Cisco Systems took steps to expand its service-provider business with the announcement that it will acquire ClearAccess, a provider of wholesale network-management solutions. According to Cisco, the purchase will bolster its Prime network-management-software portfolio with a suite of home-networking solutions. This is part of a growing new market generically referred to as the “Connected Home,” which in this case includes monitoring and managing bandwidth usage, parental controls, diagnostics and analytics. The ClearAccess system provides the ability to manage devices using the Broadband Forum’s TR-069 specification.
The acquisition is expected to be completed this summer- in the fourth quarter of Cisco’s fiscal year 2012. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Cisco is not acquiring the hardware portion of ClearAccess’ business, which comprises its Smart RG Gateways. That business will be spun off as SmartRG Inc. Upon the close of the buyout, the ClearAccess software products and 22 employees will be merged into the Cisco Network Management Technology Group. Fifteen employees from ClearAccess will be joining SmartRG.
ClearAccess, based in based in Vancouver, Washington, is a privately held company that provides software to cable operators and telcos for provisioning and managing residential gateways, cable modems and other devices. Its customers include Rogers Communications, Primus Telecommunications and Illinois-based Consolidated Communications. Investors in the company, founded in 2005, include Montlake Capital, DFJ Frontier, Blade Ventures and Oregon Angel Fund. The flagship product from ClearAccess is ClearVision. The company also provides content filtering, managed Wi-Fi and firewall services and time blocking.
“The ClearAccess acquisition reinforces Cisco’s commitment to service providers by accelerating software architectural advancements in mobility, cloud and managed devices, and video,” Jamie Lerner, vice president and general manager of service provider applications in the Cisco Network Management Technology Group. “ClearAccess provides a critical technology that will advance Cisco’s mission to offer service providers a complete set of tools to manage their networks, within the home and across any connected device, amid the ongoing proliferation in network traffic,” added Mr. Lerner.
This acquisition aligns with Cisco’s strategic initiatives to build software platforms and drive business and technology architecture, and it complements Cisco’s end-to-end portfolio and capabilities for service provider customers, especially those selling triple play services to residential subscribers.
For additional information, please see:
http://newsroom.cisco.com/press-release-content?type=webcontent&articleId=766884
6 replies on “Cisco to Boost Home-Networking Portfolio with ClearAccess Purchase”
Wonder how this deal relates to Cisco’s recent plan to acquire NDS, which specializes in software for video set-top boxes? Cisco announced it would pay $5B for that Israeli based company, which was as much as Oracle paid to acquire Sun Micro! Is there a synergy between Cisco’s Scientific Atlanta, NDS and ClearAccess?
A DoS attack prevented the above comment to be correctly attributed to me & I can’t edit it at this time.
Interested in readers opinion of whether there is synergy amongst the 3 video companies Cisco has or will acquire- Sc Atlanta, NDS and ClearAccess.
Thanks, Alan
In my few conversations with and about Clear Access, I was impressed that they were a leader in TR-069 software. Operators of all size need the TR-069 capability in order to reach into the home network and monitor and control devices beyond the demarcation point, if they are going to reduce the cost and enhance their customer support. This seems like a good purchase for Cisco that will complement their other purchases.
Ken, As TR-069 is a standard, can’t anyone implement it or does it take special software skills? Seems like lots of small companies belonging to the Broadband Forum are advertising their implementations, e.g. Axiros, Incognito, etc. What makes ClearAccess’ TR-069 stand out?
List of Broadband Forum members is at: http://www.broadband-Forum.org/memberlist/members.php
Hi Anil,
I am not certain I am qualified to say whey ClearAccess is any better than anyone else with regards to TR-069 software. Having said that, folks I know who are with independent telcos have said good things about the ClearAccess product. Again, this is an unscientific sample, but I was left with a positive impression of the ClearAccess product from those who used it. Thanks.
Huawei Technologies is pushing into markets dominated by Cisco Systems, according to IBD. Huawei is targeting financial institutions, health care organizations and other enterprise customers in North America, where Cisco is at its strongest.
“A tip-off that Cisco Systems (CSCO) is growing wary of Huawei came this month when Cisco CEO John Chambers reportedly said Huawei doesn’t always “play by the rules” in areas such as computer security and intellectual property protection. Chambers said this at “Viewpoints West,” an event hosted by the Wall Street Journal, which reported the comments.”
http://news.investors.com/article/609425/201204261848/huawei-challenging-cisco-systems-in-enterprise.htm?src=HPLNews