Gilat Announces Erez Antebi Appointed CEO, Amiram Levinberg Continues as Chairman of the Board
Oct 31, 2011
Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Erez Antebi as Chief Executive Officer of the Company, effective January 1, 2012. Amiram Levinberg, Gilat's current CEO and Chairman of the Board intends to continue to serve as Chairman of the Board.
Mr. Antebi currently holds the position of Gilat's Executive Advisor for Ka Band solutions. Previously, Mr. Antebi held the position of Chief Executive Officer of Gilat's equipment business unit (Gilat Network Systems - GNS) for five years, including two years in which he also headed Spacenet Rural Communications.
"Erez Antebi has been leading our entry to the new market of spot-beam satellites and Ka Band technology and was instrumental in Gilat being awarded the consumer initiatives Astra2Connect in Europe and Optus-NBN Co in Australia. He has proven his excellent operational and executive capabilities time and again. With Erez's leadership, market focus, unrelenting drive and passion for the Company's future, I am confident that Gilat will continue to grow profitably in the future," said Mr. Levinberg.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Antebi said, "I am honored to be asked to head Gilat. The changes in the satellite market open exciting new prospects such as Ka Band technology and expansion of satellite communications to international defense applications. Having been part of the Company for over 17 years, and part of the executive team that defined Gilat's strategy, it is now my opportunity to lead the company to further growth and greater profitability in order to increase our shareholder value."
Amiram Levinberg, a co-founder of the Company, returned to Gilat in July 2005 to serve as CEO and Chairman of the Board and has held both executive positions since. During Mr. Levinberg's tenure, he has led Gilat's return to growth and profitability, as well as its new strategy to enter the defense markets. As part of this strategy, he established a new division that offers the defense market a large variety of products and services, including Wavestream's high end SSPA's solutions, low profile antennas by RaySat Antenna Systems, and other advanced defense products.
Due to recent amendments to the Israeli corporate law, discouraging dual roles, Mr. Levinberg elected to step aside as CEO and intends to continue to be actively involved in the Company as Chairman of the Board.
Mr. Antebi, 52, first joined Gilat in 1991 and since then served in various executive positions, including VP International Sales and Marketing, VP Business Development and COO. He served as CEO of Clariton from 2003 to 2005, and then returned to Gilat to lead the equipment business unit (Gilat Network Systems - GNS) for five years, including two years in which he was also CEO Spacenet Rural Communications. Erez currently serves as Executive Advisor for Ka Band Solutions.
Erez Antebi holds a Bachelor of Science (Summa Cum Laude) and Master of Science degrees in Electrical Engineering from the Technion -- Israel Institute of Technology.
