News

For its fiscal first-quarter 2008 (ended 3 November 2007), optical subsystem manufacturer Optium Corp of Horsham, PA, USA has reported record revenue of $36.1m, up 20.4% on $30.0m a year ago and up 34.9% on $26.8m last quarter.

As well as continued momentum in the firm’s new 40Gb/s and ROADM (reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexer) product lines, the results reflect record sales of 10Gb/s products, demonstrating Optium’s ability to respond to a rebound in demand for shipments of higher-end 10Gb/s products during the quarter, says chairman and CEO Eitan Gertel. “The flexibility of Optium’s manufacturing model allowed us to achieve these results, even as our focus in the quarter was directed toward capacity expansion goals and the integration of a number of new customers and products we’ll be introducing over the course of fiscal 2008,” he adds.

In accordance with US generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), Optium made a net loss of $1.1m, compared to net income of $1.2m last quarter and $2.8m a year ago. However, on a non-GAAP basis, the firm reported net income was $2.1m, down on $3.2m a year ago but an improvement on a net loss of $359,000 last quarter.

“We executed to our long-term growth plan in the quarter,” says Gertel. “For fiscal 2008, our priorities involve strategies that expand our market reach in both the telecommunications and cable TV markets, bring our new technologies to market faster, and build relationships with new customers around the world,” he adds. “During the first quarter, we made solid progress in each of these areas,” citing several examples:

• Gertel says the firm has made important advances in the development of its 10Gb/s 300-pin small-form-factor tunable transceiver (initiating shipments in Q2).
• In the firm’s analog & cable TV business, despite encountering some demand slowness compared to the prior quarter, Optium expects revenue growth in Q2. Plus, in the first quarter the firm qualified new cable TV transmission technology that should continue to expand the addressable market.
• For the new 40Gb/s product line, demand continued to build at a solid pace as Optium ramped capacity, with revenues in Q1 four times greater than the prior quarter. Also, the firm has been gearing up for production shipments of what it believes will be the industry’s first 40Gb/s DPSK transceiver in a 300-pin module.
• During the quarter, the ROADM product line continued to perform to the firm’s aggressive growth expectations, as it continued to ramp capacity to meet demand from existing customers, as well as new customers in Asia and Europe.

“The momentum we are experiencing for these growth platforms gives us added confidence that we are well on track for meeting our growth objectives for fiscal 2008,” says Gertel. “Our record revenues and improved non-GAAP profitability reflect the benefits of a balanced strategy to position Optium for long-term growth,” concludes Gertel.

For its fiscal second-quarter 2008 (ending 2 February), Optium expects revenue to rise again to $38-39m.

See related items:

Optium hit by drop in sales of high-end 300-pin products to main customers

Optium banking on 40Gb/s acquisition to boost growth

Optium completes acquisition of Kailight

Visit: www.optium.com