Cisco's AVVID appetite

By Kevin Tolly
Network World, 10/04/99

Ordinarily, the announcement of a voice/video/data convergence strategy is not particularly noteworthy. The usual pattern with such announcements is that once the fanfare dies out, the architects behind the endeavor rarely realize their dream.

But Cisco's recent announcement of Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data (AVVID), the company's wide-ranging plan for integrating a hodgepodge of packet telephony and other technologies, is different. More than outlining a passive strategy, Cisco is taking action. And when the Cisco juggernaut moves, net managers and competing vendors had better take heed.

Early in the decade, Cisco first set its sights on the campus infrastructure. Cisco bridges, routers and, eventually, switches almost completely replaced the venerable 3174 cluster controllers that provided SNA connectivity to thousands of campus-based users.

Once that job was finished, Cisco concentrated on IBM's last stronghold - the mainframe channel. While that was a difficult battle, Cisco made inroads - and gobs of money - selling 7500s outfitted with Channel Interface Processors (CIP) as replacements for aging IBM 3745/6 front-end processors.

That victory was made complete a few weeks ago when IBM raised the white flag and effectively sold its network hardware business to Cisco.

With virtually all the legacy data hardware infrastructure already displaced by Cisco gear, what is left to feed the Cisco beast? The PBX. Next to the HVAC system, it's the biggest, most expensive piece of gear left. That makes it the perfect (and probably only) target left for Cisco.

What should make network managers sit up and take notice is the steps Cisco is taking internally to ensure that this revolutionary fire will spread throughout the land. Cisco is, of course, following its successful acquisition approach - Selsius and Calista add key elements to Cisco's arsenal. More important, though, is the forced march Cisco is making internally to move post haste to IP telephony.

At Network World's Convergence Showdown at NetWorld+Interop '99 Atlanta, a senior Cisco representative told the audience that John Chambers has decreed that all Cisco employees will soon do their talking using IP phones. (Please hold while we reboot the Catalyst.)

Without further prodding, he added that Cisco would not be renewing its leases on the Lucent PBXs that the company currently uses.

This is a bold move by Cisco. If it fails, we all get a good laugh and will likely not have to worry about convergence for a good long time. If it succeeds, and it might, network managers might find themselves joining a forced march to convergence.

Such is Cisco's power - and need for growth - that if Chambers can convince customer executives that convergence worked for Cisco, we may all find convergence placed at the top of our priority lists by nontechnical company executives convinced that they are making the right "business" decision.

Who needs a killer app when you have the power of Cisco?