Novell to Create Content Networking Company

Novell Inc. said it is carving out its caching and content networking division and creating a company called Volera, in which telecommunications equipment giant Nortel Networks Inc. and business consultant Accenture will take minority stakes. The new company will sell products and services that help accelerate the distribution of multimedia content, such as video clips and music, on the Internet. The agreement calls for the three firms to provide Volera with more than $80 million in cash and consulting services. Novell will retain a majority interest in Volera, which will compete with companies such as Cacheflow Inc., Inktomi Corp. and Network Appliance Inc. There are no plans to sell Volera shares to the public, though an initial public offering in the long term has been approved by Novell’s board. Novell shares closed off 41 cents at $8.31 on Nasdaq.