“When it comes to doing acquisitions, networking giant Cisco Systems has long been known as high-tech’s leading shopaholic. But when it forked over $500 million for Irvine (Calif.)-based Linksys Group in March, 2003, many industry insiders held their breath… ‘Linksys has exceeded our expectations in financial terms,’ says Cisco Chief Executive John Chambers,” WJAC-TV reports. Now, Cisco is cranking up its plans for Linksys. Chambers says it will use the Linksys brand on a growing portfolio of low-end products, both for consumers and increasingly for the medium- and small-business market.”
Linksys founder Victor Tsao recently spoke with BusinessWeek computer editor Peter Burrows about past successes and where he sees Linksys — and consumer electronics in general — headed in the future. An excerpt from their conversation touched on Apple Computer:
Q: How do you view Apple’s role in this market? They have their own wireless-network product, the Airport Express, and many Apple watchers expect the company to try to take a leadership role in creating the digital living room of the future. Have you talked to them about working together to have products such as the iPod work with other devices in the home?
A: I really view Apple as a potential partner. The iPod is obviously a very good design. But at the end of the day it has to be a networked device. Linksys does most of the home-networking infrastructure for consumers. If we can partner together, we can give [consumers] such a good experience. In the future, there are a lot of areas where we can work together. This market is huge. Let’s face it: No one player can dominate the whole thing.
Full article here.
Related articles:
Apple unveils AirPort Express for Mac & PC Users; World’s First 802.11g mobile base station features – June 07, 2004