Juniper adds to network toolkit

Juniper Networks signed definitive agreements Tuesday to acquire Peribit Networks and Redline Networks. The two acquisitions give Juniper additional products in the network application delivery and performance space.

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"Juniper Networks is capitalizing on its leadership position to redefine the networking market," said Scott Kriens, chairman and CEO of Juniper, in a statement. "The addition of application acceleration technologies to Juniper Networks' best-in-class routing and security solutions is a natural extension of our traffic processing strategy. We are raising the bar on what users can and should expect from the network," he said.

Peribit develops WAN optimization appliances to provide increased WAN capacity, faster application performance, prioritized application delivery, and systemwide visibility of network and application performance. Peribit has over 900 enterprise customers worldwide, according to the company.

Redline designs network solutions that maximize the performance, flexibility, and scalability of Web-enabled enterprise datacenters and public Web sites. Redline has over 350 enterprise customers, according to the company.

The Peribit acquisition is valued at approximately $337 million in cash, stock, and assumed stock options. The Redline acquisition is valued at approximately $132 million in cash and assumed stock options. The Peribit acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter this year, whereas the Redline acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter.

Dave Flynn, vice president of security products at Juniper, said the acquisitions further Juniper's strategy to secure the delivery and performance of applications over an IP network. "That is part of our long-term strategy and these acquisitions will help us add more features and functions for our customers," he said.