Vgo Communications Announces VGO, Its Innovative Visual Communications Solution

The VGO

The Castile portfolio company previously known as North End Technologies has adopted the new name Vgo Communications to reflect its leadership in developing and delivering a new category of visual communications solution for the workplace.   Its solution, known as VGO, enables the user to be not only present but also mobile in a  distant location.  Users can see, hear, talk, interact, and move around just as if they were actually there.  According to CEO Brad Kayton “With VGO, you don’t make a call – you just go there. This is a completely new form of communications, which we call active presence.”

VGO enables businesses to increase productivity by enabling experts to be where they are needed when they are needed, while reducing the cost and inconvenience of traveling and enhancing employee satisfaction.  Having completed a year of user trials with dozens of organizations of many different types, the company is now readying itself for the general availability of VGO this summer through a network of top-tier resellers experienced in delivering and supporting audio/video products and services.

Following Its Acquisition of ChosenSecurity, PGP Corporation is Purchased by Symantec for Over $300 Million

PGP Corporation, which acquired Castile portfolio company ChosenSecurity earlier in 2010, has been acquired by Symantec (NASDAQ: SYMC), the global leader in security, storage and systems management, for over $300 million in cash.  PGP Corporation is a global leader in email and data encryption software for enterprise data protection.  With the acquisition of ChosenSecurity, PGP added to its core competency in data protection by offering managed trusted identities for encryption, authentication and secure collaboration.  These services leverage an on-demand platform that enables secure, trusted electronic transactions across individuals, servers, and mobile devices.   Several ChosenSecurity executives joined the PGP senior management team. 

Since Castile’s investment, ChosenSecurity had grown to become the leading provider of on-demand security services with more than 3,500 customers across the globe. Applications such as web-based banking rely on ChosenSecurity identities to secure transactions, authenticate mobile applications, and create legally enforceable digital signatures.

Logility Acquires Optiant to Further Strengthen Supply Chain Solutions

Fred Lizza, CEO Optiant

Castile portfolio company Optiant was acquired by Logility, a subsidiary of American Software (NASDAQ: AMSWA), and a leading supplier of supply chain optimization solutions.  Optiant has established itself as a leader in the market for advanced inventory optimization solutions and developed a blue-chip customer base of respected industry leaders including Black & Decker, Procter & Gamble, Kraft, HP, Nestlé and Boston Scientific.

Following the acquisition, Optiant’s product line is being integrated into Logility’s Voyager Suite.  “This merger is a great outcome for our customers and for our team,” said Optiant CEO Fred Lizza.  “There is a great synergy in the types of customers we serve.  Logility customers will gain access to Optiant’s unique inventory optimization solution that will free up millions of dollars in working capital.  Meanwhile, Optiant’s customers will benefit from the comprehensive supply chain management suite offered by Logility.”

Thermo Fisher Completes the Acquisition of Ahura Scientific, an Innovator in Handheld Spectrometers

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) has completed its acquisition of Ahura Scientific and integrated it into its Analytical Technologies Segment.  Thermo Fisher is a $10 billion plus enterprise that provides analytical instruments, equipment, reagents, consumables, software and services to pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies worldwide.

“With a strong complementary fit between the two companies’ technologies, this acquisition represents a great outcome for our customers, employees and investors,” stated Ahura Scientific chairman and CEO Doug Kahn.   As a Castile portfolio company, Ahura Scientific grew to become a leader in handheld spectroscopy instruments that are used worldwide in the identification of chemicals for safety, security and pharmaceutical applications.  The company generated 2009 revenues of approximately $45 million.

Having been deeply involved with Ahura Scientific since its inception, Castile is very proud of the company’s achievements. [More Info]