FTP Software

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FTP Software was a software company incorporated in 1986 by James van Bokkelen, John Romkey (author of the MIT PC/IP package), Nancy Connor, Roxanne van Bokkelen (nee Ritchie), Dave Bridgham and several other founding shareholders. It was the first of many companies to name themselves after an Internet protocol. Their main product was PC/TCP, a full-featured, standards-compliant TCP/IP package for DOS. Initially the protocol stacks were linked into individual application executables, but by 1989 all PC/TCP applications shared a TSR kernel, which itself (initially) used built-in network interface drivers, and (later) TSR Packet Drivers.

The company had a good run, but suffered greatly from both internal and external pressures. It had grown rapidly and repeatedly moved physically farther away from its roots at MIT. The founders, though technically adept, were inexperienced as managers. They suffered from in-fighting, epitomized in a public divorce between two of the founders. The company went public in 1993, and maintained profitable growth through 1995, as a dominant supplier of TCP stacks for x86-based machines. When Microsoft included a TCP stack at no extra cost in Windows 95 (as has become standard with all operating systems), FTP lost a significant revenue source. Due to management (which by that time was mostly non-founders) failing to adequately prepare for the transition into supplying network-using applications, FTP was not able meet Wall Street's expectations and its stock price declined sharply.

In May 1996 FTP software announced it was providing Microsoft with various technology for Internet Explorer 2.0 for Windows 3.1, including a PPP network, 16-bit email client, and other technology. [1]

In 1998, FTP was bought out by former rival NetManage. The deal was controversial, with some shareholders claiming it was not in their interest since the sale price was less than the amount in FTP's bank account. [1]

[edit] Products

  • InterDrive
  • OnNet
  • LanWatch
  • PC/BIND
  • PC/TCP
  • SNMP Tools
  • WinSNMP

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1996_May_1/ai_18237333 FTP Software to provide key technology for Microsoft's Internet Explorer Version 2.0 for Windows 3.1 Business Wire, May 1, 1996
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