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Interview with Douglas Glen, Zetera

Today, I have a quick interview with Douglas Glen, Chief Marketing Officer of Zetera, a startup in Irvine which just launched its IP-based storage controller technology.

BK: Tell me a little bit about Zetera -- what are your products, and what kinds of customers are you targeting?

DG: Zetera has developed a patented technology that dramatically improves the performance of data storage systems. A Zetera-powered network storage device is faster, more scalable, and easier to use than any more or less comparable product build around current architectures - all that plus our devices cost less to build. Zetera licenses patents, reference designs, and software to companies that build and market storage systems for applications ranging from consumer/residential to data centers.

BK: How does your technology go to market, and do you license your technology or actually provide chips and controllers?

DG: Zetera's first three licensees span the storage spectrum. NETGEAR, a leading manufacturer of networking products, will soon launch a line of retail storage products based on Zetera technology, under the "Storage Central" sub-brand. StorCase, a division of Kingston Technologies, will soon launch a line of storage systems designed for the small to medium business market. Bell Microproducts, the world's leading storage product distributor, will soon launch a line of blade storage systems designed for applications from small business through mid-enterprise.

BK: What's the history of the company, and how long have you been in development?

DG: Zetera Corporation was formed in Fall, 2002 by entrepreneur Chuck Cortright and an engineering team out of Western Digital. After two years of development, Zetera's technology was unveiled at the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show.

BK: Tell me a little bit about your technology. How does your technology differ from other IP storage protocols currently available (i.e. iSCSI, NFS, CIFS), and do you have any plans to submit your IP protocol to standards bodies such as the IETF and T10?

DG: Zetera's architecture is unique in that it is the only true IP SAN. Other architectures use IP to tunnel between the client and the physical storage fabric. Zetera employs the communications channels themselves into the storage fabric, providing significant advantages in virtualization, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. Please visit www.zetera.com for a more thorough discussion of the technology.

BK: How is Zetera funded?

DGL Zetera is financed by a combination of its founders, seed investors, and venture capital.

BK: Thanks!