Citrix / NetScaler

Citrix Systems, Inc., the global leader in access infrastructure solutions, today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately held NetScaler, Inc., a global leader in high-performance application networking. The transaction is valued at approximately $300 million in cash and stock, plus the assumption of approximately $23 million in unvested stock options. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2005 subject to customary closing conditions including shareholder and regulatory approvals.

NetScaler, founded in 1998, is based in San Jose, Calif., and has approximately 200 employees, with research and development teams in Silicon Valley and India. The company pioneered the market for next-generation application networking acceleration and initially rose to prominence in the Internet market, delivering technology to top companies such as Google, Amazon, Dow Jones, Earthlink, E*Trade, MSN and Ticketmaster. Today, NetScaler estimates that up to 75 percent of all Internet users go through a NetScaler system each day. NetScaler now has more than 500 enterprise customers and over 3,000 deployments of its award-winning products, including Fortune 500 leaders Merrill Lynch, JC Penney, 7-Eleven, Blue Cross, Ford and United Airlines, and is consistently ranked number one in both performance and customer satisfaction.

(BUSINESS WIRE)