By Claus Hetting, Wi-Fi NOW CEO & Chairman
Blink and you missed it: On July 31 leading German Wi-Fi solution provider LANCOM was fully acquired by German tech giant Rohde & Schwarz. The acquisition is likely to accelerate LANCOM’s continued growth trajectory as well as lend a big hand to the company’s international expansion plans.
German €1.9 billion net revenue tech giant Rohde & Schwarz has since 2016 held the ownership majority of LANCOM. But as of July 31 the company now fully owns Germany’s number two vendor of Wi-Fi solutions by market share. The new ownership was announced in this LANCOM press release.
And the new ownership could be just the right match for LANCOM. Rohde & Schwarz is mostly known for its dominance of the RF test and measurement market but has been expanding into broadcasting, cybersecurity, and communications. The company is today represented in 70 countries.
LANCOM has done remarkably well in its home market of Germany, rising to the number two Wi-Fi vendor position by market share behind Cisco. The company recently posted 17% year-on-year sales growth for the 2017 fiscal year and as a part of the global Rohde & Schwarz organisation, LANCOM is now eyeing international expansion.
“The increased commitment of Rohde & Schwarz opens up further outstanding growth opportunities for LANCOM. We will use joint innovations to open up new markets and press ahead with the internationalization of our business,” says LANCOM founder and Managing Director Ralf Koenzen in the press release.
For more don’t miss meeting LANCOM at Wi-Fi NOW Europe in Berlin this November 6-8. Read more and register for the event here.
/Claus.
Above: Wi-Fi NOW meets with the LANCOM Wi-Fi team at the LANCOM headquarters near Aachen, Germany. From left to right: Eike Vomberg, Commercial Manager at LANCOM, Claus Hetting, CEO of Wi-Fi NOW, Andrea Volkhardt, Field Marketing Manager at LANCOM, and Jan Buis, VP Wireless LAN, IoT, and Switches at LANCOM.
