Bluesocket's New BroomBluesocket's New Broom

Enterprise wireless LAN startup Bluesocket Inc. is hoping to raise another round of VC money now that it has finally brought its new CEO onboard (see Bluesocket Names New CEO).

A spokesman for Bluesocket tells Unstrung that the new guy, Ralph Calistri, is looking to raise capital and hire more people. The new round is expected to be announced in the fourth quarter, Bluesocket has so far raised over $32 million in three rounds of funding (see Bluesocket Raises $10M).

Calistri -- who has been on the job five days -- was hired by Peter Smith, the firm's "executive chairman," who has been acting as the boss man while Bluesocket searched for a replacement for Eric Janszen, who quietly left the company at the start of this year (see Bluesocket CEO Unplugged ).

Callistri is a Nortel Networks Ltd. (NYSE/Toronto: NT) veteran, who most recently hung his hat on the CEO stand at Web services startup Flamenco Networks. The Bluesocket spokesdude says a new CEO won't herald a reinvention of the company, as it has for fellow WiFi gateway startup Vernier, which now styles itself as a wired and wireless security provider (see Vernier's New New CEO).

"Bluesocket will stay on track," he says. "We've been successful so far."

— Dan Jones, Site Editor, Unstrung