Comverse Technology, Inc. (Pink Sheets: CMVT.PK) today announced that
Mark C. Terrell has stepped down as Chairman of the Board of Directors
of the Company. He will continue to serve as a Board member and a member
of the Audit Committee. Charles J. Burdick, a director since 2006 and
Audit Committee Chairman, has been named Chairman of the Board.
Mr. Terrell joined the Board in July of 2006. In December 2006 he was
elected Chairman of the Board and in January 2007 as Chairman of the
Board’s Special Committee. His leadership was
instrumental in reconstituting the Board, hiring Comverse CEO Andre
Dahan and completing the investigations overseen by the Special
Committee. He initiated several key governance processes that heightened
awareness of appropriate corporate conduct and governance facilitating
an appropriate tone at the top.
Mr. Terrell said, "I am proud to have served
the shareholders of Comverse as Chairman. The Company is entering a new
phase of its existence and it is the right time to step aside so that
different skill sets can be applied to the opportunities ahead. Charles
Burdick brings invaluable management and Board experience that will be
helpful to Andre Dahan, our CEO, as he deals with the strategic,
financial and operational challenges ahead.”
Mr. Burdick said, "On behalf of the Board and
shareholders, I’d like to thank Mark for his
significant leadership during a challenging period in the company’s
history. I look forward to continuing to work with Mark on the Board and
the Audit Committee, as we focus on completing our financial filings,
and moving forward with the goal of enhancing shareholder value.”
Charles J. Burdick was formerly CEO and CFO of Telewest Communications,
a leading Cable Broadband Company in the United Kingdom and was CEO of
HIT Entertainment the children’s television
and entertainment company. He has a strong financial background and has
worked for TimeWarner, US West, and MediaOne in various financial roles.
He is currently on the Board of CTC Media, a
Nasdaq listed Russian free
to air television provider as well as Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander
in the UK, a subsidiary of the Kaupthing Group. He has an MBA from UCLA
and currently lives in London.
About Comverse Technology, Inc.
Comverse Technology, Inc. is the world’s
leading provider of software and systems enabling network-based
multimedia enhanced communication and billing services. The company’s
Total Communication portfolio includes value-added messaging,
personalized data and content-based services, converged IP
communications solutions, and real-time prepaid, postpaid and converged
billing solutions. Over 500 communication and content service providers
in more than 130 countries use Comverse products to generate revenue,
and improve customer loyalty and operational efficiencies.
Other Comverse Technology subsidiaries include: Verint Systems (Pink
Sheets: VRNT.PK), a leading provider of analytic software-based
actionable intelligence solutions for security and business interaction
intelligence; and Ulticom (Pink Sheets: ULCM.PK), a leading provider of
service essential signaling solutions for wireless, wireline, and
Internet communications.
For additional information, visit the Comverse Technology website at www.cmvt.com.
All product and company names mentioned herein may be registered
trademarks or trademarks of Comverse or the respective referenced
company(s).
This release contains "forward-looking
statements” under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties.
There can be no assurances that any forward-looking statements will be
achieved, and actual results could differ materially from forecasts and
estimates. Important factors that could affect the company include: the
results of the investigation of the Special Committee, appointed by the
Board of Directors on March 14, 2006, of matters relating to the company’s
stock option grant practices and other accounting matters, including
errors in revenue recognition, errors in the recording of deferred tax
accounts, expense misclassification, the possible misuse of accounting
reserves and the understatement of backlog; the impact of any
restatement of financial statements of the company or other actions that
may be taken or required as a result of such investigation or as result
of the company’s VSOE evaluation; the company’s
inability to file reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission;
the effects of the delisting of the company’s
Common Stock from NASDAQ and the quotation of the company’s
Common Stock in the "Pink Sheets,”
including any adverse effects relating to the trading of the stock due
to, among other things, the absence of market makers; risks relating to
the company’s ability to relist its Common
Stock on NASDAQ; risks relating to alleged defaults under the company’s
ZYPS indentures, including acceleration of repayment; risks of
litigation (including the pending securities class action and derivative
lawsuits) and of governmental investigations or proceedings arising out
of or related to the company’s stock option
practices or any other accounting irregularities or any restatement of
the financial statements of the company, including the direct and
indirect costs of such investigations and restatement; risks related to
Verint Systems Inc’s. merger with Witness
Systems, Inc., including risks associated with integrating the
businesses and employees of Witness; risks associated with integrating
the businesses and employees of the Global Software Services division
acquired from CSG Systems International, Netcentrex S.A. and Netonomy,
Inc.; changes in the demand for the company’s
products; changes in capital spending among the company’s
current and prospective customers; the risks associated with the sale of
large, complex, high capacity systems and with new product introductions
as well as the uncertainty of customer acceptance of these new or
enhanced products from either the company or its competition; risks
associated with rapidly changing technology and the ability of the
company to introduce new products on a timely and cost-effective basis;
aggressive competition may force the company to reduce prices; a failure
to compensate any decrease in the sale of the company’s
traditional products with a corresponding increase in sales of new
products; risks associated with changes in the competitive or regulatory
environment in which the company operates; risks associated with
prosecuting or defending allegations or claims of infringement of
intellectual property rights; risks associated with significant foreign
operations and international sales and investment activities, including
fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, interest rates, and
valuations of public and private equity; the volatility of macroeconomic
and industry conditions and the international marketplace; the risk of
declines in information technology spending; risks associated with the
company’s ability to retain existing
personnel and recruit and retain qualified personnel; and other risks
described in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The
company undertakes no commitment to update or revise forward-looking
statements except as required by law.
