New Micom Product Exceeds Marketing Goals

NetRunner, a new product that allows companies to transmit voice, fax and data to remote locations over the same leased telephone lines, has exceeded its marketing goals by 50%, according to Micom Communications Corp. of Simi Valley, which produces the device.

“We have been shipping the product for only two weeks, and it has been so well received that we are already planning a staff expansion,” said Richard S. Borden, Micom’s marketing communications manager.

He said a key feature of NetRunner is that in addition to transmitting interoffice phone calls and fax messages, it allows communication among a firm’s personal computers, regardless of their location. The messages are sent over low-speed leased lines, eliminating toll charges.

Because of NetRunner’s successful introduction, Micom will probably expand its marketing and research units by 25% in the coming year, adding at least 10 new employees, Borden said. He predicted that additional production workers will also be hired if the line continues to do well. Micom has 350 employees worldwide, 300 of them in Simi Valley.

Within three years, Micom expects NetRunner to account for 40% of company revenues, Borden said. At present, the bulk of the firm’s sales involve Marathon, which is similar to NetRunner but requires an additional adapter to handle personal-computer network traffic.

Privately held Micom, which was founded in 1973, does not disclose sales or earnings figures. The company claims to be the world’s leading provider of low-cost integrated networks for communication over wide areas.