TIDMALM
RNS Number : 6976Q
Allied Minds PLC
14 September 2017
Federated Wireless raises $42.0 million in Series B fund-raise
led by Charter Communications, American Tower, ARRIS International
plc and GIC
Participation of leading CBRS (3.5GHz) ecosystem members signals
validation of Federated Wireless' innovative spectrum sharing
technology and acceleration of commercialisation
Federated Wireless also announces availability of industry's
first Spectrum Controller for extensive field trials and commercial
deployments in advance of FCC certification
Boston, MA, - 14 September 2017 - Allied Minds (ALM: LSE)
subsidiary, Federated Wireless, today announced the completion of a
Series B funding round raising $42.0 million. The round was led by
new investors and key members of the shared spectrum ecosystem:
Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR); American Tower (NYSE: AMT);
and ARRIS International plc (NASDAQ: ARRS), and by GIC, Singapore's
sovereign wealth fund. The balance of the raise was subscribed
principally by Allied Minds and Woodford Investment Management
(WIM). Federated Wireless also announced today the industry's first
commercially available Spectrum Controller for use in extensive
pilot field trials and commercial deployments with lead customers,
in advance of FCC certification expected in Q1 2018. A conference
call for Allied Minds investors and analysts will be held at 9am UK
time today. Iyad Tarazi, CEO of Federated Wireless, will discuss
the fund-raise and the Spectrum Controller product. Details are
included further below.
Investment in Federated Wireless by key strategic partners in
the spectrum sharing ecosystem is a powerful endorsement of the
ground-breaking spectrum sharing model and the critical position
Federated Wireless occupies as a neutral enabler of shared access.
It creates significant opportunities to accelerate progress against
Federated Wireless' existing business plans through commercial
cooperation with these partners, and opens up a broader set of
opportunities by enabling new business models to be created across
industries. Proceeds from the fund-raise will be applied to invest
in sales and marketing capabilities and customer support and
deployment services. Catapult Advisors served as financial advisor
to Federated Wireless in connection with the transaction.
The Spectrum Controller technology enables Citizens Broadband
Radio Service (CBRS), facilitating densification of existing
networks and enhancing a wide range of mobile technologies and
services, while enabling cable operators and others to access the
wireless market on economic terms, without the need to own spectrum
outright. The technology also allows for the bolstering of existing
carrier and LTE networks, and for commercial and industrial
properties to launch robust LTE networks for advanced
applications.
"Charter is proud to partner with Federated Wireless to bring
CBRS 3.5 GHz technology to market," said Craig Cowden, SVP Wireless
Technology at Charter Communications. "Federated Wireless is a
market leader in enabling and optimizing the allocation of shared
spectrum, and we are excited to partner with them on this
innovative new technology. When combined with Charter's advanced
and powered high speed infrastructure, it will enable innovative
service offerings that enhance the customer experience."
"Demand for wireless services is sky-rocketing and creating the
need for a far denser and further reaching network. Without a new
access model and infrastructure that can serve many participants
simultaneously the cost of achieving this can quickly become
prohibitive," said Steven Marshall, Executive Vice President at
American Tower. "CBRS's shared access and economic model makes it a
natural path forward and Federated Wireless' position as a neutral,
trusted partner for all makes them the perfect partner for us as we
work to deploy the network of tomorrow."
"ARRIS strongly believes in the shared spectrum market
opportunity," said Bruce McClelland, ARRIS CEO. "As service
providers of every type develop expanded wireless product
offerings, and Enterprises explore Private LTE and Industrial IoT
opportunities, we see a strong market opportunity by adding CBRS
capability to our portfolio. Federated Wireless is a foundational
building block in the CBRS ecosystem, and we are pleased to serve
these markets with Federated as a partner."
"As a long-term investor, we believe the dynamic sharing of
150MHz of CBRS spectrum at 3.5GHz is an innovative and leading
method of addressing the future need for bandwidth by
data-intensive applications", said Bryan Yeo, Chief Investment
Officer for Public Equities at GIC. "We are pleased to invest in
Federated Wireless with its enabling technologies to act as a
neutral allocator of spectrum. We are confident in the long-term
potential of dynamic sharing at 3.5GHz, and possibly other spectrum
bands, leading to a more efficient utilization of scarce spectrum
resources, better indoor coverage, more innovative services based
on private LTE networks, as well as the provision of wireless
broadband access by a greater number of players."
Jill Smith, CEO of Allied Minds, commented "We are absolutely
thrilled that Federated Wireless has secured investment and
validation from top tier strategic partners who are critical to the
roll-out and uptake of the spectrum sharing model."
Alongside the fund-raise, Federated Wireless has today also
announced the industry's first commercially available Spectrum
Controller for extensive field trials and commercial deployments
using the 3.5GHz shared spectrum band, in advance of full FCC
certification expected in Q1 2018.
The Spectrum Controller is an end-to-end solution for shared
spectrum access, management and optimization, helping businesses to
quickly and efficiently plan, optimize and monetize CBRS services.
The Spectrum Controller's key components, include:
-- Spectrum Access System (SAS) - a standards-based
cloud-service that delivers access to interference-free bandwidth
within the CBRS band, enhancing wireless coverage options.
-- Environmental Sensing Capability (ESC) Network - nationwide
redundant network of sensors that identify and protect the Federal
agencies already using CBRS to ensure defense and government
communications aren't impacted by commercial users.
-- Spectrum Management Tools - a robust set of tools and
analytics providing a real-time view into shared spectrum
utilization and availability to maximize use of CBRS and enable
greater optimization.
-- Open Partner Ecosystem - an API-centric architecture and
large ecosystem of pre-integrated technology partners enables ease
of integration with existing networks, while reducing operating
costs and improving time to market.
"Shared spectrum isn't just a promising approach of the future -
Federated Wireless' Spectrum Controller is now available for use by
customers of all sizes conducting live, integrated field trials and
commercial deployments in readiness for FCC certification. Spectrum
sharing will dramatically reduce the cost of delivering wireless
services, with our technology serving as the on-ramp," said Iyad
Tarazi, CEO of Federated Wireless. "The commercial availability of
our Spectrum Controller and the investment of the wireless industry
in the company will enable us to cement our leadership position and
capitalize on the rapid industry shift to shared spectrum set to
begin this year."
Federated Wireless Spectrum Controller product will be
demonstrated at the Mobile World Congress Americas conference
currently in progress in San Francisco.
A conference call for Allied Minds investors and analysts will
be held at 9am UK time today. Iyad Tarazi, CEO of Federated
Wireless, will discuss the fund-raise and the Spectrum Controller
product.
Dial in details:
United Kingdom Toll: +44 3333000804 PIN: 06785062# (also
available for international callers)
United Kingdom Toll-Free: 08003589473 PIN: 06785062#
US Toll: +1 6319131422 PIN: 06785062#
US Toll-Free: +1 855 85 70686 PIN: 06785062#
URL for international dial in numbers:
http://events.arkadin.com/ev/docs/NE_W2_TF_Events_International_Access_List.pdf
A slide deck presentation accompanying this call is available
at: www.alliedminds.com.
S
For more information, please contact:
Allied Minds plc
Neil Pizey, Head of Corporate Development +44 7771 872 922
FTI Consulting
Ben Atwell / Brett Pollard +44 20 3727 1000
Federated Wireless
Derek James +1 408-727-0351
About Allied Minds
Based in Boston, Allied Minds plc is an IP commercialisation
company focused on technology and life sciences. With extensive
access to U.S. federal government laboratories and universities, as
well as partnerships with leading U.S. corporations, Allied Minds
forms, funds, and operates a portfolio of companies with the
objective of delivering successful liquidity events that will
generate attractive long-term returns for its investors and
stakeholders. Allied Minds supports its businesses with capital,
resources, and expertise.
For more information, please visit www.alliedminds.com
About Federated Wireless
Federated Wireless is leading the wireless industry through the
shared spectrum revolution, unlocking a spectrum of possibilities
by eliminating the decades-old problem of spectrum scarcity. The
Company offers the industry's first spectrum controller, enabling
government and commercial users to securely share the same spectrum
band without impacting quality of service. Headquartered in
Arlington, Virginia, Federated Wireless is removing the
multi-billion dollar price tag associated with spectrum access,
allowing for the creation of new wireless carriers and business
models. For more information please visit,
www.federatedwireless.com.
Further information on the fund-raise
Of the $42.0 million raised in this financing, WIM contributed
$5.0 million for the purchase of 3,234,178 Series B Preferred
shares. WIM is a substantial shareholder of Allied Minds pursuant
to the Listing Rules and thus, this transaction is a smaller
related party transaction falling within the scope of Listing Rule
11.1.10R.
Allied Minds contributed $9.0 million for the purchase of
5,821,520 Series B Preferred shares. The transaction was completed
at a pre-money valuation of $79.5 million, (or $121.5 million
post-money). Allied Minds' outstanding equity interest in Federated
Wireless following completion of the transaction is 52.26%.
Allied Minds Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains statements that are or may be
forward-looking statements, including statements that relate to
Allied Minds' future prospects, developments and strategies. The
forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and
are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results, performance and achievements to differ
materially from current expectations, including, but not limited
to, those risks and uncertainties described in the risk factors
included in Allied Minds' regulatory filings. These forward-looking
statements are based on assumptions regarding the present and
future business strategies of Allied Minds and the environment in
which it will operate in the future. Each forward-looking statement
speaks only as at the date of this press release. Except as
required by law, regulatory requirement, the Listing Rules and the
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, neither Allied Minds
nor any other party intends to update or revise these
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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September 14, 2017 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)
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