Edgewater Networks announced today that it has raised $5 million in debt financing to develop new products that leverage Software Defined Networking (SDN) and Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) technologies. The new products will complement the company's existing portfolio and allow Edgewater Networks' customers to launch new managed services more quickly.

The company has more than 240,000 Edgewater Enterprise Session Border Controllers (ESBCs) currently deployed by leading service providers and integrators, including one of the two largest U.S. carriers and three of the top five U.S. cable operators.

'We believe that SDN and NFV are driving significant transformation in service provider networks and opening new avenues for service delivery,' said Dave Norman, CEO of Edgewater Networks. 'We are excited about the expansion of our product portfolio and how it will help our customers to easily deliver a new class of profitable business services.'

The new funding was secured from Eastward Capital and brings the total debt and equity funding raised by Edgewater Networks to date to $36 million.

'Edgewater Networks has been providing managed services platforms for the delivery of IP-based voice, video and data services for more than 10 years,' said Dennis Cameron, Senior Managing Director at Eastward Capital. 'The company's application-centric approach is well aligned to integrate the benefits that SDN and NFV offer, as these new technologies open the door for the creation of innovative new architectures and platforms for service delivery.'

About Edgewater Networks, Inc.

Edgewater Networks, Inc. is a leading provider of Enterprise Session Border Controllers that address the challenges to secure and reliable enterprise Unified Communications including device and protocol interoperability, security and policy management, troubleshooting and QoS. With more than 200,000 units deployed worldwide, Edgewater products are used to deliver reliable, differentiated, business class services by leading carriers, cable operators, service providers and enterprises. To learn more about Edgewater Networks solutions, please visit www.edgewaternetworks.com

About Eastward Capital Partners

Eastward Capital Partners is a leading provider of venture debt and equity financing to technology companies backed by top-tier venture capital firms. Eastward works with portfolio companies to provide flexible equity sensitive solutions for their financing needs. Founded in 1994, Eastward presently manages over $400 million and focuses on investments in Information Technology, Communications, Media, Green Technology and Healthcare. www.eastwardcp.com