Cisco Expands Small Businesses To Connect, Secure and Communicate More Effectively

Cisco today announced that it is expanding the industry's broadest portfolio of small business technology with new solutions to help small businesses connect their business to the world, secure their network and communicate more effectively. New technologies include a family of energy-efficient, unmanaged switches and a wireless virtual private network (VPN) firewall that small businesses can easily install themselves, as well as customer premises equipment that can enable service providers to deliver high-value services to small businesses. Cisco is also launching a Web-based Small Business University, where partners can find all the tools and training materials necessary to develop a successful small business practice, and two new local-language Small Business Support Communities to help partners better support their small business customers.

KEY FACTS / HIGHLIGHTS

Broad Technology Portfolio : Cisco has expanded the industry's broadest portfolio of small business solutions with new technologies to help small businesses connect, secure and communicate. New technologies include:

• Easy-to-Install Switches: The Cisco 100 Series Switches are a new series of
  energy-efficient, unmanaged switches that provide wire-speed Fast Ethernet and
  Gigabit Ethernet connectivity for small business offices, simply and affordably,
  right out of the box.
  • The Cisco 100 Series Switches are the first series in a broad new portfolio
    of feature-rich, affordable Cisco Small Business Switches. Other series will be
    announced over the next year.
• Easy-to-Use Wireless Firewall: The Cisco RV 120W Wireless-N VPN Firewall allows small
  businesses to affordably connect to the world in a highly secure environment and
  provides business-class features for small businesses with 20 or fewer
  employees.
  • The device includes built-in high-speed 802.11n wireless access as well as
    the ability to link multiple offices and remote employees to the business
    network with a high degree of security via VPN.
  • The device also allows the business to segment the network to control access
    to files and applications and enable secure wireless guest access.
• Flexible Customer Premises Equipment for Service Providers: The Cisco SRP 526W and SRP 527W Services Ready Platforms
  are new ADSL2+ models in the Cisco SPR 500 Series of affordable customer
  premises equipment that enable service providers to deliver data, voice and
  other services to small businesses to help them connect, secure and communicate.
  • Demand for managed services is expected to grow dramatically over the next
    few years. The Cisco SRP 500 Series Services Ready Platforms can help providers
    seize this opportunity and deliver high-value services cost effectively.
  • The devices are also part of Cisco Hosted Small Business Communications, a
    complete, reliable, cost-effective customer premises equipment solution that
    enables service providers to deliver hosted IP telephony services to small
    businesses.

Support and Services : Cisco has launched new and revised tools, training offerings and support communities to help partners sell and deliver technology solutions that build customer loyalty.

• Cisco has introduced a new Web-based Small Business University, which
  includes new and updated partner tools and training offerings to help partners
  further develop their sales, technical and business knowledge. This
  one-stop-shop brings all the tools and trainings that partners need to build a
  successful small business practice to one central place. New and