This is not your father's Cisco

I admit that I can't figure out the new Cisco Systems. It's making a big push into consumer electronics, as reported by CNET, adding things like home audio systems to its portfolio of products.

In tandem, it's building out a corporate collaboration story, complemented by things like telepresence solutions.

Does Cisco still provide networking equipment?

The answer, of course, is yes, but I wonder if the company risks diluting its brand as it makes forays into markets beyond networking. Perhaps that's the point.

Cisco has been exploring new markets in order to find new areas for growth, a normal pursuit by megacompanies, both in terms of new products and new geographies. This is what companies that measure their revenues in billions of dollars must do in order to grow by billions of dollars.

But I'm losing track of just what Cisco stands for, and I assume that I'm not alone in this. Even as the company grows, it needs to maintain a common theme to that growth. It says it "enables people to make powerful connections--whether in business, education, philanthropy, or creativity." That's a great mission, but how does home audio fit into that statement? Making powerful connections with one's music in one's home? I don't get it.

Sure, Cisco isn't alone in overstepping the boundaries of its mission. Microsoft's entry into the gaming market with the Xbox doesn't exactly fit into its implicit corporate mission to reduce the cost, and improve the ease of use, of software. Perhaps once a company reaches a certain heft, it doesn't need to have every division singing to the same sheet music.

Even so, I can't shake the feeling that Cisco still has a lot of room to grow within its general "networking everything" mission without getting into things like home audio. If you disagree, please let me know why.

[neogg]

Hi Matt, I believe this is a natural progression for Cisco as it is already a very diverse company with Networking, Storage, Software applications, Unified Communications, Virtualization, and many other areas.

This is no different than Apple starting as a computer hardware + OS vendor and branching out toother diverse product lines such as the IPod, IPhone, Itunes, Apple TV......

I believe that it is imperative for Cisco to be relevant to everyday people and Cisco brand through it's consumer focus. In the past, only IT professionals really understood the Cisco Products and business.

From my observation at the Cisco CES press conference, the home audio system is just one piece of a network based platform solutions architecture. Note, that another component of the solution is the Entertainment Operating System (EOS) platform for content delivery.

I don't believe that brand dilution is risk, but rather the opposite. The consumer strategy should bring relevance to the general public who watch the TV commercials, but still wonder how Cisco relates to them.

[fazalmajid]

I don't understand why journalists make a big deal of computer companies such as Apple, Gateway or now Cisco entering consumer electronics. It seems like another case of the tail wagging the dog - consumer electronics is a puny business compared to IT - the market cap of Cisco, Apple or HP dwarf that of Sony (and the latter does far more than just consumer electronics).

[mattglass]

if Cisco kept the same mentality that you are indirectly recommended, they would have gone the way of the dinosaurs - this is a smart, natural evolution for companies that want to maintain their leadership position.