Reaction to Cisco’s Acquisition of Tandberg
October 7, 2009
On the recent news of Cisco’s acquisition of Tandberg, I wouldn’t want to break tradition and stay silent, what fun is there in that? I won’t deny its big news for the videoconferencing industry and as with any announcement there is an upside and a downside. To start on a positive note, and of course with a slightly selfish and possibly smug comment – I couldn’t help but sit back in my chair, look at the wonderful view of NY harbor from my office and breathe a sigh of contentment because when I read the news, my very first thought was wow, the small industry that I jumpstarted way back in 1999 has just been truly validated! This acquisition has helped prove telepresence is more than just a fad, it is here to stay. Not that i didnt know this already or that my customers haven’t told me continually how Teliris Telepresence has changed their business, saved them money and dramatically increased productivity. WE already knew this, but now EVERYONE can see it as clearly as I always have.
Now for the BIG BUT…(you knew I couldn’t spend this entire commentary being positive, right?). The big glaring hole here is in the details of this acquisition. This not only shows Cisco’s inability to innovate but also highlights the many inconsistencies between the two companies that will take years to reconcile. Cisco and Tandberg are stuck in the heavy, monolithic, high priced ‘video mainframe’ infrastructure mode and will find it very difficult to compete with Teliris 6G – a light software-based approach to telepresence. How can Cisco and Tandberg reconcile their ideas of how telepresence should work? Cisco’s switched video versus Tandberg’s MCU-centric view will present serious integration and migration challenges for both Cisco and Tandberg customers. Will Tandberg customers migrate to Cisco, or Cisco customers to Tandberg? Either way this will not be simple, especially when you consider the required change in direction which will inevitably conflict with promises both companies have made to their customers. Lastly, how far we have come since the days of Cisco’s declaration that there was no need for interoperability. With this acquisition, it will have to become front and center! Not to rub it in, but Teliris started interoperating way back in 2007 and made it clear that it would be of ultra importance. Of course, this is just a short synopsis of my thoughts, so click on my video and get all the details.
