US telecommunications service provider D&S Communications has acquired the assets of New Zealand company Mako Networks from the company‘s receivers.
D&S Communications acquired the rights to all intellectual property relating to Mako’s branded network appliances and cloud-based Central Management System, including patents and patent applications, its trademarks and its beneficial interest in any contracts signed with customers worldwide.
Founded in 1986, D&S Communications sells, implements, services and supports telecommunications and data solutions to customers throughout the US.
D&S says it will continue to base research and development and compliance in New Zealand and will retain several of Mako’s senior managers, including company founders Chris Massam and Simon Gamble, as well as hiring “core members” of the Research and Development team.
Going forward, it will look to hire further R&D staff in New Zealand to continue product development and enhancement.
D&S Communications has acted as implementation and logistics partner for Mako in the United States since 2014, handling the installation of over 4,000 Mako network devices for Chevron.
In 2015 D&S became Mako’s primary North American distribution partner, assisting it with marketing, sales and implementation of Mako’s industry-leading PCI DSS compliance solutions.
D&S Communications CEO Jason Kubasak says the decision to acquire Mako’s assets was the result of a “good understanding” of the company’s technology and global potential.
“In working with Mako over the last two years we’ve come to respect the technology and the deep knowledge the team has about keeping networks secure and have an extremely high regard for their unique and highly robust approach to network security and compliance,” he says.
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“Given our history with Mako, we’re a natural fit as a purchaser.”
Kubasak says that D&S committed to Mako when it became a distribution partner and had protected its investment from the outset.
“We were made aware of the company’s financial position when we undertook due diligence and developed a business continuity plan in the event of an insolvency,” he adds.
“When that plan was triggered we considered our options and decided that, rather than merely exercising our right to continue to provide products and support in North America, we would invest further in the business and seek to acquire the assets in their entirety.
“The team has developed some outstanding technologies which have proven their worth in the course of rigorous assessments by large enterprises, including Chevron.
“We believe there’s an opportunity to build on this foundation and build a network security company that can succeed in global markets.”
Kubasak says D&S expects to restructure the assets and acquired companies over the next few weeks, to better enable it to continue to deliver products and provide support to distribution partners and enterprise customers.
When the restructuring is completed the company will operate wholly owned trading subsidiaries in each of its four territories: Mako Networks New Zealand, Mako Networks Australia, Mako Networks UK and Mako Networks USA.
On August 20, 2015, Mako’s directors appointed Waterstone Insolvency as liquidators for the company, following the cessation of funding arrangements.
Secured creditor, Spark Limited, placed the assets and undertakings of the company in receivership with KordaMentha the following day.
On October 1, 2015 D&S purchased the assets from KordaMentha for approximately $3 million - Spark New Zealand retains the rights to the Secure Me product in New Zealand.
