3Com Forms Home Networking Business Unit

Electronic News, Jan 18, 1999

Santa Clara, Calif. -- 3Com Corp. has formed a Home Networking business unit targeted at providing home networks for consumers with multiple personal and professional PCs and electronics devices.

Roy Johnson has been appointed as VP and GM of home networking for 3Com. Johnson previously initiated the company's Network Management Division and most recently was serving as its GM. 3Com has visions of equipping every home that is deemed appropriate with simple and high performance networking devices that will be connect every electronic device to each other.

"(3Com) will continue to invest in advanced technologies and innovative products that are critical to the success of home networking and connectivity in the consumer marketplace," said Janice Roberts, senior VP of global business development at 3Com. Roberts said the business unit will leverage all of 3Com's technologies including xDSL and cable broadband access as well as Palm Computing platforms.

Under the business unit, 3Com plans to introduce a wide range of affordable and easy to use home networking products for consumers with multiple electronic components or computers. "Consumers require solutions to connect a growing number of PCs and other devices to each other and to the Internet," said Johnson. He added that 3Com will continue to build on its out of the box products that allow even someone with limited knowledge of electronics to connect networks together.

Last November, 3Com signed an agreement with Epigram, Inc. to develop and deliver next generation networking products for home phonelines. Using Epigram technology, 3Com said it plans to deliver a broad line of home phoneline networking products, supporting connections up to 10 megabits per second (Mbps). The company also plans on developing a 1 Mbps phoneline networking products based on the HomePNA 1.0 specification.

Using existing phonelines to connect to a network is a good way for "consumers to share Internet access among multiple PCs, or to enable several users to simultaneously use a printer, fax machine or scanner in the home," said Johnson.

Other networking products from 3Com will feature emerging and existing technologies such as Ethernet, electrical wiring and wireless transmission.

Johnson said 3Com also plans to work with its PC OEMs to provide in PC networking products so that consumers can enable home networks immediately. Some of the PC manufacturers that use 3Com products include Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Toshiba, Dell Computer, Gateway 2000 and Compaq Computer.