Phoenix Technologies - Phoenix Technologies

Phoenix Technologies Ltd is an American company that designs, develops and supports core system software for personal computers and other computing devices. The company's products â€" commonly referred to as BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) or firmware â€" support and enable the compatibility, connectivity, security and management of the various components and technologies used in such devices. Phoenix Technologies and IBM developed the El Torito standard.

Phoenix was incorporated in Massachusetts in September 1979, and its headquarters are in Campbell, California.

Products

Phoenix sells its products primarily to computer and component device manufacturers. The company also provides training, consulting, maintenance and engineering services to its customers.

Phoenix also designs, develops and supports software products and services for PCs and mobile devices, intended to enhance device utility, reliability and security.

Although the consumers of these products and services are enterprises, governments, service providers and individuals, Phoenix typically licenses these products to original equipment manufacturers and original design manufacturers for resale to end-users.

Phoenix competes for sales primarily with in-house research and development (R&D) departments of PC and component manufacturers such as Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, Toshiba Corporation, Apple Inc., and Intel. Phoenix also competes for sales with other independent suppliers, including American Megatrends Inc., a privately held U.S. company, and Insyde Software Corp., a public company based and listed in Taiwan.

FailSafe

Phoenix FailSafe is a theft-deterrence product and service designed to protect, track, and manage lost or stolen mobile computing devices and the data on those devices. PC owners can remotely retrieve and erase the content stored on their mobile PCs and remotely disable the device if necessary. Basic elements include a PC agent, an Internet-connected command and control center, and a Web-based management interface.

It aims to allow users to tell the location of their monitored PCs, with the ability to "kill" PCs with an SMS (text message) to protect their digital data subject. Lenovo uses the technology in its line of 2009 ThinkPad notebooks.

HyperSpace

Phoenix HyperSpace is an instant-on Linux-based operating system. It is an application environment that can run either independently or side-by-side with a traditional operating system such as Red Hat Linux. Users are able to boot their personal computers in seconds and immediately browse the Internet and perform other Web-based activities. It's intended to allow mobile PCs to work more like smartphones.

DriverAgent

DriverAgent is a device driver update service and part of Phoenix's eSupport.com line. It scans PCs or notebooks and identifies hardware and outdated drivers with the help of a database of driver update files.

BIOSAgentPlus

BIOSAgentPlus updates the system BIOS and device drivers. BIOSAgentPlus is part of Phoenix's eSupport.com line. Unlike most other supports, eSupport charges its customers for updating its products. Phoenix Technology's home page directly links to the third party website and notes that customers will be charged for updating.

RegistryWizard

RegistryWizard is an tool for correcting errors in the Windows Registry on computers running Microsoft Windows. It attempts to remove third party software that may have caused the system to run slowly. Consumers receive a registry report detailing harmful system conflicts and errors. RegistryWizard is part of Phoenix's eSupport.com line.

Phoenix Freeze

Phoenix Freeze is a product for laptops and netbooks running Microsoft Windows that combines with a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone to provide a proximity locking system, which automatically locks a laptop whenever a person walks away from it with a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone. When the smartphone returns within a certain proximity of the laptop that is pre-defined, it automatically unlocks the laptop.

UndeletePlus

UndeletePlus restores deleted files. It can also recover files that have been emptied from the Windows recycle bin, permanently deleted files within Windows using the ⇧ Shift+Delete shortcut, and files that have been deleted from within CMD. Users can also restore files that had been deleted from a flash memory drive. UndeletePlus is part of Phoenix's eSupport.com line.

History

In 1979, Neil Colvin formed what was then called Phoenix Software Associates after his prior employer, Xitan, went out of business. Neil hired Dave Hirschman, a former Xitan employee. During 1980â€"1981, they rented office space for the first official Phoenix location at 151 Franklin Street, Boston, Massachusetts.

In this same time period Phoenix purchased a non-exclusive license for Seattle Computer Products 86-DOS. Phoenix developed customized versions of 86-DOS (or sometimes called PDOS for Phoenix DOS) for various microprocessor platforms. Phoenix also provided PMate as a replacement for Edlin as the DOS file editor. Phoenix also developed C language libraries, called PForCe, along with Plink-86/Plink-86plus, overlay linkers, and Pfix-86, a windowed Debugger for DOS. These products only provided a small revenue stream to Phoenix during the early 1980s and the company did not significantly expand in size.

Cloning the IBM PC BIOS

After the success of the IBM PC, many companies began making PC clones. Some, like Compaq, developed their own compatible ROM BIOS, but others violated copyright by directly copying the PC's BIOS. After Apple Computer, Inc. v. Franklin Computer Corp. IBM sued companies that it claimed infringed IBM's copyright. Clone manufacturers needed a legal, fully compatible BIOS.

To develop a legal BIOS, Phoenix used a clean room technique. Engineers read the BIOS source listings in the IBM Technical Reference Manuals. They wrote technical specifications for the BIOS APIs for a single, separate engineerâ€"one with experience programming the Texas Instruments TMS9900, not the Intel 8088 or 8086â€"who had not been exposed to IBM BIOS source code. The single engineer developed code to mimic the BIOS APIs. By recording the audit trail of the two groups' interactions, Phoenix developed a defensibly non-infringing IBM PC-compatible ROM BIOS. Because the programmers who wrote the Phoenix code never read IBM's reference manuals, nothing they wrote could have been copied from IBM's code, no matter how closely the two matched. This reverse engineering technique is commonly referred to as a "Chinese wall." The first Phoenix PC ROM BIOS was introduced in May, 1984, and greatly increased growth in the PC industry as companies no longer had to develop th eir own BIOS.

Phoenix licensed the BIOS to clone makers for $290,000. To reassure customers, the company obtained a $2 million insurance policy from The Hartford against copyright-infringement lawsuits. The availability of an IBM PC-compatible ROM BIOS helped fuel the 70% increase in sales that Phoenix experienced in 1988; competitors appeared, such as AMI BIOS. Phoenix also developed IBM Personal System/2 Micro Channel BIOS, including the ABIOS, and EISA compatible BIOS during 1988 and 1989.

1987â€"1989

In 1987, Phoenix began the first of many expansion, acquisition, and collapse cycles. It acquired Softstyle, Inc, and Softset, Inc, and began a printer emulation product line, and a Phoenix publishing division. Phoenix also tripled the number of employees from late 1986 to 1989.

Phoenix launched an IPO in June 1988 and made the founder and early employees instant millionaires on paper. The stock price did not sustain its peak of 18¾, and by late 1989 it had plummeted to 3¾. In addition Phoenix posted a loss of 7.7 million dollars in 1989, due primarily to the consolidation of the PC market, and Phoenix's unsuccessful branching out into collateral markets. After that, Ron Fisher took over as CEO and Phoenix again focused on the core PC BIOS products, and prevented a hostile takeover bid by Norwood Partners Limited Partnership.

1990s

By 1992, Phoenix was financially healthy enough to start another expansion and acquisition cycle. In 1992, Phoenix acquired Quadtel, a leading BIOS supplier. The Quadtel BIOS code base was newer than the original Phoenix ROM BIOS code base, and the development effort switched to the Quadtel products. It was rebranded as PhoenixBIOS. The original ROM BIOS code base was used on a joint development effort with David Keenan at IBM (called SurePath), but Phoenix did no further development work on the original code.

Phoenix also expanded its presence in foreign markets. In 1993 Phoenix acquired SRI KK, a Phoenix distributor, and formed the Phoenix KK Japanese subsidiary. In addition, the offices in Taipei, and Europe were expanded in size. In 1994, Phoenix acquired Guildford, Surrey, UK-based DIP Research Ltd. and continued to expand European operations, who had previously developed the DIP DOS operating system for the DIP Pocket PC aka Atari Portfolio in 1989. In 1996, Phoenix acquired Virtual Chips, Inc., a maker of synthesizable cores for PC peripherals, and Mountain View, California-based Award Software in 1998. Due to these expansions, Phoenix reduced its global work force by 5% by ending 38 jobs.

2001â€"2003

Phoenix continued to grow steadily from the late 1990s, and saw a significant increase in revenues from the Y2K product refreshes in the PC industry. However, by mid-2001, the PC industry suffered another downturn, and Phoenix was forced to reduce the less profitable product lines, such as the IA-64 effort, and close a number of redundant offices. Phoenix again focused on the core BIOS business for the next few years.

During late 2002 and 2003, Phoenix began to develop specialized firmware-based applications. These applications often had components embedded in the BIOS that allowed them to function in damaged PC systems. These included security applications for password hiding and authentication, PC backup and recovery applications, and basic diagnostic applications. Several applications were obtained through complete acquisitions of other companies, such as the SPEKE technology from Integrity Sciences, or the browser technology from Ravisent.

The PC BIOS business continued its steady, but slow, growth despite a rapidly declining unit price. The Award product line was focused on the low-margin, high volume Desktop product line, while the Phoenix TrustedCore BIOS was primarily successful in the high-end PC systems, and Servers. The revenues from the BIOS business continued to provide the capital to invest further in the applications business.

2005â€"2008

By late 2005, it became clear that the BIOS revenues could not sustain the losses incurred by the applications business. The BIOS revenue stream was heavily leveraged through fully paid-up licenses, and by early 2006 this business model was no longer sustainable. Phoenix announced some of the largest losses in the company history, and went through another consolidation cycle. Several offices were closed and over 70% of the employees were laid off. By late 2006, after senior management changes, the company refocused on the PC BIOS business and the couple of potentially profitable applications.

In September, the company named Woodson "Woody" Hobbs as president and CEO of Phoenix Technologies. Hobbs had a history of turning struggling companies around. According to company documents, "prior to joining Phoenix, Hobbs served as president and CEO of Intellisync Corporation from 2002 until the company's acquisition by Nokia in February 2006. Under Hobbs' leadership, Intellisync became the number two wireless email company, increased its stock price by nearly ten times, and grew enterprise value from zero to over $430 million."

By January 2008, Phoenix had posted higher-than-expected Q1 revenues and increased full year guidance.

In 2008, Phoenix also acquired several companies:

• In May, Phoenix acquired BeInSync, Ltd., an Israeli-based provider of an all-in-one solution that allows users to back up, synchronize, share and access data online. Although Phoenix did not disclose the amount of the transaction, according to at least one online report, Phoenix acquired BeInSync for $25 million.
• In July, in an effort to develop a strong online presence and infrastructure for web-based automated service delivery, Phoenix acquired TouchStone Software Corporation for its online PC diagnostics and software update technology, eSupport.com this included the recently purchased HijackPro and Drivermagic software from Glenn Bluff.

The net value of the transaction was approximately $17 million.

• In September, Phoenix acquired General Software of Bellevue, WA, to extend its firmware leadership to a wide array of specialized high-value, high-margin devices that use embedded processors (embedded systems), from mobile and consumer electronics to data communications.

2009â€"2010

In 2009, Phoenix shut down their Engineering and Sales offices in Shanghai and Nanjing, China. Phoenix also laid off most of the staff in those offices, although some of the managers were moved to other offices in Taiwan. Phoenix opened a new office in Bangalore, India and closed its office in Hyderabad, India. Most of the Hyderabad employees were given the option to move to the new Bangalore office.

In late Q4 2009, Phoenix began exploring strategic alternatives for the products it had developed and purchased in its prior acquisition phase. On January 5, 2010, Phoenix announced it had hired GrowthPoint Technology partners to find alternative business strategies for the FailSafe, HyperSpace and eSupport.com products. Phoenix will refocus its business strategy on BIOS where it still retains a substantial majority of its revenue.

On April 9, 2010 it was announced that Absolute Software would pay $6.9 million for Phoenix Technologies security technologies, including FailSafe and Freeze.

On June 12, 2010 it was announced that Hewlett-Packard would be purchasing Phoenix Technologies' instant-on operating system technologies, including HyperSpace, HyperCore and Flip.