Here are the finalists for Top IPO or M&A Candidate, in alphabetical order:

• Airespace Inc.

During the last few quarters, Airespace has pulled away from the pack of wireless LAN players. The latest numbers from Synergy Research Group Inc. tell the story: For the third quarter of 2004, Synergy shows Airespace made revenues of $18.2 million, making the company the third largest supplier of enterprise 802.11 gear after Cisco Systems Inc. and Symbol Technologies Inc. By way of contrast, Synergy says Airespace’s closest startup rival, Aruba Wireless Networks, made $6.9 million in sales for the third quarter of 2004. During its three-year history, Airespace has inked partnership deals with Alcatel SA, NEC Electronics Corp., and Nortel Networks Ltd., among others. Airespace has gathered almost $60 million in venture funding. Earlier this year, the startup even floated the prospect of going public in 2005, although it has become more cautious about talking up an IPO now.

• Atrica Inc.

Among the private vendors of Ethernet and MPLS gear, Atrica has shown both staying power and the ability to land customers of every stripe, from operators you may never have heard of, to the metro networks of major incumbents such as France Telecom SA and Deutsche Telekom AG. 

Atrica apparently has the right product for the right time, as a recent Heavy Reading report found that many major service providers plan on granting big contracts to Ethernet-services gear vendors in 2005. There should be enough money flowing into this space to sustain both the big guys and a few newcomers.

Atrica's global reach positions it well (watch for a big win in India), as does a reseller relationship with Fujitsu Ltd. All this activity could add up to steady revenue growth for Atrica, which should build up enough confidence on Wall Street to take it to the streets.