Huawei makes its first Irish acquisition

Chinese technology firm Huawei has bought the software defined networking (SDN) technology of Irish firm Amartus.

The deal was announced on Monday and represents Huawei's first acquisition in Ireland.

Software developer Amartus will retain the rights to service current customers, but will now focus on providing telecoms software development and integration expertise and services to customers.

Under the deal, Amartus’s senior team and product staff related to its SDN service will join Huawei, enabling the company to speed up its plans for the sector.

“We are delighted to have acquired the groundbreaking Amartus technology,” Zha Jun, President of Huawei’s Fixed Network Product Line, said. “The expertise and talented staff from Amartus product group who will be joining Huawei will help deliver our commitment to produce and develop innovative and high quality cloud and network services.”

A figure for the deal was not disclosed.

"We are excited to be able to bring this innovative technology to Huawei at a time when the telecom's industry is experiencing unprecedented change, driven by software," said Amartus chief executive Michael Kearn.

Amartus was backed by the Bank of Ireland Seed and Early Stage Equity Fund, managed by Kernel Capital, which invested in the firm in 2012.

“We congratulate all of the team at Amartus on their tremendous success and we are delighted that their achievements have been rewarded,” said Ger Goold, partner at Kernel Capital.

Headquartered in Dublin, Amartus was established in 2003. The company has since grown to open offices in the US and Poland.