Feature Story

Cisco's fiscal year 2008 first quarter was characterized by strong technology announcements and significant customer wins around the world and in all targeted vertical areas.

Globally, The Cisco Networking Showcase on Wheels, a mobile showcase of Cisco's Internet Protocol networking technologies, started a year-long journey in Singapore to link communities across 30 countries in Asia, extending Cisco's reach to organizations in vertical industries. Mexico's first Cisco Entrepreneur Institute opened, contributing to the development and training of local entrepreneurs in the skills needed to successfully manage growth in small and medium-sized businesses. Cisco Networking Academies celebrated 10 years in Istanbul, Turkey, of preparing students for IT and networking careers.

Cisco completed the acquisitions of Cognio, the market leader in wireless spectrum analysis and management for wireless networks and Latigent, a leading provider of Web-based business intelligence and analytics reporting solutions, focused on contact centers. Also, Cisco announced a definitive agreement to acquire Navini Networks, a leader in the Mobile WiMAX 802.16e-2005 broadband wireless industry. Navini's WiMAX products will extend Cisco's WiFi and WiFi-Mesh portfolios, allowing Cisco to uniquely address the rapidly growing markets for broadband wireless services.

Following are select product announcements from Q1 FY08:

Cisco IP Interoperability and Collaboration System (IPICS) brings P25 interoperability to public safety P25 systems, to help customers to achieve a powerful, cost-effective and flexible system that increases overall public safety communications reliability and interoperability using a network of networks.

Cisco offers the industry's only integrated 802.11n solution designed to combine superior wireless performance and reliability with simplicity of deployment.

The Cisco Content Delivery System (CDS) is the first system of its type to natively support Adobe Flash® streaming capabilities in addition to traditional progressive delivery.

Cisco delivers a sophisticated modular security solution that is completely integrated into the network infrastructure expands the capabilities of the Cisco ISR to provide exceptional security for branch offices.

The integration of Cisco VFrame Data Center with VMware Virtual Infrastructure helps customers better utilize their data center resources, deploy more robust business continuance and enhance data security.

An enhancement to the Carrier Ethernet portfolio of the IP Next-Generation Network (IP NGN) architecture enables operators to deliver the "Connected Life," extending fiber-to-the-home apartment buildings and other multi-tenant units, allowing deployment of more services more quickly.

Eight new smart switches were introduced by Linksys, for small environments, corporate workgroups or network edge applications requiring simple Web management, network security and easy installation.

Empowered Branch framework enhancements allows customers to standardize their branch architecture on a consistent set of security, unified communications, application acceleration and wireless services while optimizing branch performance and cost.

The Cisco Mobile Government Solution, provides state and local governments with tools to enable more efficient and effective decision making for public safety and mobile workers through the use of collaborative wireless mobility technologies.

WebEx will offer Oracle's Siebel CRM On Demand Service, a customer relationship management (CRM) application service, through the WebEx Connect application ecosystem.

Ultra RangePlus, Linksys' new premium line of home networking products provides greater wireless network coverage and transmission speeds to consumers who are looking to maximize both the performance and range of their wireless networks.

Following are select customer announcements from Q1 FY08:

United States and Canada:

Cisco Unified Contact Center has been certified by AT&T Labs for compatibility and interoperability with AT&T's recently announced IP Toll-Free service.

Bell Canada is the first Canadian service provider to achieve the Cisco Powered TelePresence network status enabling the delivery of the Cisco TelePresence solution.

Brandeis University and Harper College in Waltham, Massachussetts and Palatine, Illinois have selected Cisco Application Control Engine running on the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Switch to consolidate servers and network infrastructure in their data centers, and to improve application performance and security.

William Osler Health Centre, one of the largest hospitals in Ontario, Canada, is deploying a Cisco Medical-Grade Network at its Brampton Civic Hospital, securely connecting patients and caregivers.

APAC:

Cambodia Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport will integrate teacher education institutes with existing Cisco Networking Academies to develop the information and communications technology skills of Cambodian educators.

Hanaro Telecom, Korea's major broadband service provider, selected Cisco's standards-based channel-bonding technology for the world's largest deployment of 100-megabits-per-second broadband services, now reaching more than 200,000 customers.

The Johor State Government of Malayasia launched the second phase of an information and communications technology project that will include a next-generation network designed by Cisco. The overall project is designed to improve government efficiency, establish closer links with the people of Johor, and pave the way to sustainable economic growth.

ICB Bank in Vietnam is working to improve operations with a Service Oriented Network Architecture (SONA) to unify network-based services such as security, mobility and location-based services. ICB Bank has also implemented the Cisco Network Admission Control (NAC) solution.

European Markets:

Free (Iliad Group), the leading triple-play over broadband operator in Europe, doubled the capacity of its Cisco-based IP Next-Generation Network in a drive to enhance the quality of experience for its more than 2.5 million subscribers. The operation was completed without any interruption to subscriber services.

Norsk Tipping AS, the state-owned national lottery in Norway, installed the Cisco Digital Media System, a comprehensive digital signage solution for approximately 4,000 point-of-sale locations nationwide to deliver timely and targeted marketing communications to customers. The new Cisco high-definition video solution has contributed to reductions in the annual cost of printed marketing material to retailers and is creating a solid foundation for in-store advertising sales and interactive gaming.

EADS Defence & Security and Cisco will cooperate to bring to market network centric IP solutions for highly secure integrated communications across armed forces and civil defense. A memorandum of understanding underpins collaboration in defense and communications systems, C4I systems, battlefield mobility, homeland security, public safety and professional mobile radio.

Accent Jobs For People is Cisco's 200th Digital Media System customer. The company is using Cisco Digital Signage to communicate in real-time in a dynamic and user-friendly way with employees, job candidates and clients across 70 of its offices.

Emerging Markets:

Erste Bank Serbia implemented Cisco's Financial Services Intelligent Network Solution and deployed a new unified voice, data and video network, including 850 Internet Protocol phones, that will help accelerate the bank's growth by connecting all of its 62 branch offices in Serbia.

Cisco deepened its commitment to economic transformation in South Africa with a broad-based Black Economic Empowerment Initiative, as part of its vision of participating in the socio-economic transformation of emerging markets. It also created a $500,000 "Cisco scholars" program with the African Leadership Academy.

T-Com Montenegro (Crnogorski Telekom) will launch Internet Protocol television (IPTV) service in late 2007 using an extensive array of Scientific Atlanta® products with an expected delivery capacity of up to 60 channels of standard-definition (SD) digital programming.

Polish Medical Air Rescue implements Cisco Network Admission Control (NAC) to help improve care for severely ill and injured patients and deliver more efficient and secure services.

Japan:

Hiroshima Synchrotron Radiation Center (HiSOR) implemented "Cisco NAC Appliance (Clean Access)" to support a quarantine network which evaluates the security status of client devices in the network, and provides a secure environment that visiting researchers can use.

Techindex employed a virtualized solution for its data center business infrastructure. Based on the Cisco Catalyst 6500 series, the infrastructure can virtually allocate service resources to each server and application system in a single management domain.

Following is a significant partner announcement from Q1 FY08:

The new Industry Solutions Partner Network will engage, enable and reward a global community of channel partners, application providers and device manufacturers to collaborate and deliver industry-specific solutions that address the business needs of customers.