The appointment caps weeks of rumors and adds to Clark'seclectic resume, which includes stints at Silicon Graphics, Netscape and WebMD. After leaving all three of those companies, he has more recentlyfocused on a collection of relatively obscure start-ups, serving aschairman at online photo service Shutterfly, financial consultant for MyCFO andgenetics researcher at DNA Sciences.
Neoteris aims to simplify the way employees connect to a corporatenetwork remotely, replacing the two major solutions used today: extranetsand virtual private networks (VPNs). The Sunnyvale-based company wasfounded last year under the temporary name DanaStreet, and has received $5 million in funding from investors that include Clark andthe Barksdale Group, the investment fund run by his former partner atNetscape, Jim Barksdale.
Neoteris on Nov. 19 plans to launch its networking appliance, dubbed theInstant Virtual Extranet. According to the company, the product offerscompanies the ability to link securely to their internal corporate networkfrom any device that has a Web browser, without the need for a dedicated connection.
The company said its product fills a networking need unmet by extranetsand VPNs, which can be costly and complicated to implement.
Neoteris Chief Executive Krishna Kolluri, a co-founder and formersenior vice president of WebMD, acknowledged that the timing for newstart-ups is difficult given the economic environment. But he added thatthe company hopes to turn that to its advantage by instilling fiscal responsibility.
"Is the current climate challenging? No question about it," saidKolluri. "I don't think there's any better time than to build a companyduring the downturn...just because you can get more done with less."
Kolluri added that Neoteris' technology is "revolutionary" and will"fundamentally change the way people work."
Clark has long been identified with successful start-ups, although some ofhis projects have produced mixed results.
WebMD, the online health provider he co-founded and later left, has facedchallenges this year, posting a net loss of $1.9 billion, or $5.21 pershare, for the first half of the year. Meanwhile, the company's stock hassunk from a high of more than $100 a share in March 1999 to $4.52 at market close Friday.
In a regulatory filing last month, thecompany said it would handsizable severance packages to a pair of former executives who resigned fromthe struggling online health company earlier this year.
Kolluri "and I have a history of building innovative solutions for huge,unaddressed market needs," Clark said in a statement. "I believe that wehave the opportunity to again build a trailblazing industry."