Tandberg Television Signing OffTandberg Television Signing Off

6:15 PM -- It may not carry the weight of Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO)'s decision to drop the Scientific Atlanta brand two years after it bought the cable equipment maker, but Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC)'s getting ready to do the same to Tandberg Television early next year.

Tandberg Television's Staffan Pehrson told customers via email this week that Ericsson's phasing out the Tandberg Television name as of Jan. 25, 2010, roughly two years after it first announced it would pay $1.4 billion for the company, outbidding Arris Group Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRS). (See Ericsson Offers $1.4B for Tandberg TV.)

With that all but done, Tandberg is rapidly becoming an extinct video technology animal -- in name, anyway. Cisco recently upped its bid for Tandberg ASA (OSE: TAA), the telepresence company, for $3.4 billion. If Cisco's successful, there's more than a good chance it will drop the Tandberg brand, too. (See Cisco Tries Again With Tandberg.)

— Jeff Baumgartner, Site Editor, Cable Digital News