“In what will likely be remembered as the great Linux love-fest
of Q4 1999, stocks such as Red Hat (RHAT) and Corel (CORL) showed
up on investor radar screens, screaming into view at high speed
with their gear down. One Canadian company, Perle Systems (PERL),
got caught in the Linux tail winds, but then continued on after the
turbulence to build on the 25 years of experience that brought it,
at last, to investors’ attention.”
“Instead of becoming all things Linux, as has Corel, Perle
intends to add Linux systems to its already successful roster of
client networking applications.”
“Integral to this strategy was Perle’s $11 million ($8 million
cash, the balance in stock) acquisition of UK-based Chase Research
Limited, a leading supplier of serial connectivity products to the
NT and Unix/Linux markets.”