Telecommunications manufacturer Arris Group is responsible for many innovative products involving data, video, and telephony systems. Originally a joint venture of Antec Corp. and Nortel Networks to assemble broadband wares in 1995, Arris is now a leading brand for cable providers in network and entertainment. After offering its stock to the public in 2016, it continued to grow and expand. Today, under CommScope, which acquired it in 2018, the company’s headquarters resides in Suwanee, Georgia, and has over 6,000 employees who take care of its telephony modems and other related products. However, before it became a forerunner in the cable telephony industry, the Arris Group went through many mergers and acquisitions that we’ll discuss below.
Scoping Out Arris’ Owners Throughout the Years
The Arris you’re familiar with today started with Anixter, Inc., an innovative equipment maker in the cable industry. To set its distribution channels, the brand bought TeleWire Supply in 1987. A year after, Anixter created a revolutionary product by collaborating with AT&T, successfully introducing the first analog video laser transmitter.
Antec Corp., one of the first owners of Arris, bloomed from being a division of Anixter in 1969 to finally being a separate independent corporation in 1993. Following its predecessor, the business grew as a cable TV equipment distributor and entered the Internet-access equipment industry. After it became a public company, Antec bought expedient organizations, specifically Electronic System Products (ESP), Power Guard, and Keptel, to strengthen its position in the market.
These acquisitions made it possible to produce broadband products. The budding trade offered many opportunities the company wanted to make the most of, so Antec worked with Nortel Networks to seize this market potential. Nortel and Antec’s 1995 joint venture led to Arris Interactive LLC, with the former owning a third of it. They wanted products for delivering telephone and data services, particularly to send data over hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) cables.
However, Nortel found itself in a tough spot when it contended against Cisco Systems and Lucent Technologies concerning data and voice networking. To build up its data segment, Nortel bought Bay Networks Inc., which already has LANCity, a specialist in cable modems, as one of its divisions.
To be at par with Cisco and Lucent, Nortel pushed for a restructure that involved its joint venture with Antec. This reorganization combined Arris Interactive, Antec, and LANcity’s expertise, leading to the creation of Arris Group. Antec was also renamed Arris International, Inc.
The latest owner of the Arris Group is CommScope which sells wired and wireless network infrastructures.
The First Peek at Arris’ Earning Potential
Before it became Arris Group, Arris Interactive had already proved its earning potential in 1999 with $329 million in gross sales. To increase its stake and benefit in the venture, Nortel sold its broadband technology arm to the business. With it, Arris gained LANcity’s assets and business. This step culminated in a 142% revenue increase during the following year’s first and second quarters.
Arris’ Sacrifices for Its Long-term Goals
In 2002, the brand sold its Keptel and Actives product lines. Taken from Antec, Keptel was a telecommunications equipment design and manufacturing section focusing on outside plant telecom and transmission equipment. On the other hand, Actives concentrated on HFC products. Together, the two labels garnered over $100 million in sales in the previous year. Even if this was the case, Arris decided to cut them out as they were “not core” to its long-term goals.
The company balanced the loss of these assets with the Cadant Inc. acquisition. A year later, the business also sold the Antec-made ESP line. The engineering consulting services brand brought a $1.4 million loss that year.
How Arris’ Products Brought It Success
Thanks to its previous affiliations, Arris didn’t have issues designing products dedicated to sending voice, video, and data over broadband. One of its main focuses is home and personal needs, so the brand wanted data to travel from the headend to private dwellings and then around the location.
To do this, Arris utilized Antec’s 1550 nm narrow transmitter and dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) system. These items increase a fiber network’s bandwidth, and by combining DWDM with its first 18-band block converter, the technology allowed 144 bands on a common fiber.
The product aimed to join all multimedia on a single IP platform. With it, providers could offer crossover services that paved the way for many consumer-focused apps. These consist of videophone, security, and meter reading applications.
Its key products are Cornerstone and Packet Port. Cornerstone, a top cable telephony product, allows community antenna television (CATV) suppliers to offer digital phone services. Meanwhile, Packet Port combines cable telephony and internet access. It assigns user session numbers, specifies IP network server applications, and identifies packet purpose for communication.
Arris Group Going Public and Becoming a Subsidiary
Arris Group’s success continued in the following decade. The business became an international brand and bought several other companies in the telecommunications and network industry to support its traffic.
On January 6, 2016, the Arris Group offered its stock to the public. It took the ticker symbol ARRS on NASDAQ.
After two years, CommScope Holding Company, Inc. acquired Arris in hopes of driving profitable growth in new markets and communications. The merger cost CommScope $7.4 billion in cash, with the Carlyle Group funding the deal with a $1 billion equity investment.
The transaction noted the companies’ similar culture of prioritizing customers and persistently innovating. The purchase was completed in April 2019. In the same year, CommScope calibrated its business segments into:
- Home
- Broadband
- Venue and Campus
- Outdoor Wireless Networks
Notable Acquisitions by the Arris Group Throughout the Years
Arris Group’s first acquisition was Cadant Inc., a manufacturer and designer of cable modem termination systems. The merger started in 2001 and finished in 2002, with the cost being 5.25 million common stock shares and 2 million shares for future product sales. The group also assumed $17 million in liabilities.
To thrive in the set-top box (cable box) market, Arris announced in December 2012 its plan to buy Motorola Mobility’s home unit from Google. It took $2.35 billion in stock and cash for the purchase to go through. Aside from boosting both brands’ global presence, the deal also advanced Arris’ home technology prowess.
Another set-top box manufacturer became a subsidiary in 2015. Pace plc, a principal provider of technology solutions to PayTV and broadband, was taken for $2.1 billion in cash and shares. Though it’s based in the UK, Arris managed it from Georgia. Buying Pace improved the business’s international reach. It also expanded the company’s product portfolio across equipment, services, and software. With its new acquisition, Arris earned a large-scale entry into the satellite segment.
Then, Arris acquired Ruckus Wireless and ICX Switch Business for $800 million cash to upgrade and maximize its wired and wireless networking tech. Their switches, Wi-Fi access points, cloud management, LTE, and more are vital in supporting the group in its network infrastructure and sales strategy.
Arris SURFboard SB6190 Modem Issue
In 2017, a class-action suit was filed in California alleging Arris violated state, consumer protection, and warranty laws. The complaint targets the brand’s SURFboard SB6190 cable modem’s design flaws, pointing out the product’s subpar quality and unfitness to connect to the internet. The legal action also refers to the business’s failure to properly label the product and advertise in good faith.
The Arris Brand in 2022
Despite its merger with CommScope, Arris continues to be an industry leader. Its tech and products are sold via its parent company, and the group still pursues customer-focused hardware, software, and services.
With the resources and direction of CommScope, Arris steadily grows and expands in the telecom market. The merger opens both companies’ research, development, and technical expertise. Together, they have around 15,000 patents.
Today, Arris continues to work on products and communications infrastructure solutions such as:
- Smart home solutions
- Wired and wireless communications setup
- Integrated broadband access
- Private network solutions
- Small cell solutions for any licensed and unlicensed wireless band
