Robert Pera

Last updated
Robert Pera
Born (1978-03-10) March 10, 1978 (age 45)
San Carlos, California, U.S.
Education University of California, San Diego
Title
Website www.rjpblog.com

Robert J. Pera (born March 10, 1978) is the founder of Ubiquiti Networks, Inc. a global communications technology company that Pera took public in 2011. In October 2012, Pera also became the owner of the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association. [1] At the age of 36, Pera earned a spot on Forbes ' list of the 10 youngest billionaires in the world. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Pera established his first computer services company while attending high school. [3] That company provided networking and database services to local businesses. [3] Pera also played on his high school's basketball team until a heart condition, which has long since been resolved, kept him home for a year. [4] After high school, Pera attended the University of California, San Diego, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and a B.A. in Japanese Language. He stayed on at UC San Diego and completed his master's in electrical engineering with an emphasis on Digital Communications and Circuit Design. [5]

Career

Apple

After graduation, Pera, who admired Steve Jobs, secured a job at Apple Inc., where he tested the company's Wi-Fi devices to ensure compliance with Federal Communications Commission standards for electromagnetic emissions. [4] While working at Apple, Pera noticed that the power sources that Apple's Wi-Fi devices used to throw signals were far below FCC limits. [4] Boosting their power, he reasoned, could increase their transmission range to over dozens of miles, which could facilitate Internet access in areas that telephone and cable companies do not reach. [4] When his bosses at Apple ignored his idea, Pera decided to build his own low-cost, high-performance Wi-Fi module. [4] For the next year, Pera spent his nights and weekends in his apartment testing prototypes. [4] By early 2005 he was ready to start his own business and he left Apple to form Ubiquiti Networks. [4]

Ubiquiti Networks

Pera founded Ubiquiti Networks in March 2005 using $30,000 of personal savings and credit card debt. [5] Ubiquiti's early products utilized existing Wi-Fi technology to wirelessly deliver the Internet to underserved areas (e.g., rural areas and emerging markets) lacking the infrastructure to access the Internet through traditional avenues such as phone lines and cable lines. [5] The company has since successfully branched out into other product lines such as wireless access points, security cameras and traditional networking equipment (e.g., switches and routers). [6]

Memphis Grizzlies

On June 11, 2012, sources told ESPN.com that Michael Heisley had an agreement in principle to sell the Memphis Grizzlies to Robert Pera. The official sale of the Memphis Grizzlies to Pera was approved on October 25, 2012. [7] The Grizzlies made the NBA playoffs in the two seasons before Pera purchased the team and made the playoffs during the first five seasons of his tenure as owner. In the first year of Pera's ownership, the Grizzlies won a club record 56 games and made its first-ever appearance in the Western Conference Finals. [8] The Grizzlies team won more playoff games during the first two years of Pera's tenure than it did during the team's 17 previous seasons in the NBA. [9]

Pera is a supporter of the Grizzlies Foundation, a sports charity which operates in Memphis. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wi-Fi</span> Wireless local area network

Wi-Fi is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio waves. These are the most widely used computer networks, used globally in home and small office networks to link devices and to provide Internet access with wireless routers and wireless access points in public places such as coffee shops, hotels, libraries, and airports to provide visitors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memphis Grizzlies</span> National Basketball Association team in Memphis, Tennessee

The Memphis Grizzlies are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The Grizzlies play their home games at FedExForum. The Grizzlies are currently the only team in the major professional North American sports leagues based in the city of Memphis, and the only professional basketball team in the state of Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless Internet service provider</span> Internet service provider with a network based on wireless networking

A wireless Internet service provider (WISP) is an Internet service provider with a network based on wireless networking. Technology may include commonplace Wi-Fi wireless mesh networking, or proprietary equipment designed to operate over open 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, 4.9, 5, 24, and 60 GHz bands or licensed frequencies in the UHF band, LMDS, and other bands from 6 GHz to 80 GHz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Miller (basketball, born 1980)</span> American basketball player (born 1980)

Michael Lloyd Miller is an American basketball coach, former professional player who is the boys' basketball head coach at Houston High School in Germantown, Tennessee, as well as being a sports agent. He played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) after being selected by the Orlando Magic in the first round of the 2000 NBA draft with the fifth overall pick. Miller was named the NBA Rookie of the Year with the Magic in 2001 and was voted NBA Sixth Man of the Year with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2006. He won two consecutive NBA championships with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zach Randolph</span> American basketball player (born 1981)

Zachary McKenley Randolph is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Z-Bo", the 2-time NBA All-Star played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans before being drafted in the 2001 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. He played for five teams over the course of his professional career, making the All-NBA Third Team in 2011 with the Memphis Grizzlies. He also played with the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento Kings before retiring in December 2019. Randolph later came out of retirement in 2020 to join the Big3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Gasol</span> Spanish basketball player (born 1985)

Marc Gasol Sáez is a Spanish professional basketball player for Bàsquet Girona of the Liga ACB. The center is a two-time All-NBA Team member and a three-time NBA All-Star. He was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year with the Memphis Grizzlies in 2013, and won an NBA championship with the Toronto Raptors in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lionel Hollins</span> American basketball player and coach

Lionel Eugene Hollins is an American professional basketball coach and former player who most recently served as an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, Hollins played for the Portland Trail Blazers, winning an NBA championship in 1977 and named an NBA All-Star in 1978. The Trail Blazers retired his No. 14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Conley Jr.</span> American basketball player (born 1987)

Michael Alex Conley Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted as the fourth overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. Conley spent 12 seasons with the Grizzlies and became the team's all-time leading scorer before being traded to the Utah Jazz in 2019, then traded again to the Timberwolves in 2023.

Chris Wallace is an American professional basketball executive and scout who is the director of scouting for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Jason M. Levien is an American sports executive. He is the CEO and managing general owner of the Major League Soccer club D.C. United and co-owner of Swansea City, a Welsh football club, and the Brisbane Bullets, an Australian basketball club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Derrick Rose</span> American basketball player (born 1988)

Derrick Martell Rose is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year of college basketball for the Memphis Tigers before being drafted first overall by his hometown Chicago Bulls in the 2008 NBA draft. Nicknamed "D-Rose", and sometimes referred to as "The Windy City Assasin" or simply "Pooh", he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2009 and became the youngest player to win the NBA Most Valuable Player Award in 2011 at age 22.

Michael E. Heisley was an American businessman and former majority owner of the Memphis Grizzlies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ubiquiti</span> American technology company

Ubiquiti Inc. is an American technology company founded in San Jose, California, in 2003. Now based in New York City, Ubiquiti manufactures and sells wireless data communication and wired products for enterprises and homes under multiple brand names. On October 13, 2011, Ubiquiti had its initial public offering (IPO) at 7.04 million shares, at $15 per share, raising $30.5 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Adams</span> New Zealand basketball player

Steven Funaki Adams is a professional basketball player from New Zealand who plays for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After playing one season with the Wellington Saints, in 2011, Adams moved to the United States in 2012 to play college basketball for Pittsburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dillon Brooks</span> Canadian basketball player (born 1996)

Dillon Brooks is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Oregon Ducks, where he was named a consensus second-team All-American and earned conference player of the year honors in the Pac-12 in 2017. Brooks was selected in the second round of the 2017 NBA Draft. He began his career with the Memphis Grizzlies, earning NBA All-Defensive Second Team honors in 2023.

The Memphis Grizzlies are a professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee.

The 2019–20 Memphis Grizzlies season was the 25th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and 19th in Memphis.

Taylor Vetter Jenkins is an American professional basketball coach who is the head coach for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Zach Kleiman is an American basketball executive who is the general manager and executive vice president of basketball operations for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

References

  1. ↑ Stein, Marc (June 11, 2012). "Sources: Deal for Grizzlies reached". ESPN.com.
  2. ↑ "Robert Pera". Leaders Lead. October 31, 2014. Retrieved October 31, 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Creating connectivity". Leaders Interview. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Boudway, Ira (April 24, 2013). "Robert Pera: The Kid That Bought the Grizzlies". Bloomberg Business. Archived from the original on April 25, 2013. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Dolan, Kerry (January 3, 2012). "Silicon Valley's Newest Billionaire: Wireless Wonder Robert Pera". Forbes. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Ubiquiti Networks' Product Offerings" . Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  7. ↑ Windhorst, Brian (25 October 2012). "Owners approve sale of Grizzlies".
  8. ↑ "Sources: NBA Teams: Memphis Grizzlies Records Year by Year". LandofBasketball.com.
  9. ↑ "Sources: Memphis Grizzlies Playoff History". RealGM.com.
  10. ↑ Hipp, Bennett. "Grizzlies Foundation works to provide greater impact for Memphis youth". NBA.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.