Qwilt Replaces CEO, Realigns Product Focus and Cost Structure
Following a series of layoffs and cost-cutting measures, Qwilt has appointed Vito Palermo as its new CEO, with former CEO Alon Maor transitioning to a board advisory role. During my conversation with Vito over the weekend, he mentioned that he has been working hard on rationalizing the cost structure for Qwilt, a task that has been urgently needed. The company has recently secured additional funding from its existing investor, Digital Alpha, as it refocuses Qwilt’s offering and could potentially raise further capital in the near term.
While Qwilt is open to any acquisition that might be strategic for the company, Vito tells me his goal is to support Qwilt’s existing customers and expand the business over time. Qwilt has not yet disclosed its revenue numbers, but I expect it to reach $40-$45 million this year. The company has resized its workforce and now has over 100 employees. As Vito correctly pointed out in our conversation, Qwilt can’t survive focusing only on the delivery of video and large objects; over time, it must evolve into an edge compute platform for other applications beyond video.
Since its inception 15 years ago as a transparent caching provider, Qwilt has released no details on the health of its business outside of some high-level and generic network footprint numbers. Vito said that as Qwilt evolves, they plan to share metrics on its revenue, QoE, and other key metrics, providing the industry and its customers with a better understanding of the core business and the value Qwilt offers in the market. That will be welcomed by many who, for years, have asked me, “What’s the deal with Qwilt?” Providing some transparency into the business will go a long way with Qwilt’s vendors, customers and ISP clients.