Broadband
Scientific-Atlanta adds BarcoNet to its stable
Scientific-Atlanta is determined to beat the slowdown back home by making its presence felt in other markets.
Its purchase of Belgium company BarcoNet NV is a step in this direction. BarcoNet is a leading provider of multimedia distribution solutions for broadband and broadcast applications. Focussing on internet-over-cable and other interactive digital services, BarcoNet’s customers include the world’s largest broadband operators, in cable as well as terrestrial, telecom, satellite or wireless applications.
Scientific-Atlanta, the leading supplier of digital content distribution systems as well as transmission networks for broadband access to homes, will launch a public tender offer for the outstanding common stock of BarcoNet at a price of €5.70 per share in cash, together with all outstanding options, warrants and convertible securities, for an aggregate value of approximately US $ 154 million. The deal is expected to close next month. BarcoNet generated 98 million dollars in revenues for the year ended June 30, 2001.
BarcoNet distributes digital television manafactures headends for integrated multimedia services as well as high-speed digital fiber optic backbones. The company brings to the Scientific-Atlanta stables extensive customer relationships, strong product portfolios and local market knowledge. In turn, it will leverage the scale that Scientific-Atlanta brings in sales, engineering and support.
Broadband
Zoff Foods extends Shilpa Shetty partnership into ninth year
Spice brand reinforces trust-led positioning amid growth and funding push.
MUMBAI: Nine years, one flavour and the recipe clearly still works. Zoff Foods has extended its long-running association with Shilpa Shetty, marking nine consecutive years of her as brand ambassador as the company scales its presence across Indian households. What began as a digital-first collaboration has gradually evolved into a defining element of the brand’s identity. Over nearly a decade, the partnership has mirrored Zoff’s own journey from an emerging challenger to a fast-growing FMCG player with a widening footprint across e-commerce, quick commerce and offline retail channels.
The logic behind the continuity is straightforward. In a category where trust and familiarity drive purchase decisions, particularly in spices and ready-to-cook segments, long-term associations tend to carry more weight than short bursts of visibility. Shetty’s positioning as a fitness-conscious, health-aware public figure aligns with the brand’s emphasis on purity and quality factors that are increasingly shaping consumer choices in modern Indian kitchens.
The extension also comes at a time when Zoff Foods is entering a more aggressive growth phase. The company recently raised $2 million in a Pre-Series B funding round led by JM Financial Private Equity, with participation from Aman Gupta, signalling a push towards expanding distribution, product innovation and market reach.
Company executives have positioned the continued partnership as a strategic anchor amid this expansion, reinforcing brand recall while entering new markets. For Shetty, the association remains rooted in shared values around authenticity and ingredient integrity attributes that resonate strongly with increasingly mindful consumers.
In a market crowded with new-age brands and shifting loyalties, Zoff’s approach suggests a different playbook: build slowly, stay consistent, and let familiarity do the heavy lifting. Because sometimes, in both branding and cooking, it’s not about reinventing the dish, it’s about perfecting it over time.
