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SkyCross, the successful Viera based developer of advanced wireless antenna solutions, has been riding a wave of success since its opening six years ago that has included a January announcement of a $14 million round of financing being led by TL Ventures.
The new venture capital supports the company’s successes in the wireless market including products such as, embedded handset antennas, PC data cards, and mobile video devices.

“SkyCross designs, develops, and manufactures embedded antennas for mobile handsets, mobile video, wireless data, GPS, and ultra-wideband (UWB) markets,” said Dr. Christopher Morton, Ph.D.

Morton, the CEO of SkyCross, has more than 25 years of entrepreneurial and corporate leadership experience in the communications infrastructure industry.
“(The company’s) goals include sustaining growth in current markets while demonstrating extensibility in new market segments,” he noted.

Prior to joining SkyCross, Morton was involved with MILCOM Technologies. MILCOM initially invested nine million dollars in SkyCross, which at the time was an affiliate company.

Morton served as MILCOM's entrepreneur in residence, and the SkyCross chairman of the board, and interim CEO before being named president and CEO for SkyCross.

At MILICOM, Morton oversaw the launch of new communications companies. He has also served in high-level executive positions with notable communications companies such as AT&T, Bell Laboratories, and Allen Telecom Systems. He earned his Ph.D. in communication systems from the University of Pennsylvania.

According to Morton, typical applications for the innovative SkyCross antennas include mobile phones, laptop computers, PC cards, access points and household electronics. The products are based on several unique and patented technologies and designs that deliver high performance, multi-mode, multi-frequency antennas that can be hidden inside a mobile casing, have a low radiation profile and offer much better gain characteristics over existing solutions.

Antennas developed by SkyCross are custom designed to fit into the many small electronic devices that have become so popular in today’s mobile world. The company prides itself on making the antennas more powerful, more efficient, and more versatile than current antennas on the market, despite their small size.

SkyCross' antenna solutions are based on patented Meander Line Antenna (MLA) technology that allows engineers to design high performance antennas offering simultaneous optimization of multi-band/mode operations, high gain, small size, and low SAR.

Meander Line Antenna technology was originally developed by BAE SYSTEMS, formerly Sanders (a Lockheed Martin Company), in the Information and Electronic Warfare Systems (IEWS) unit for military applications where unobtrusive, high performance antennas are required for both satellite and terrestrial communications.

“(Our company) was created to apply this technology to commercial use, with exclusive commercial license rights to all non-restricted antenna technology,” said Marie Snively, marketing and sales coordinator for the company.

The early technical research of the licensed antenna technology was performed in Brevard which led to the company being headquartered here.

“During this period (of research), local talent and resources became involved with the project, and consequently SkyCross launched in Melbourne,” Snively said of the company’s beginnings on the Space Coast.

The company originally opened in downtown Melbourne but completed a move to the Viera area in April of this year.

The company’s clientele are served by regional offices in the United States (in Viera), China and Korea for fast localized support through each stage of the product cycle.
SkyCross has 15 employees at the Viera headquarters and “many” others in Asia, according to Snively.

SkyCross opened its first Asian office in Korea and continues to increase its presence in Asian markets. The company opened its second technical design and manufacturing center in the Asia-Pacific region in February of 2005 to provide local support for their customers in Asia.

According to the company’s web site, the Asian offices were a response to the company’s expanding customer base in the region for the WLAN and handset markets.
“SkyCross embedded antennas meet and exceed the requirements of leading manufacturers, wireless providers, and users in the global marketplace,” Morton said. “A well-designed antenna distinguishes a new device with longer battery life, better reception, and faster data transfer.”

Morton added that the low profile SkyCross antennas also allow device manufacturers to meet the increasing demand by consumers for smaller and smaller products and sleeker designs.

In the field of wireless data, SkyCross supplies its ultra-wideband antenna and its dual band diversity product to Novatel Wireless for use in several of its newest PCMCIA card modems supporting GSM/UMTS and EVDO CDMA, which makes them operable in networks around the world.

SkyCross antenna technology is also used by Symbol Technologies for their AP 300 Access Port. One model of the AP 300 Access Port has all embedded antennas for simultaneous service to 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g mobile units.

In the mobile handset market, SkyCross antennas appeared in two of the top three selling handsets in South Korea for summer 2005. They were the Samsung SCH-S350 which ranked number one and the SK Teletech IM-8300 which ranked number three.

SkyCross representatives noted that both handsets raise the industry standards in an already very sophisticated market. SkyCross contributes to the products’ success by providing small embedded antennas that offer increased coverage capabilities and fewer dropped calls without sacrificing phone capabilities or the aesthetic design.

Antenna solutions offered by SkyCross are also being used in the COSUN-branded GSM mobile handsets of China based Qiao Xing Universal Telephone, Inc.

According to Snively, the company also leads the market in Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) antennas in South Korea.

In fact, she noted that SkyCross antennas appeared in one of the first DMB phones from Samsung in that region.

The local company also applies its technology leadership to a growing number of applications for digital video broadcasting – handheld (DVB-H).

“SkyCross strives to continually provide next-generation technology with unmatched quality and performance,” Morton said.

SkyCross is located at 7341 Office Park Place, Suite 102 in Viera. For more information on the company and their products visit www.skycross.com