Cisco (CSCO)

[iam802]

Cisco acquires Tidal Software

http://pr-usa.net/index.php?option=com_ ... &Itemid=95

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) today announced its intent to acquire privately held Tidal Software, Inc. Based in Palo Alto, Calif., and Houston, Tidal Software is the creator of intelligent application management and automation solutions that will advance Cisco's data center strategy by enhancing product and service delivery offerings.

"Cisco believes the network has become the logical platform to manage and maintain mission-critical applications," said Gary Moore, senior vice president of Advanced Services at Cisco. "With the acquisition of Tidal Software, Cisco will accelerate its ability to help customers optimize the performance of their business applications and automate operational best practices in real time, which will lead to significantly reduced operational costs."

Tidal Software's intelligent solutions will bolster Cisco's data center strategy by providing timely, accurate and cost-efficient management and automation of application performance across entire business operations, from the server through the network to the desktop. The acquisition will also create significant opportunities for Cisco and its partners through the delivery of partner-led services, leveraging Cisco's application management capabilities.

Cisco is pioneering the development of next-generation data centers that unleash the full power of virtualization. It recently unveiled its vision of Unified Computing, an evolutionary data center architecture which unites compute, network, storage access, and virtualization resources in a single cohesive system.

The Tidal Software acquisition exemplifies Cisco's "build, buy and partner" innovation strategy to move quickly into new markets and capture key market transitions. Under the terms of the agreement, Cisco will pay approximately $105 million in cash and retention-based incentives.

Upon the close of the acquisition, the Tidal Software team will become part of the Cisco Advanced Services organization. The acquisition is subject to various standard closing conditions and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of Cisco's fiscal year 2009. The acquisition will be accounted for in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

......

[winston]

Straight talk unlike some of the other CEOs, who are bouncing off the wall with optimism ...

Cisco wary on recovery, Q4 beats Street view

NEW YORK - Cisco Systems Chief Executive John Chambers said it was too soon to call a recovery and forecast another drop in quarterly revenue, sending its shares 3 per cent lower.

The outlook from the world's largest network equipment maker overshadowed stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

While the revenue outlook was within estimates, the downbeat comments from the CEO came amid growing expectations that the global economic slowdown may be on the mend, and that companies will again invest in technology equipment.

Cisco, which makes routers and other network equipment, said it expects fiscal first-quarter revenue to fall by 15 to 17 per cent from a year earlier. That was in line with expectations for a drop of about 16 per cent, according to Reuters Estimates.

Tighter credit and a focus on expenses have made it harder for Cisco customers to invest in big-ticket technology equipment. Cisco's high-end router, CRS-1, for example, can cost as much as US$1 million each.

Cisco is also one of the first large-cap technology companies to report results that include sales from most of July, making it an early indicator of trends in technology spending.

The US company reported an 18 per cent fall in fiscal fourth-quarter revenue as customers held back spending on network equipment.

Mr Chambers told analysts on a conference call that it was too soon to call a recovery, despite 'positive signs' in the economy and Cisco's orders.

Just a tad

Revenue in the fiscal fourth quarter ended July 25 fell to US$8.5 billion from US$10.4 billion in the year-earlier period.

That was in line with Wall Street's average forecast, according to Reuters Estimates. The company had forecast a fall of around 17 per cent to 20 per cent.

Its profit was marginally better than expected.

Quarterly net profit fell to US$1.1 billion, or 19 cents a share, from US$2.0 billion, or 33 cents a share, a year ago. Earnings excluding items were 31 cents, above the average analyst forecast of 29 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Mr Chambers was once seen as one of Silicon Valley's most enthusiastic cheerleaders, but his recent comments have been somewhat cautious.

He said a year ago that most customers expected a turnaround by the end of 2008, and that Cisco was setting its budget accordingly. But on Wednesday, he said he saw positive trends in orders but it was too early to declare a recovery.

Shares in Cisco initially rose about 3 per cent after its quarterly results slightly beat expectations, climbing from a close of US$22.17 on Nasdaq.

After Mr Chambers' comments on the call, the stock backpedaled and turned negative.

Mr Chambers said the company was done restructuring and was now shifting its focus to growth. He said the company's headcount reduction slightly exceeded its previously announced target of about 1,500 to 2,000 jobs. -- REUTERS

[iam802]

This news was out 2 days back.

Maybe it is because the market is falling and little attention is paid to it. Another reason is the acquisition size is small. However, I think the significance is huge.

From Reuters:

Cisco Systems, Inc. Announces Agreement To Acquire DVN (Holdings) Limited Set Top Box Business
Monday, 2 Nov 2009 06:30pm EST

Cisco Systems, Inc. announced a definitive agreement to acquire the set top box business of DVN (Holdings) Limited. Listed in Hong Kong with major operations in China. Under the terms of the agreement, Cisco will pay up to $44.5 million for the set top box business of DVN. Of this amount, approximately $17.5 million will be paid upfront, with an additional maximum amount of $27 million to be paid over four years based on the achievement of specific sales milestones. The acquisition is expected to close in the first half of calendar year 2010. In addition to the acquisition, Cisco has entered into a go to market alliance with the remainder of the DVN organization which will continue to be led by current DVN CEO Terry Lui in order to utilize the company’s middleware and advanced applications as well as integration and support services. The alliance will provide joint customers with unparalleled end to end capabilities through the evolution from basic digital broadcast to advanced interactive services.

[iam802]

Generally, when I have a bullish Tenkan sen Kijun sen cross, I would have follow my chart and trade accordingly.

However, CSCO chart is showing 2 possible trends at the same time.



From the chart, we can see the following :

1. As shown in the yellow highlighted area, there is a Tenkan sen – Kijun sen bullish cross on Feb 18 just below the kumo.

2. This signifies a weak bullish signal.

3. The price today is trading right at on top of the kumo and we can see that there is a resistance at 24.40

4. So, we could either bet that the bullish trend will continue or we can bet that it will not.

5. In my case, my bet is that it will not break 24.40 . This is further supported from the fact stochastic is showing overbought signals for CSCO.

6. Also, on the business front, Cisco will not be renewing their partnership with HP come this April. And HP was reported to be brining in US$1B business for CSCO. Somewhere, someone from CSCO needs to be able to fill this gap.

7. I don't think Cisco transformation will be completed this year. It will take another 2-3 years before the entire company is aligned.

[iam802]

(flyonthewall)
Cisco announced a major advancement in Internet networking -- the Cisco CRS-3 Carrier Routing System-CRS -- designed to serve as the foundation of the next-generation Internet and set the pace for the astonishing growth of video transmission, mobile devices and new online services through this decade and beyond. With more than 12 times the traffic capacity of the nearest competing system, the Cisco CRS-3 is designed to transform the broadband communication and entertainment industry by accelerating the delivery of compelling new experiences for consumers, new revenue opportunities for service providers, and new ways to collaborate in the workplace.

[iam802]

Cisco Jumps into Tablet Race

http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/market ... blet-race/

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO: 21.62, -0.8, -3.57%) said Tuesday that it plans to release its own tablet, which will be targeted to the business community.

The Cisco Cius, as it will be called, will get the networking-equipment maker into the tablet race, and positions the product against Apple’s (AAPL: 256.08, -12.22, -4.55%) popular iPad.

The device uses the Google (GOOG: 454.26, -17.87, -3.78%) Android operating system, weighs 1.15 lbs and has the capability to stream HD video and real-time video.

Other features include multi-party conferencing capabilities, email, browsing , messaging and file sharing using cloud storage.

“This platform can transform how healthcare professionals advance patient care, how retailers deliver service experiences to consumers, or how universities deliver world-class education to their students,” said Tony Bates, senior vice president and general manager of enterprise, commercial and small business. “Best of all, Cisco Cius offers IT functions a way to dramatically lower the cost-per-user of provisioning those new experiences."

The company said customer trials of the device will begin in the third quarter of this year and projected the Cius to go on sale in the first quarter of next year.

Shares of Cisco fell 80 cents or 3.57% on Tuesday to close at $21.62. The stock was down another 11 cents after the market closed.

These are not 'new products' per se. The industry have such gadgets for a long time.

What makes it different is form factor and how the backend is supporting this.

Will it adds to Cisco revenue? I think it will.

[iam802]

On The Call: Cisco CEO on the economy

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financia ... HIE980.htm

Revenue for the latest quarter fell short of analyst expectations at Cisco Systems Inc., and CEO John Chambers said customers were expecting a slowdown in the economic recovery.

On a conference call with analysts, Chambers was asked to explain the revenue shortfall.

QUESTION: What we are seeing, is it something that's specific to Cisco or is it more the economy, and signs that we're entering into another dip in information technology spending?

ANSWER: I hope I'm here many times apologizing for Cisco's (revenue) growth only being 27 percent, and growth next quarter only being 18 to 20 percent, above our long-term goals of 12 to 17 percent.

In terms of Cisco-specific, we feel very good ... My confidence has never been higher. And candidly, when you talk to customers they say the exact same thing, be they service providers, enterprise et cetera.

In terms of the economy, it's mixed signals. ... The majority of my customers believe the economy is going to continue just going slowly going up, but very slowly. Not what they would have said even just three to four months ago in terms of their expectations.

If we were to poll them I'm sure the average comes in at about 2 percent growth for the second half of the year. Doesn't mean that those customers are right, just that that's what on their mind in terms of their spending pattern. We're not making a call on the economy going down, I think the probabilities on a double dip, or whatever you want to call it, are relatively low.

[iam802]

More video content play


==
Cisco Buys Online Video Distributor ExtendMedia For $80 Million

http://paidcontent.org/article/419-cisc ... tendmedia/

Cisco (NSDQ: CSCO) is in the process of acquiring ExtendMedia, a company that specializes in managing online video content. The space has seen some consolidation lately and with the growth of mobile video, the rate of acquisitions is likely to increase rapidly. The terms of the deal were undisclosed. Cisco has recently completed a number of large acquisitions in the video space, including last year’s $3.41 billion purchase of Tandberg and the $590 million deal for Flip camera manufacturer Pure Digital before that. Boston, Mass.-based ExtendMedia has previously raised about $33 million in venture capital.

..

[iam802]

Rumours : Cisco May Be Making A Run For Skype

http://techcrunch.com/2010/08/29/cisco- ... TechCrunch)

Cisco has made an offer to acquire Skype before they complete their IPO process, says one of our more reliable sources. We have not been able to confirm this rumor one way or another via other sources, which isn’t surprising. A company in lock down during the IPO process is usually even more tight lipped than normal.

But if true this would be one very big acquisition. Skype insiders are hoping for an out of the gate valuation of $5 billion or so, we’ve heard. Presumably Cisco would have to bidding in that range to make it interesting.

Google was also rumored to be sniffing around Skype, but antitrust concerns may have persuaded them not to make an actual offer.

[kennynah]

cisco plans to pay dividend....