Com One group

Com One group was a French electronics manufacturer founded in 1987 by Jacques Saubade and Michel Petit and headquartered in Cestas, France. The company began with analog PSTN modems and developed into a specialist supplier of communications hardware for personal computers, mobile computing, local-area networking, and consumer Internet access. Its name referred to the computer serial-port convention COM1, reflecting the company’s original emphasis on modem and communications equipment. During its early years, Com One developed serial modems and subsequently entered the PCMCIA market. In 1990 it began producing PCMCIA modems, positioning the company to benefit from the growth of portable computers. During the 1990s, its product strategy expanded from single-purpose modems to multifunction PC Card communication adapters. Product combinations evolved from PSTN and GSM data connectivity to three-function and four-function devices incorporating PSTN, GSM, ISDN, and Ethernet. This approach allowed one compact adapter to support several communications standards used by business travelers and mobile-computing users. In the 2000s, Com One broadened its portfolio beyond traditional modem products. Its capabilities covered wired and wireless high-speed data transmission, PSTN, ISDN, Ethernet networking, GSM, GPRS, and ADSL. The group also developed wireless access points, Bluetooth adapters and gateways, Internet-appliance hardware, and non-PC Internet terminals marketed under names including @max and Neomax. A video-security division produced Viewcom surveillance equipment, including digital video recorder and remote-monitoring products; that division was sold to Atral in 2003. A substantial part of Com One’s mobile and connectivity business operated as an original-equipment manufacturer. Products were supplied for or associated with organizations including Toshiba France and Spain, Sony ITE Europe, IBM, Apple Europe, RFI Germany, and Anycom. This OEM orientation gave the group access to broader distribution channels while its own brand remained focused on communications components and specialist devices. The company was publicly traded in Paris and Stuttgart from 1992 until 2005. In 2005, the Com One group closed and was delisted. French company Baracoda SA acquired the brand and redirected it toward Bluetooth-oriented products for end users. Under Baracoda’s ownership, Com One introduced Wi-Fi Internet-radio hardware, including the COM One Phoenix and the Orange Liveradio. The brand’s websites were no longer operating by 2008, and Com One was subsequently discontinued. Its history reflects the transition from dial-up and ISDN communications toward mobile data, wireless networking, Bluetooth, and consumer Internet appliances.

Com One group was established in France in 1987 by Jacques Saubade and Michel Petit. Its name was derived from COM1, the designation commonly associated with a computer’s first serial communications port. That naming reflected the company’s initial business: the design and manufacture of analog PSTN modems. The company expanded into portable-computer communications in 1990 with PCMCIA modems. Through the 1990s, Com One increasingly emphasized multifunction PC Card adapters rather than single-standard communications products. Its devices combined technologies such as PSTN, GSM, ISDN, and Ethernet, enabling users to connect computers through different fixed-line, cellular, and local-network environments. The company’s product development followed the convergence of telecommunications and personal computing, particularly for business users adopting laptops. Com One was listed on the Paris and Stuttgart stock exchanges from 1992. In the following decade, it broadened its technical scope to include wired and wireless high-speed data devices, Ethernet networking, GSM and GPRS mobile data, ADSL, Bluetooth, and other connectivity products. The group also developed non-PC Internet terminals and Internet-appliance hardware under the @max and Neomax names. Much of its mobile-computing activity was supplied on an OEM basis for larger technology and electronics companies, including Toshiba France and Spain, Sony ITE Europe, IBM, Apple Europe, RFI Germany, and Anycom. The group also operated in video security. Its Viewcom range included remote video-surveillance equipment and digital video recorders. In 2003, Com One sold this division to Atral, narrowing the group’s direct involvement in that area. Separately, some employees from the industrial-modules department left in 2001 to establish Telecom Design, an event noted in accounts of the company’s corporate history. By the middle of the 2000s, Com One faced the changing economics of communications hardware as dial-up and legacy fixed-line technologies gave way to integrated broadband, mobile, and wireless platforms. In 2005, the group closed and was delisted from the stock exchanges. Baracoda SA acquired the Com One brand or business and repositioned it around consumer Bluetooth products. The brand subsequently appeared on Wi-Fi Internet-radio devices, including the COM One Phoenix and Orange Liveradio. The Com One websites, including com1.fr and com-one.biz, had ceased operating by 2008, and the brand was discontinued. Com One’s trajectory therefore spans several stages of communications technology: analog modems, PCMCIA mobile-computing accessories, multifunction cellular and network adapters, OEM connectivity hardware, Internet appliances, video security, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi radio products.

• 2008

  Brand discontinued

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  The company’s websites had closed and the Com One brand was no longer active.

• 2007

  Wi-Fi Internet-radio products introduced

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  The Com One name was used for Wi-Fi Internet-radio hardware, including the COM One Phoenix and Orange Liveradio.

• 2005

  Closure, delisting, and acquisition by Baracoda

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  Com One group closed and was delisted; Baracoda SA acquired the brand or business and shifted its emphasis toward Bluetooth consumer products.

• 2003

  Video-security division sold

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  Com One transferred its video-security division to Atral.

• 2001

  Telecom Design is formed by former employees

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  Employees from Com One’s industrial-modules department left to create Telecom Design.

• 1992

  Public listing begins

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  The company became listed on the Paris and Stuttgart stock exchanges.

• 1990

  PCMCIA modem production begins

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  Com One began producing PCMCIA modems for portable computers.

• 1987

  Company founded

  [1]Com One groupen.wikipedia.org

  Jacques Saubade and Michel Petit co-founded Com One group in France as a manufacturer of communications electronics, initially centered on analog PSTN modems.

A French communications-hardware specialist serving personal-computer, mobile-computing, networking, OEM, and consumer Internet markets. The company’s positioning developed from modem technology toward compact multifunction connectivity devices and wireless consumer equipment.

• Modems · 1987

  PSTN modems

  Com One’s original product category consisted of analog dial-up modems for public switched telephone networks. These products established the company’s communications-hardware identity and formed the base for later expansion into portable, cellular, ISDN, Ethernet, and broadband connectivity products.

• Portable-computer connectivity · 1990

  PCMCIA modems and adapters

  Beginning in 1990, Com One produced PCMCIA modems and later multifunction PC Card adapters. The range supported combinations of PSTN, GSM, ISDN, and Ethernet, allowing laptop users to connect through several communications standards with compact removable hardware.

• Wireless connectivity

  Bluetooth adapters and gateways

  The company’s Bluetooth portfolio included USB and PCMCIA adapters as well as gateways associated with PSTN and ISDN equipment. After Baracoda acquired Com One in 2005, Bluetooth became a central focus of the surviving brand activity.

• Video security

  Viewcom

  Viewcom was Com One’s video-security range, covering remote video-surveillance products and digital video recorders. The division was sold to Atral in 2003, after which it was no longer part of Com One’s portfolio.

• Internet appliances

  @max and Neomax

  These brand names were used for non-PC Internet terminals and Internet-appliance hardware. They represented Com One’s attempt to extend Internet access beyond conventional desktop computers during the transition toward dedicated consumer network devices.

• Wi-Fi Internet radio · 2007

  COM One Phoenix and Orange Liveradio

  The COM One Phoenix and Orange Liveradio were Wi-Fi-enabled Internet-radio devices introduced after Baracoda acquired the Com One brand. They connected the brand’s earlier networking expertise with consumer audio and online media access.

• 2005

  Acquisition and repositioning under BaracodaM&A

  Background

  Com One group closed and was removed from the Paris and Stuttgart stock exchanges after a period spanning modem, networking, mobile-data, and Internet-appliance markets.

  Action taken

  Baracoda SA acquired the Com One company or brand and redirected it toward Bluetooth end-user products.

  Aftermath

  The brand continued temporarily in wireless consumer products, including Wi-Fi Internet-radio hardware, before its websites closed and the brand was discontinued by 2008.

  Source

• 2003

  Divestment of the video-security divisionM&A

  Background

  Com One operated a video-security business under the Viewcom range, including surveillance and digital-video-recording equipment.

  Action taken

  The group sold the video-security division to Atral.

  Aftermath

  The divestment reduced Com One’s direct exposure to video surveillance and left connectivity and communications hardware as the company’s more prominent areas.

  Source

1. 1Com One groupen.wikipedia.org