TeleCommute Solutions (Netifice) Secures $19 Million in Venture Financing from leading technology investorsInvestment syndicate led by MCI WorldCom Venture Fund with additional investments from Columbia Capital, Boston Millennia Partners and H.I.G. Capital
ATLANTA – February 9, 2000 – TeleCommute Solutions (TCS), a leading provider of workforce connectivity services, today announced the closing of its latest round of venture financing. The $19 million round was led by MCI WorldCom Venture Fund with additional investments from Columbia Capital (www.colcap.com), Boston Millennia Partners (www.millenniapartners.com) and H.I.G. Capital (www.hig.com). Robinson-Humphrey acted as the placement agent.
“We are pleased to announce the addition of this top-flight group of strategic investors to the TCS team,” said Stephen L. Schilling, president and CEO of TeleCommute Solutions. “This round of funding provides fundamental validation that the market is enthusiastic about our comprehensive approach to remote work and telecommuting. The depth of experience and resources this new group of investors brings to TCS will allow us to greatly accelerate our national expansion.”
TeleCommute Solutions’ bundle of workforce connectivity services including its managed VPN services, intelligent voice solutions and support services has been available in select markets around the country. This round of financing will assist TCS in its national expansion plans, which include providing local network connectivity in over 200 markets by the end of the year.
“TeleCommute Solutions’ strong management team and impressive insight into this emerging market is what attracted us,” said Jim Fleming, managing director for Columbia Capital. “While most telecom companies today are focused on a specific technology or stand-alone product offering, TCS has created a bundled service offering that truly addresses a specific need of corporate America. We believe TCS to be the prototype for a new breed of application-focused service providers.”
Atlanta-based Pointe Communications (OTCBB:PCOM), which formally owned a majority of TCS, will retain an minority stake. “TCS is uniquely positioned to benefit from the accelerating global trend towards a distributed mobile workforce, and we are pleased to see TCS get the financial backing it needs to accelerate its business plan,” said Peter C. Alexander, president and COO of PointeCom. “Although this transaction reduces PointeCom’s stake in TCS, we continue to be a significant share holder and look forward to the future success of the business.”
At the core of TeleCommute Solutions’ business is a robust carrier-grade network that is accessible to a wide range of access vehicles and the latest virtual private network technology. The network is engineered to provide secure connectivity while meeting the demanding voice and data needs of remote and mobile workers and their corporate employers. TCS bundles this network offering with the necessary equipment, voice integration, implementation and support services required to create its turnkey core solution. The TCS solution represents the industry’s first end-to-end service offering designed specifically to enable large-scale remote work programs.
About TeleCommute Solutions
TeleCommute Solutions Inc. (TCS) is an Atlanta-based network services provider that delivers turnkey workforce connectivity solutions. TCS provides the industry’s first end-to-end service offering designed specifically to enable large-scale remote work programs. The company can be reached at 6075 The Corners Parkway, Suite 104, Atlanta, Georgia 30092; 770-308-0440 phone; 770-308-3383 fax; www.telecommuter.com.