Atheros Communications Raises $66.7 Million in Third-Round Funding; Fidelity Management & Research Company is Lead Investor.

Business Editors

SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 23, 2001

Atheros Communications, Inc. has closed its third round of financing in the amount of $66.7 million. The lead investor for this round of funding is Fidelity Management & Research Company. Other new investors include Bowman Capital, Evercore Ventures, Levensohn Capital Management, Mitsubishi International Corp., Presidio Venture Partners, Proxim Inc., Sumitomo Corp. and TDK Corp. Leading investors from previous rounds, including August Capital, Foundation Capital, New Enterprise Associates and InveStar Semiconductor Development, also participated in the latest financing.

The company's breakthrough "Radio-on-a-Chip" technology is dedicated to driving transparent connectivity between all computing, communications, video and audio devices in the office, in the home, and in public places. Atheros has now raised $98.3 million in three rounds of funding.

"Atheros' sizable round in current private market conditions is a strong endorsement of an innovator in a rapidly growing wireless market," said Louis Gerhardy, semiconductor analyst at Morgan Stanley. "The utility of wireless devices is opening many new opportunities in the business and home markets, creating tremendous growth opportunities. Atheros' 802.11a offering demonstrates an impressive level of RF integration on mainstream CMOS technology, and positions the company to be a leader in the rapidly growing wireless market."

"Just as the cell phone has made wireless voice commonplace, ubiquitous wireless data connectivity is right around the corner," said Rich Redelfs, president and chief executive officer at Atheros. "Having radically rearchitected the radio, Atheros is about to make high-speed wireless data widely and economically available -- in offices, homes and schools, and for public access in airports, hotels, coffee shops, etc."

The new capital will help Atheros deliver the world's first two-chip, all-CMOS, end-to-end solution for IEEE 802.11a, 5-GHz wireless LANs. The Atheros AR5000 chipset supports the IEEE 802.11a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps, and can also provide speeds up to 72 Mbps in "Atheros turbo" mode. Initial products are sampling now, with volume scheduled to ship this summer.

About Atheros Communications

Atheros Communications was founded in May 1998 by leading experts in radio and signal processing from Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley, and private industry. The company's founding mission is to provide wireless networking technologies that drive transparent connections between all computing, communications, audio and video devices in the office and the home. Atheros has raised a total of $98.3 million in three rounds of funding. The company currently employs more than 120 people and has filed more than 40 wireless technology patents.

Note to Editors: Atheros(TM) and the Atheros logo are trademarks of Atheros Communications, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders.