The Team

Ashok Narasimhan CEO

Ashok has been instrumental in founding and building several successful billion dollar global corporations.

He is the co-Founder and Chairman of July Systems, a leading provider of platform based managed services that enables brands to extend their presence to the mobile channel with compelling services across multiple content types, networks and devices, with global deployments.

He was the Founder of Prio Inc., which created a new category of clicks and mortar promotion systems for retailers, and had Intel, Microsoft, American Express, Datacard and Knight Ridder, among others, as strategic investors. He served as Chairman and CEO until Prio's merger with InfoSpace, and was subsequently the COO and a member of the Board of Directors of InfoSpace.

Prior to this, Ashok served as the Head of Worldwide Marketing , Business Development, Engineering and other functions  at VeriFone, the world leader in automated electronic payment transactions with over 70% market share in over 100 countries. VeriFone was later a Hewlett-Packard subsidiary.

He was earlier the Founding CEO of Wipro InfoTech and Wipro Systems, which together comprise Wipro Technologies, one of India's largest IT companies.

Ashok currently sits on the Boards of several companies in areas as diverse as internet portals, social networking, investment banking, software development and mobile platforms. He is also a Limited Partner and Advisor for a number of leading venture capital funds.”

Akshay Narasimhan Product Strategist

Akshay has been involved in the high tech industry for nearly two decades, with over 12 years of experience in web applications and internet security. Most recently, he was the sole proprietor of a profitable internet marketing firm which set up custom, highly targeted, high conversion campaigns on the web that drove revenue on a CPA basis, thereby giving his customers high returns with zero-risk. He is an acclaimed underwater basket weaving champion and he likes to farm rare species of peas and rutabagas. In his spare time he is out campaigning for world peace, except in Guatemala. A cabbie ripped him off there once.

Robert J. Berger CTO

Rob has been involved in building Internet Infrastructure and services for the last 15 years. Prior to joining Cinch, he was the President and Founder of Internet Bandwidth Development, a consultancy focusing on providing technology consulting specializing in backbone networks, access networks, wireless networks, and innovative Internet/Web applications and services. IBD has provided services to technology start-ups, Internet hardware and software vendors, as well as venture capital firms, including Panorama Capital, SkyPilot Networks, VISA, Cisco, Ascend, iPass, and Oki Networks.

Most recently Rob had been involved with software and web services develoment based on Ruby and Rails as a consultant or advisor at SkyPilot, TelTel, ZipDX and CloudScale while keeping up with his interest in Internet Infrastructure as an advisor at WeFi, BooRah, GridNetworks, Support Intelligence and NetEnrich.

Rob has been a principal or founder in several start-up network services and equipment companies including InterNex, MetroFi and UltraDevices. As an Internet pioneer in the early 90’s, Rob founded InterNex Services which was the first ISP to offer commercial ISDN Internet services, Frame Relay and higher speed business broadband services as well as International Hosting Services. InterNex was later acquired by Concentric/XO.

Rob is a respected expert in IP networks and open source software and has been on the Advisory Boards of companies including Covad, Alteon Websystems (acquired by Nortel), AboveNet, WeFi, Boorah, GridNetworks, Cloudscale, Support Intelligence and Cosine Communications. He is a frequent speaker on Next Generation Networks at conferences including CTIA and APRICOT (Asia Pacific Regional Internet Conference on Operational Technologies).

In 2002 - 2003 Mr Berger was a visiting research fellow at the Center for Global Communications (GLOCOM www.glocom.ac.jp) in Tokyo with a focus on Open Spectrum technology (Ultra-wideband spread spectrum, Cognitive / Software Defined Radios, Wireless Mesh Networks, expanded unlicensed 802.11 wireless) and how it impacts spectrum policy.

info at cinchgo.com