In the fourth quarter of 2007, data virtualization middleware solutions provider xkoto Inc., reported significant revenue growth of more than 150 percent over the same period in 2006. The company’s growth and momentum was fueled by the increasing demand from enterprise customers requiring highly reliable and scalable solutions capable of ensuring continuous access to corporate data. Highlights of the quarter and full year include the significant expansion of xkoto’s management team, distribution channel and partner programs, as well as new customer adoption in North America and Europe and a major new release of xkoto’s flagship product, GRIDSCALE®. “Customers and prospects in virtually all data intensive segments require high performance, highly reliable, scalable access to data for mission-critical systems. As a result, we’re witnessing the rapid adoption of xkoto’s proven data virtualization technology,” said David Patrick, President and CEO of xkoto. “For xkoto, our customers, and our channel partners, 2007 was a breakthrough year in many respects, one culminated by strong performance in Q4. We fully expect these developments will serve as a springboard for continued growth in 2008.” Further evidence of worldwide momentum comes from the signing of international reseller channel partners including IDB Consulting, an advanced IBM Business Partner with operations in North America and Europe. “With IDB’s focus on delivering high value consulting services for business intelligence applications including Cognos (now IBM) and Business Objects (now SAP), the ability to bring continuous availability through xkoto’s GRIDSCALE middleware drives important value for our customers,” said Christophe Pierrat, Directeur General, IDB Consulting.
XKOTO’S Q4 MILESTONES
New GRIDSCALE Customers
Continuing its penetration of multiple vertical markets, xkoto added several new customers in the USA, France, and Spain including Mood Media, Groupe Jumbo Tours, Benefit Harbor, Hart Software and FBS Data Systems.
New xkoto Reseller Partners
xkoto continued to expand its two-tier sales and distribution strategy in 2007. The company expanded its direct sales force and added several significant resellers in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific including IDB Consulting, Mainline Information Systems and Datasync Consulting.
New GRIDSCALE Release
During the quarter, xkoto began shipping a major new release of its flagship data virtualization application, GRIDSCALE. Version 3.5 extends xkoto’s ability to deliver continuous availability and horizontal scalability of its customers’ most critical data and applications. This patent-pending technology enables commercial, off-the-shelf databases to run in a geographic grid with the same or better reliability and performance as much more expensive proprietary systems. With GRIDSCALE, customers gain a number of benefits including 24×7 continuous availability, scalability on demand, the elimination of down time/maintenance windows, complete safety for data across multiple sites and better utilization of hardware assets. GRIDSCALE 3.5 includes support for IBM DB2 9.5 on Linux, AIX, Solaris and Windows.
ADDITIONAL CORPORATE HIGHLIGHTS
Also during the quarter, xkoto announced a series of new corporate developments to support its growth and expansion. * In November, xkoto named seasoned software industry executive David Patrick as President and CEO. With over 25 years’ senior executive experience in the software industry, Patrick joined xkoto from Novell. Most recently Patrick was Novell’s Vice President & General Manager, where he managed the Linux, Open Source and Platform Services Group.
* In conjunction with this news, co-founding President and CEO Albert Lee was named Chief Strategy Officer.
* Also, in November, xkoto announced it closed $7.5 million in new financing. The Series B funding was led by GrandBanks Capital. Existing investor GrowthWorks Canadian Fund also participated in this round, bringing xkoto’s total venture funding to $10 million. Tim Wright of GrandBanks Capital, GrowthWorks’ Roger Chabra, and Khalil Barsoum joined the xkoto board in concert with this news.
* In December, the company named Charles Ungashick as Vice President of Marketing. Ungashick joined xkoto from Deltek, Inc. and brings more than fifteen years experience in sales and marketing with enterprise software companies including Novell, Silverstream Software and Filenet.
* To accommodate xkoto’s growth, the company announced it would open new corporate offices in Waltham, Mass., and take additional space at an expanded research and development facility in midtown Toronto.
About xkoto
xkoto Inc. enables data virtualization across the enterprise. The company’s patent-pending GRIDSCALE platform dramatically outperforms passive backup systems by ensuring continuous availability and horizontal scalability for mission-critical data and applications. With GRIDSCALE, customers can run active-active copies of their databases – regardless of location and hardware. The result is a more agile infrastructure able to deliver data on demand at a significantly reduced cost. xkoto’s software is used by leading companies in financial services, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing and retail. Headquartered in Waltham, Mass. with research and development facilities in Toronto, xkoto is backed by GrandBanks Capital and GrowthWorks Capital. xkoto’s technology partners include IBM, Microsoft, Novell, Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems and Sybase. For more information, visit www.xkoto.com.
