Ubiquiti sold its radios to people building internet service where the big carriers would not go. Its customers were small operators in emerging markets and rural areas, plus businesses that wanted fast networks for less. Founder Robert Pera kept costs low and prices lower. When Ubiquiti filed to go public in 2011, it told investors that larger rivals could not match its prices, because their business models cost too much to run.

From Pera Networks

The company was incorporated in California in 2003 as Pera Networks. It sat mostly idle until 2005, when it began its current business and took a new name. Pera, a former Apple engineer, served as chief executive. Ubiquiti made radios, antennas and management software for long-range wireless links. It sold through distributors and relied on an online community of users for support and product ideas.

Fifteen Dollars, One Big Owner

Ubiquiti priced its IPO at $15 a share in October 2011 and listed on Nasdaq as UBNT. Pera kept most of the stock. The company later expanded into networking gear for homes and offices under the UniFi brand. It moved its listing to the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker UI and its headquarters to New York City. Ubiquiti is still public, and Pera still runs it.

Cover: The Lonely Tower, Samuel Palmer. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a lone tower on a hill (rural wireless).