CISCO SEEKS MORE PARTNERSHIPS WITH INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 (Bernama)-- Cisco, the leading networking solutions
supplier, aims to increase partnerships with Malaysian Internet service
providers in the areas of high-speed broadband and Metro Ethernet.

Sanjay Rohatgi, its director of operations for Asia, said despite the
current economic slowdown, there were still opportunities, especially for new
and innovative services.

"Money is still being spent on information technology in the Asia-Pacific
region," he said during a media telepresence Wednesday.

He expects Metro Ethernet, which incorporates voice, video and data in a
single network, to continue driving demand in the market next year.

Currently, Cisco has a strong market share for Metro Ethernet in Malaysia,
with major customers from among the Internet service providers, Rohatgi
said.

"The service providers segment represents almost 50 percent of Cisco's
total research and development spending," he said.

Rohatgi said while service providers may have to face the reality of
shrinking revenue due to the current economic conditions, there are still ways
to capture new revenue growth with innovative services.

"We see video as being the highly demanded killer service in the market,"
he said.

According to Rohatgi, the next revolution in the market is expected to be
eco-friendly, energy-saving Internet devices.

"Cisco itself is gearing towards being a green company as most of our
products such as routers are consuming less energy," he said.
-- BERNAMA