02 April 2007
Microsoft's worst nightmare is about to become a reality. And guess what? It's not Google's search engine franchise or Google apps. It's Cisco's no-holds-barred effort to build a digital home business with a broad and deep line of connected home products, set to debut in the fall.
The linchpin of the lineup is a new Cisco Linksys user interface more than two years in development. It's powered by a ringlike device consumers point and click with to access a wide range of content.
Cisco, which is boosting that effort with its planned WebEx acquisition, likely will shed some light on the consumer/small-business assault at its Partner Summit this week in Las Vegas. Linksys gave a sneak peek of the big bang lineup with a look at the new Ring interface and wireless media player a la Apple TV at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year.