MITEL History

1971
Mike Cowpland and Terry Mathews met while working at Mircosystems International Limited in Kanata, Ontario, Canada. They begin work on Mitel's first product, a tone receiver (an electronic device used to translate musical tones from touch tone phones into electronic signals for telephone systems).

1972
Mitel Corporation, the parent company of Mitel Telecom, is established in Canada.

1973
In Kanata, Ontario, two young British engineers, Michael Cowpland and Terence Matthews, found Mitel with the vision of applying microelectronic technology to the telephone industry.

1974
First designs are completed for boards that detect and decode tones from a touch keypad.

1975
Mitel produces the first Tone-to-Pulse converter, which permits touch-tone telephones in areas equipped for rotary dial signals.

1976
Mitel acquire Siltek, a bankrupt semiconductor company in Bromont, Quebec, Canada. Mitel can now integrate chip technology with telephone systems - a key factor in the company's development of its first PABX system (SX2000).

1979
Mitel goes public on the Montreal and Toronto stock market.  Mitel open a plant in the UK at Slough.

1980
Slough production moves to two larger sites in South Wales.

1981
Mitel employs more than 6,400 employees in over 56 locations around the world. Mitel Corporation's revenue for the fiscal year ended March 1998 and was $888 million with profits of $92 million.   Mitel has shipped 220,000 voice systems world-wide, representing over 16 million lines, serving more than 175,000 customers.

1982
Mitel further globalises its operations with ventures in Mexico established, a manufacturing facility in Hong Kong, and offices in Japan.

1983
Mitel introduced the Superset 4, the company's most successful device to date and one that would soon be emulated throughout the industry.  Manufacturing in the UK moves to Portskewett, South Wales.

1984
Introduction of the SX-2000SG, the largest PABX to date.  The Company soon need a UK manufacturing capability so move their European Headquarters to its current location in Portskewett, South Wales.
Company ships over 1,000,000 lines - 10 per cent of the world market.

1986
British Telecom acquire a 51% interest in Mitel, investing $320 million.

1988
SX-2000S introduced.

1989
GX-2000 introduced.  This is a digital public exchange

1990
Mitel provided BT with the first transatlantic Digital Private Network Signalling System (DPNSS), linking its New York and London offices.
SX-2000VS introduced.

1992
After a successful partnership, changes in British Telecom's strategic direction prompts their decision to sell their interest in Mitel.
Their interest is sold to funds advised by Shroder Ventures, the international buy-out and venture capital arm of Shroders plc.

Schroders and Partners Ltd. make a public and private offering of over 25,000,000 shares - buying just under 5 million - reducing their interest in Mite! to 43 per cent.

1993
All Mitel factories and facilities achieve ISO 9000 certification.  In January the SX-2000 Light is introduced.

1994
The SX 2000® MICRO LIGHT network node is introduced as a powerful and cost effective networking solution to smaller locations.  A small, UK designed PABX, the SX-50 is introduced.
Mitel introduces the Elite Dealer Value Added Reseller (VAR) program.

1995
Mitel’s Integrated Service Digital Network (ISDN) Conformance Laboratory became the first facility in Canada to be accredited in the information technology and telecommunications-field by the
Standards Council of Canada.

1996
Mitel unveils The Mitel Personal AssistantTM - a new category of computer peripherals bringing true Computer Telephony Integration (CTI) to the desktop.

Mitel demonstrates the first communication between a telephone and a PC over the Universal Serial Bus (USB).
IDC projects that the US convergence market will grow 55 percent annually to $622 million by 2003. People are finally starting to realize lP PBX technology is there!

1997
Mitel acquires a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Sweden and a software house producing a range of ISDN accelerator products. This is in line with Company policy of continued growth within Europe.

Mitel acquires Gandalf Technologies Inc. for $149 million (US) expanding into the remote access market.

The Company introduces the MediaPath Developer’s Environment (MPDE), a standards-based environment for. developers to build or port applications for Mitel’s MediaPath platform.

1998
Mitel acquires Global Village Communications Ltd.

Mitel acquires Telecoms Sciences Corporation Ltd . TSC's ImagINATION product range compliments the SX2000 providing key systems functionality and ISDN applications for the small and medium sized enterprise market.

Mitel acquires Plessey Semiconductor Group. The combined semiconductor business will rank Mitel among the top ten networking companies in the world and provide the ability to produce bipolar, Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) and optoelectronic components.

Mitel releases the SX-200® EL - an economical small enterprise system with robust functionality.

Mitel unveils SX-2000® for Windows NT - The industry’s first full-featured, integrated, single-server telecom solution.

Mitel acquires the Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) Business unit of Centigram Communications Corporation, adding their powerful voice and integrated messaging applications to its portfolio.

1999
Mitel introduces the Call Centre CommanderTM - a comprehensive suite of call centre applications for building, monitoring, and managing, call centres.

Mitel expands the Elite Dealer program to include the Platinum Elite VAR category to its reseller network.

2000
Terry Mathews buys 90% of the Telephony side of Mitel.  The deal will be formally in place by February 2001.  Effectively this splits the semiconductor side of Mitel away from the Comms arm, although the Comms side will keep the name.

Mitel announces deal with COGNICASE Inc. to sell its portfolio of communications solutions, including its complete line of enterprise convergence technologies, to business customers across Canada.

Mitel and EricssonTM join forces to deliver an integrated digital wireless solution with PBX functionality.

Mitel increases its market share to 10.4 per cent - number three in North America.

Mitel introduces Ipera 2000TM - The first industry Voice-over-IP solution to offer full PBX values.

Mitel unveils their Data Integrated Voice ApplicationsTM Architecture - the foundation for software-only IP applications.

Mitel partners with Symbol Technologies to offer converged voice and data wireless LAN telephony Solutions.

2001
Mitel agrees to sell its Communications Systems division, and the name “Mitel”, to company co-founder Dr. Terence H. Matthews.

Under Dr. Matthews leadership, Mitel Communications Systems re-emerges as the new Mitel Networks.

Mitel announces key marketing and distribution agreements with March Networks and the Hewlett Packard Company.

Mitel Networks appoints Don Smith, former Nortel Optical President, as new CEO.

Mitel launches March Networks 6530 - First in class speech-enabled Unified Messaging for Microsoft Exchange

Mitel unveils March Networks 3100 and 3300 Integrated Communications Platforms at Networld + Interop.

2005
Navigator - an IP desktop phone that complements flat screen monitors is introduced.

2007
Mitel merge with Inter-Tel.