Cisco routes to consumer electronics

The networking equipment leaders- Cisco systems is foraying into the field of consumer electronics with the manufacturing of products such as radios, telephones and home theater equipment.

Consumer electronics companies have been able to compete on a stand-alone device but the dynamics of the market are changing said Charles Giancarlo , chief development officer at Cisco.

Cisco venture of making a bigger play for always-on consumer has been preceded with firms collaboration with other big names in the world of electronics

Cisco already has a presence in the consumer electronics retail market, through Linksys, its home networking device arm, which the company bought in March 2003. The Linksys operation is already one of the fastest growing within the increasingly diversified group, selling wireless routers for home use, phone adaptors and VoIP phones.

In July last year, it paid US $61 million to buy Kiss Technology, a Danish company that makes DVD players and other products that can connect to Wi-Fi and Ethernet networks. Linksys could use technology from its Kiss acquisition to make other networked consumer device.

Also, Cisco said in November that it had reached a deal to purchase Scientific-Atlanta, the second largest set-top box maker in USA. This deal could give Cisco a primary position in homes - near the TV set.

Cisco’s close relationship with content providers such as Yahoo could also boost its consumer efforts too.

As consumers demand more sophisticated information and entertainment services in their home, tightly coupled applications, devices and networks will be essential said Cisco President and Chief Executive Officer John Chambers.

Being an established quality technology provider, Cisco giant leap in electronics is surely gonna be a boon to users at the same time making the competition more fierce for other big names like SONY