BANGALORE, India -- 11 January 2000 -- Cisco Systems, Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, has appointed Microland, the leading e.Services provider in India, as its first Professional Services Provider in the country, a move that will enhance its ability to provide service provider and enterprise customers with service and support in the New World of Communications.
As Cisco's Professional Services Provider partner, Microland will implement and support high-availability networks, offering the full range of Cisco's service and support offerings besides the ability to deliver professional services such as Program and Product Management, WAN Audit, LAN Assessment and Consulting Services. Customers will benefit from these services through reduced planning and design time, faster network implementation, enhanced network performance, improved overall network availability and reduced cost of ownership.
"As service providers and enterprises transition to the integrated data, voice and video infrastructure of the New World of Communications, professional services will be a key ingredient in their network plans. Microland, which has the benefit of having been a Cisco system integrator partner previously, has built itself into a credible force in the Internet industry in India," said Anil Batra, President, India and SAARC Region, Cisco Systems (India) Pvt. Ltd.
"We are delighted to partner with Cisco Systems and our partnership will deliver an unprecedented level of service in the Indian market space," said Pradeep Kar, Group Chairman, Microland Limited. "With our expertise in the networking space and also our new focus on e.Business, we are confident of providing solutions that will significantly contribute to the customer's business by reducing implementation time and cost."
Cisco's Professional Service Offerings
Program and Product Management assists customers in the planning, implementation and management of a networking project, with the professional services provider acting as liaison between the engineering organisation and management staff for the purpose of reporting and providing recommendations.
WAN Audit and LAN Assessment provides a "check-up" on the health of a customer's network. These services enable customers to anticipate potential network downtime and plan for future growth. Detailed information regarding system configuration, resource allocation and bandwidth usage are among the services provided in WAN Audit. LAN Assessment enables users to take inventory of all network hardware and firmware.
Finally, customers can adapt Consulting Services to their specific network requirements. This could be project engineering and management expertise or an individualised package that meets specific customer needs.
About Microland Limited
Microland is positioned today as a leading "e.Services provider" providing integrated services comprising of networking services, software development services and education services to global as well as domestic customers, who are leveraging the Internet for competitive business advantage. Microland's clients include leading e.Services companies including Amazon.com (the world's largest online retail store), major financial institutions, new Internet start-ups, as well as large corporations adapting their businesses to take advantage of e-businesses.
Group Microland is a leading player in the Internet economy with the group comprising of Planetasia.com (www.planetasia.com), India's largest Internet business solutions company, ITspace.com (www.ITspace.com), India's technology portal, as well as Micromedia (www.micromedia-india.com), India's first internet media entity.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Cisco news and information are available at http://www.cisco.com.
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