Avaya sets $1 billion public offering

Network World - Avaya is going public again, filing today with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering worth $1 billion.

After the offering would value the company at $5 billion, and it would use the cash raised in the offering to pay down long-term debt, among other things, the company says in a statement.

BACKGROUND: The Avaya FAQ 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Goldman, Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital Inc., UBS Investment Bank and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC are handling the IPO.

According to the SEC filing, the company showed negative net income throughout the period since it was bought in 2007 by a combination of Silver Lake Partners and the Texas Pacific Group that paid $8.2 billion for the company.In its filing the company says it will continue development of contact center and voice communications products, invest in R&D, expand sales and distribution, go after new markets and train staff and partners to sell new products and services. It mentions its Avaya Flare Experience videoconferencing/ unified communication platform as one of these new products.

It also says the company plans to acquire new technologies through a combination of licensing, development contracts, alliances and acquisitions. Avaya said it will train employees and channel partners to service new products and applications so service is consistent around the world.

At the same time, once the company goes public, it will face the demands of Wall Street quarter-to-quarter, something it has been shielded from as a privately held company.

Avaya issued a press release announcing the IPO but refused further comment.

Since it was bought in 2007, Avaya has been promoting its unified communications software as compatible with other vendors' gear and readily adaptable for customers who want to start with basic communications features but expand to incorporate conferencing and collaboration via voice, video, instant messaging and data.

The drumbeat from the company is that it wants to make UC ubiquitous and simple for end users.

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