Wi-LAN leapt up in the rankings of the country's top tech firms after the patent licensing company increased its revenues to $61.3 million in 2007, up from only $2.1 million a year earlier.

The Ottawa-based company was ranked 64th in the Branham 300 list of the top 250 Canadian technology companies, up from 158th a year earlier. The ranking of Canadian companies is based on global revenues.

The rapid ascension earned Wi-LAN the distinction of being the top "mover and shaker" in the ranking.

Several other National Capital Region firms were highlighted for their rapid climb up the list, including Ottawa-based MaxSys, which placed 102nd, up from 119th last year.

Gatineau-based software company Cactus Commerce rose to 124th from 157th last year while Ottawa's bitHeads climbed 24 spots to 176th.

Nortel remained the top revenue generator for the fifth straight year despite reporting a decrease of 4.58 per cent over 2006.

Ontario continues to be home to the majority of the top-performing tech firms despite the number of companies headquartered in the province on the top 250 decreasing to 53.6 per cent from 55.6 per cent last year.

The list's authors attribute the drop to the acquisition of several large Ontario firms by foreign-owned companies.

Other local companies which saw their rankings climb were Mitel, up three spots to 14th place; Corel which took 26th place after being 30th in 2006; Calian, which rose by two spots to 30th place; Stoneworks which rose to 108th from 120th place; and Maplesoft which rose by seven spots to 127th place.

As well, several Ottawa-area firms made their debut on the list in 2007, including SiGe Semiconductor at 58th place; newly public Bridgewater Systems at 89th place; 110th-ranked Mxi Technologies; OSI Geospatial, which moved to Ottawa from Vancouver last year, in 115th place; Dragonwave at 119th place; International Datacasting Corp., which placed 145th; Dalian Enteprises at 196th place; and Espial at 216th.