The Cisco vs. Microsoft debate is being discussed again, this time at BusinessWeek, which has a story saying that although the two vendors work together to ensure their products interoperate – for their customers’ sakes – they are headed for a clash as they shift to networked computing.
As BW explains:
Now that Cisco has sold most of the routers that make up the foundation of this network, the action is moving to the services that run on it. That’s why Microsoft Corp. (MSFT ) is racing to make its PC programs more network-centric–and why, with far more experience and brand awareness for selling consumer and business software, it represents a threat to Cisco’s hegemony.
The two have a similar view of the future. They agree that networked software will help users pull down information with the device of their choosing and let them share it in ever more useful ways. The moment an inventory management program spots a parts shortage, the network could send alerts to whichever device is specified, be it PC, cell phone, or whatever. Then it could arrange a Web conference with the supplier.
How that happens is where Cisco and Microsoft diverge. Cisco thinks the key is to build most of these smarts into the network itself. That way, all programs and devices can work together, securely and glitch-free, based on one set of rules. This could make Cisco the reigning “platform” player, positioned as IBM (IBM ) was in the mainframe era or Microsoft when PCs were king.
BW says Cisco’s challenge is selling to business users in organizations, not just to network admins, and Microsoft’s challenge is getting corporates sold on its unified messaging strategy.
One reader to the story wrote:
My concern is about the hacker-proof security of network-centric application services. I tend to trust Cisco more than Microsoft to get that one right.
What are your concerns as the two vendors head for a clash?
