Fergie's Tech Blog

Cisco Targets the Living Room

Can Cisco Systems, a technology giant best known for making the routers and switches that drive traffic around the Internet, capture the hearts, minds and remote controls of television viewers?

That's the multi-billion dollar question now facing the Silicon Valley firm. In one of the largest acquisitions in its 22-year history, Cisco spent $6.8 billion about six weeks ago to buy Scientific Atlanta, a company that makes cable TV set-top boxes.

For the deal to pay off, Cisco needs to anticipate how viewers want to watch TV, and then sell its vision to cable TV operators, to big phone companies like Verizon (Research) and AT&T (Research) that are getting into the TV business and, ultimately, to viewers.

"Our goal," says Cisco CEO John Chambers, "is to be the key player in the home."

posted by Fergie @ 4/12/2006 06:32:00 AM