IBM to spend $1B prizing Cisco's convergence customers away

Watch out Cisco, IBM is after your lunch. According to a snippet in Monday's MercuryNews.com, Big Blue plans to "spend more than $1 billion over three years to develop software and services for handling phone calls, messages and videoconferencing online." The investment is a significant increase in what IBM is currently spending on collaboration technologies, Mike Rhodin, head of IBM's Lotus division is cited as saying. IBM is targeting Cisco and Microsoft customers with the results of its big spending plans.

Would IBM make it to the top of your list for unified communications suppliers?

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