Cisco will pounce if Moto appears mixed up

Phil Harvey, Editor-in-Chief

March 26, 2008

1 Min Read
Cisco & the Moto Split

12:15 PM -- In the cable equipment market, at least one analyst says that Motorola's breakup into two separate businesses will create a great opportunity for Cisco to sneak some set-top marketshare -- and get in a few digs at Moto while it figures out how to get comfortable in its new skin.

Inder Singh, an analyst at Lehman Brothers, wrote the following in a note distributed to clients this morning:

We believe the re-organization of Motorola's operating structure is likely to cause some internal disruption within Motorola's businesses, at least while key operating questions are addressed pending the spin-out (brand name, supply-chain rationalization, product roadmaps, and the finalization of new leadership for the business units, among others). Importantly, the business break-up will not happen overnight, and is expected to occur in 2009. In our view, this may create an opportunity (over the next 3 or 4 quarters) for Cisco to take incremental market share in the set-top box market.




Of course, Moto probably won't be as mixed up as Cisco will make it sound. And the breakup does give Moto a better shot at exploiting all the opportunities in the 4G equipment market. But that's the beauty of marketing, isn't it? The perception Cisco creates could become the reality of Moto's customers.

– Phil Harvey, The Editor, Light Reading



About the Author(s)

Phil Harvey

Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

Phil Harvey has been a Light Reading writer and editor for more than 18 years combined. He began his second tour as the site's chief editor in April 2020.

His interest in speed and scale means he often covers optical networking and the foundational technologies powering the modern Internet.

Harvey covered networking, Internet infrastructure and dot-com mania in the late 90s for Silicon Valley magazines like UPSIDE and Red Herring before joining Light Reading (for the first time) in late 2000.

After moving to the Republic of Texas, Harvey spent eight years as a contributing tech writer for D CEO magazine, producing columns about tech advances in everything from supercomputing to cellphone recycling.

Harvey is an avid photographer and camera collector – if you accept that compulsive shopping and "collecting" are the same.

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