Extreme Networks is reportedly looking to purchase CommScope's enterprise networking division, Ruckus.

According to Bloomberg, the cloud networking firm may splash $1 billion on the deal. If it went ahead, it would leave CommScope solely to focus on its access network solutions (ANS) after the sell-off of its connectivity and cable solutions (CCS) segment to Amphenol, which completed this week.

That deal followed CommScope’s sale of its mobile networks business, also to Amphenol, for $2.1 billion in mid-2024.

Founded in 2002 as Ruckus Networks, the firm was acquired in 2016 by Brocade Communications prior to Brocade's acquisition by Broadcom a year later.

Arris International snapped up Ruckus a year later for $800 million from Broadcom, while Extreme Networks acquired Brocade’s data center networking business for $55 million, also in 2017.

CommScope would then snap up Arris in 2019 in a deal around the $7.4 billion mark, inheriting Ruckus as part of the spoils.

If the Ruckus deal goes ahead, it would be Extreme's biggest move in the enterprise network space since acquiring cloud-managed Wi-Fi vendor Aerohive for $272 million in 2019.

Aerohive's SD-WAN capabilities were expected by analysts to help Extreme better compete in the SD-Branch market, as well as help it tap into enterprise and campus networking market growth.

Neither CommScope, nor Extreme Networks replied to Bloomberg's request for comment on the matter.

Another jumps ship from Juniper

In more official news, Extreme appointed Gos Hein van de Wouw as its senior vice president of EMEA sales, replacing John Morrison in the role.

Van de Wouw joins Extreme from Juniper Networks, where he worked two stints, first as its North European VP from 2011 to 2014, before rejoining in 2022 for a four-year stint as its EMEA VP. With the move, the exec is the latest to depart Juniper following its blockbuster Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) deal from last year. Recent months have seen HPE lose its VP for global channel and partner ecosystem networking, as well as its chief network strategist.

Prior to rejoining Juniper, van de Wouw worked in various VP roles at NetApp between 2015 and 2021, leaving the data firm as VP for both EMEA and APAC sales.

Outside of a year-long vice president role commenced in 2014 at business software firm Exact, the exec served for five years at Cisco as its enterprise and public director. This was preceded by his first host cloud role as MD, then VP for Avaya from 2003 to 2006. Eleven years later, Extreme Networks would go on to buy Avaya’s networking business.

Van de Wouw first cut his technology teeth at HPE, with sales director roles spanning from 1995 to his Avaya stint.

On his new role, van de Wouw told CRN: “Organizations are under pressure to do more with networks that were never designed for today’s scale, speed, or complexity. Extreme’s vision resonates with me, and I’m excited to help customers across EMEA turn complexity into a durable growth advantage through AI-driven innovation and expand Extreme’s footprint across EMEA.”

His predecessor Morrison's next move has yet to be revealed.