awards from several Industry Magazines like Network Computing Magazine. RAD Group also sponsors RAD University and Protocols.com leading student sites for network and computer science information and reference materials.
Zohar Zisapel
is often called the "Bill Gates
" of Israel
(references: CNN Money article; Innovations Publishing article). Zohar had this to say about the main goals of the RAD Group:
Market. The group total revenues in 2008 were $850 million.
Each company operates independently, without a holding company, but is guided by the group founders under a collective strategic umbrella. Companies share technology, engage in joint marketing activities and benefit from a common management structure.
Five RAD Group companies are traded on the Nasdaq
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
Stock Market in the U.S.:
RADVISION, Ceragon Networks, Radware , RADCOM, and Silicom. The others are privately held by the Group's founders and several venture capital firms.
Early years
Rad Group was founded by brothers Yehuda (born 1942) and ZoharZohar Zisapel
Zohar Zisapel , is a successful Israeli entrepreneur in Israel’s advanced hi-tech industry. The RAD Group of companies he co-founded with his brother, Yehuda Zisapel, has been called "the world's most successful incubator" of telecom-related start-ups by Business 2.0 magazine.The Zisapels' RAD...
(born 1949), in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, Israel. Both brothers studied electronics engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Yehuda started his career in the 1960s working for Motorola Israel
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
but in 1973 decided to start his own business importing and distributing computer networking equipment, a company called Bitcom. Later Yehuda parted company with his initial business partner and started a new company Bynet. The company’s main business was distributing Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation was a high-tech company, based in Newton, Massachusetts. The company was founded in July 1962 by James M. Cryer Jr. and Arthur Kohlenberg, with the support of Robert Gallager, who helped them as technology consultant ....
’s products, the company soon became a market leader in Israel. In 1977 Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation was a high-tech company, based in Newton, Massachusetts. The company was founded in July 1962 by James M. Cryer Jr. and Arthur Kohlenberg, with the support of Robert Gallager, who helped them as technology consultant ....
was acquired by Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
, but due to its success Bynet maintain the distribution rights for its products; however in 1981 Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
decided not to renew the distribution agreement with Bynet and sell the former Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation
Codex Corporation was a high-tech company, based in Newton, Massachusetts. The company was founded in July 1962 by James M. Cryer Jr. and Arthur Kohlenberg, with the support of Robert Gallager, who helped them as technology consultant ....
’s in Israel directly.
Founding RAD
The experience of losing the distribution rights of Codex made Yehuda realise that his business should never relay on one product line; and in 1981 he asked his brother ZoharZohar Zisapel
Zohar Zisapel , is a successful Israeli entrepreneur in Israel’s advanced hi-tech industry. The RAD Group of companies he co-founded with his brother, Yehuda Zisapel, has been called "the world's most successful incubator" of telecom-related start-ups by Business 2.0 magazine.The Zisapels' RAD...
to join him at Bynet to start working on the development of their own products. They started a new company at one corner of the Bynet offices and gave it the name RAD (which simply stood for Research And Development).
First Product Development Success
RAD first successful product was a miniature (in 1980’s standards) computer modem. The product quickly became a commercial success, and by 1985, RAD annual revenues reached $5.5 million USD. This initial product line has evolved into RAD Data CommunicationsRAD Data Communications
RAD Data Communications is a privately held corporation, based in Tel Aviv, Israel, that designs and manufacturers specialized networking equipment.RAD Data Communications is a member of the RAD Group of companies.-History:...
, the largest company within the RAD Group.
First Spin-off - LANNET
In 1985 RAD provided initial funding and support to entrepreneur Benny Hanigal to start LANNET Data Communications; which developed a pioneering EthernetEthernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
switch; one of the first to offer Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
switching over simple twisted pair
Twisted pair
Twisted pair cabling is a type of wiring in which two conductors are twisted together for the purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference from external sources; for instance, electromagnetic radiation from unshielded twisted pair cables, and crosstalk between neighboring pairs...
telephone cables rather than expensive coaxial cable
Coaxial cable
Coaxial cable, or coax, has an inner conductor surrounded by a flexible, tubular insulating layer, surrounded by a tubular conducting shield. The term coaxial comes from the inner conductor and the outer shield sharing the same geometric axis...
s. In 1991 LANNAT had an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
on NASDAQ
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
, but in 1995, as their market was consolidating, it was decided to merge with Madge Networks
Madge Networks
Madge Networks NV was a networking technology company founded by Robert Madge, and is best known for its work with Token Ring. It was a global leader and pioneer of high-speed networking solutions in the mid-1990s, and also made significant contributions to technologies such as Asynchronous...
, in a deal valuing LANNET at $300 million USD.
By the end of 1995, the merged Madge-Lannet contained some 1,400 employees and achieved revenues of more than $400 million, but throughout 1996-7 there were disagreements about strategy a product developed between the former management teams of both companies; Benny Hanigal left the company and joined the Israeli Venture Capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
fund Star Ventures. In late 1997 Madge Networks
Madge Networks
Madge Networks NV was a networking technology company founded by Robert Madge, and is best known for its work with Token Ring. It was a global leader and pioneer of high-speed networking solutions in the mid-1990s, and also made significant contributions to technologies such as Asynchronous...
spun off its Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
division into a separate subsidiary, once again named LANNET; and then sold it to Lucent Technologies
Lucent Technologies
Alcatel-Lucent USA, Inc., originally Lucent Technologies, Inc. is a French-owned technology company composed of what was formerly AT&T Technologies, which included Western Electric and Bell Labs...
for $117 million in July 1998.
Development during the 1990’s
During the 1990s the RAD Group was involved in establishing 12 different technology companies, some became publicly listed companies on NADSAQ and some were later sold to other companies.The group typically has a similar approach for starting new ventures; a business idea of an entrepreneur (an existing company employee or an outsider) or from the company’s management team, forms the basis of a Startup company
Startup company
A startup company or startup is a company with a limited operating history. These companies, generally newly created, are in a phase of development and research for markets...
. Initial funding is provided by the company together with other Venture Capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
funds.
In this way companies such as: RADCOM
Radcom Ltd
RADCOM , researches, develops, manufactures and markets network testing, analysis, monitoring and simulation equipment. RADCOM products work with a wide variety of network protocols including ATM, GSM, GPRS, UMTS, CDMA, CDMA2000, VoIP, TCP/IP, Video, IPTV, MLLPPP, and PPP. For both LAN and WAN...
was established in 1990 and received funding from Star Venture and Pitango Venture Capital
Venture capital
Venture capital is financial capital provided to early-stage, high-potential, high risk, growth startup companies. The venture capital fund makes money by owning equity in the companies it invests in, which usually have a novel technology or business model in high technology industries, such as...
funds. and RADvision in 1992, which was founded by Ami Amir and Eli Doron and received external funding from Evergreen and Clal venture capital funds, as well as from Siemens
Siemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
.
Notability
RAD Group companies have won many awards including the Business Red HerringRed Herring (magazine)
Red Herring was a technology business magazine, which flourished during the dot com boom, with global distribution and bureaus in Bangalore, Beijing, and Paris. It also sponsored conferences designed to bring venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and technologists together. But the magazine went into...
, Internet Telephony Conference "Best in Show", Editor's Choice Awards from several Industry Magazines like Network Computing Magazine. RAD Group also sponsors RAD University and Protocols.com leading student sites for network and computer science information and reference materials.
Zohar Zisapel
Zohar Zisapel
Zohar Zisapel , is a successful Israeli entrepreneur in Israel’s advanced hi-tech industry. The RAD Group of companies he co-founded with his brother, Yehuda Zisapel, has been called "the world's most successful incubator" of telecom-related start-ups by Business 2.0 magazine.The Zisapels' RAD...
is often called the "Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
" of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
(references: CNN Money article; Innovations Publishing article). Zohar had this to say about the main goals of the RAD Group:
“The RAD Group’s decentralized approach maximizes the advantages inherent in smaller business units - such as flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit - while allowing member companies to share mutually beneficial developments and fostering innovations.”
RAD Group Companies
The RAD Group consists of 14 companies, six of which are traded on the NasdaqNASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
Market. The group total revenues in 2008 were $850 million.
- Bynet - System Integrator, Established 1973
- RAD Data CommunicationsRAD Data CommunicationsRAD Data Communications is a privately held corporation, based in Tel Aviv, Israel, that designs and manufacturers specialized networking equipment.RAD Data Communications is a member of the RAD Group of companies.-History:...
- Access Solutions for Carriers and Corporate Networks, Established 1981 - Silicom - Hi End Adapters for Servers and Security Appliances, Established 1987
- RADCOMRadcom LtdRADCOM , researches, develops, manufactures and markets network testing, analysis, monitoring and simulation equipment. RADCOM products work with a wide variety of network protocols including ATM, GSM, GPRS, UMTS, CDMA, CDMA2000, VoIP, TCP/IP, Video, IPTV, MLLPPP, and PPP. For both LAN and WAN...
- Providers of Monitoring, Analysis and Troubleshooting systems for Next Generation Networks, Established 1991 - RADVISIONRadvision Ltd.RADVISION., founded in 1992, is a Nasdaq and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange-traded company, which is a component of the TA-100 Index of the largest 100 companies traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange by market cap, it provides products and technologies for videoconferencing, video telephony, and the...
- Voice, video and data communications infrastructure and developer tools, Established 1992 - Ceragon NetworksCeragonCeragon Networks Ltd. provides high-capacity microwave Ethernet and TDM wireless backhaul solutions to wireless service providers as well as private businesses...
- Wireless Broadband, Established 1996 (as Giganet) - RadwareRadwareRadware , is a provider of integrated Application delivery, Network Security and Load balancing solutions based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Radware, which is a member of the Rad Group of companies, is a public company and its shares are traded on NASDAQ.- History :...
- Intelligent Application Switching, Established 1997 - RadwinRadwinRADWIN provides wireless broadband Point-to-Point and Multiple Point-to-Point solutions in the Sub-6 GHz spectrum. The company's solutions deliver TDM + Ethernet with long range and high capacity....
- Broadband Wireless Solutions, Established 1997 - SANRAD - Intelligent Storage Networks, Established 2000
- PacketLight Networks - Optical Networking Technology for Storage Transport Solutions, Established 2000
- Wisair - Ultra Wideband Wireless Communication, Established 2001.
- Commex Technologies Inc. - Intelligent, Cutting-Edge Solutions for x86 Multicore Systems, Established 2005
- RADLIVE - High Definition Telephony Technologies, Established 2005
- Channelot - Mobile TV Transmitters, Established 2007
Former members
Former members of the RAD Group include:- LANNET - sold to Madge NetworksMadge NetworksMadge Networks NV was a networking technology company founded by Robert Madge, and is best known for its work with Token Ring. It was a global leader and pioneer of high-speed networking solutions in the mid-1990s, and also made significant contributions to technologies such as Asynchronous...
in 1995 and then to Lucent in 1998 - Armon Networking - sold to Bay NetworksBay NetworksBay Networks was a network hardware vendor formed through the merger of Santa Clara, California based SynOptics Communications and Billerica, Massachusetts based Wellfleet Communications on July 6, 1994...
in 1996 - RADNET - sold to Siemens AGSiemens AGSiemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
and NewbridgeNewbridge NetworksNewbridge Networks was an Ottawa, Ontario, Canada company founded by Welsh-Canadian entrepreneur Sir Terry Matthews. It was founded in 1986 to create data and voice networking products after Matthews was forced out of his original company Mitel...
in 1997 - RADLINX - sold to VocalTecVocalTecVocalTec Communications Inc. , is an Israeli telecom equipment provider. The company was founded in 1989 by Alon Cohen and Lior Haramaty, who invented and patented the first Voice over IP audio transceiver...
in 1998 - RADWIZ - sold to TerayonTerayonTerayon Communication Systems, Inc. was a company that vended equipment to broadband service providers for delivering broadband voice, video and data services to residential and business subscribers.-History:...
Communications in 1999 - RADGaurd - provider of VPN solutions, closed down in 2001
- RADLANRadlanRADLAN computer communications LTD. , is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marvell Technology Group, that specializes in LAN networking technologies.-Products:The RADLAN's core technology, Open and Portable Embedded...
- sold to MarvellMarvell Technology GroupMarvell is an American producer of storage, communications and consumer semiconductor products.Founded in 1995, Marvell Technology Group Ltd. has operations worldwide and approximately 5,700 employees. Marvell’s U.S. operating subsidiary is based in Santa Clara, California and Marvell has...
in 2003 - RND - sold to USR Electronics in 2003.
- RiT TechnologiesRiT TechnologiesRiT Technologies Ltd. is a publicly traded company, headquartered in Israel, that specializes in providing clients with advanced network management systems. Its shares are traded on the NASDAQ Capital Market.- History :...
- sold to Stis Coman Corporation in 2008
External links
- The Startup Factory - by CNN Money
- High Speed Rail Strays on Track - ZDNet White Paper
- RAD Group Highlights - by Israel's Investment Promotion Center
- TCMnet Article on Rad Group Founder - 25 Years of RAD Group
- Blog about Personal Visit To Rad Group
- Rad Group Contact Info
- Rad Group Home Page
- Zohar Zisapel, the RAD dad of the world's telecom industry - Israel 21C