In talking to Cisco partners about the networking giant's plan to acquire video conferencing big-leaguer Tandberg, one thing becomes very clear.
Most of these guys already sell Tandberg - a lot.
It makes perfect sense that they do. Cisco's Telepresence video conferencing solution, which I've used and will vouch is incredibly cool technology, is nonetheless the domain of only the largest corporations. We're talking Fortune 500-level customers, who can foot the six-figure tab.
Then there's Cisco's other video collaboration offering, WebEx. WebEx is ubiquitous on the desktop, familiar to almost anyone in corporate life who participates in online meetings. But it is not bonafide video conferencing.
The chasm between WebEx and Telepresence leaves a lot of middle ground uncovered in Cisco's portfolio. That's where Tandberg has fit in, arming Cisco partners with a set of solid video conferencing products that can be sold into mid-sized customers.
