EXCLUSIVE: I know I know … I just have been too obsessed about this, but looks like Procket might be up for sale, and this time the buyer will be a surprise. From Silicon Valley’s rumor mill I have heard that there is something in the works, though the specifics are not available right now. The super router maker has been a soap opera to rival Bold and the Beuatiful. Sizzle, intrigure, anger, and all sorts of things. But it still is a company with a great product, which is better than Cisco’s latest, and Juniper’s greatest. Last month, University of Oregon decided to buy a Procket router instead of competing products from rivals. Tony Li, as I have said earlier is the “Michael Jordan of router world” and has built a pretty sturdy and future proof product, which is why Procket is such an attractive candidate.

So who might be a buyer for this? How about three likely buyers – Alcatel, Nortel Networks and since we are at it, Cisco Systems. (Actually Cisco might be a serious contender.) I think they could buy the company and make some funny statement like oh we “bought silicon and engineering expertise.” And that would make me wonder about CRS-1. It may not be such a bad idea for this would bring back Ronald Acra back into the Cisco fold. He was one of the few Cisco executives with “street cred” with the Carriers. Nevertheless, whatever the case might be, it is only a matter of time someone steps in and buys Procket!

It is ironic how there is so much activity around the super routers these days. CRS-1, Juniper’s counter offensive, and more recently Axiowave’s launch are signs that the pinnacle of router mountain is as alluring to companies as Mt. Everest is to climbers. I am sure we will all wait and watch how it all shaes out, especially these days when carriers are hanging on to their cash harder than ever before! Stay tuned though!