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Cisco to Kill Linksys Brand Name

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the alas-we-hardly-knew-ye dept.

Mav sent in this article that opens, "In a roundtable with the European press, John Chambers confirmed the "end of life" of the Linksys name, being replaced by the new and redesigned Cisco branding." He explains, "It will all come over time into a Cisco brand. The reason we kept Linksys' brand because it was better known in the US than even Cisco was for the consumer. As you go globally there's very little advantage in that."

19 of 262 comments (clear)

  1. So what happens now by 0racle · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Does the consumer stuff get better, or the enterprise stuff get worse?

    --
    "I use a Mac because I'm just better than you are."
    1. Re:So what happens now by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Enterprise stuff gets worse, consumer stuff stays shitty, prices of both go up.

    2. Re:So what happens now by woodchip · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The consumer stuff stays crappy but you pay 20% more for the cooler enterprise-level brand name.

    3. Re:So what happens now by toleraen · · Score: 5, Funny

      But at least I can finally make use of my CCNP when setting up my friend's wireless!

    4. Re:So what happens now by Short+Circuit · · Score: 5, Interesting

      My prediction: They'll attempt to build consumer-grade products using their enterprise technology. Because it won't be a perfect fit, you'll get quirks in the consumer-grade products. The consumer-grade division will make demands on the engineers behind the enterprise technology, to get a better-fitting product. The changes to the enterprise technologies will inadvertently cause problems in those technologies fitting in with their enterprise customers.

      Long story short, Cisco's enterprise products will lose market share to their competitors, and Cisco will do one of three things: 1) They'll pull out of the consumer market and focus on their enterprise customers. 2) They'll work to keep their enterprise and consumer product divisions separate, even if it means duplication of effort. 3) They'll do neither, decrease in value, and get bought up by an equity firm to be sold off for parts.

      --
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    5. Re:So what happens now by JimDaGeek · · Score: 5, Informative

      Huh? Are you for real? I have owned 3 Linksys-based Cable/DSL routers. The first two I purchased were based on Linux and I found them to work very well. When the two Linux-based Linksys routers I owned started to show their age, I was able to find a nice firmware update that has allowed me, as a paying customer, to enjoy my product for longer and add some more features.

      We all know that over-paid execs don't want customers ("consumers" to them) to enjoy products for any longer than need be. With that said, my latest "Linksys" cable/dsl router whivh is now Cisco branded and has a different non-Linux firmware just sucks. I have had issues with systems not getting an IP, wireless not working, slow network speeds on an 8 Mbps connection and all other crap. Switching back to an earlier Linksys model fixes things right up.

      --
      General, you are listening to a machine! Do the world a favor and don't act like one.
    6. Re:So what happens now by bcat24 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Actually, there are a lot more than two different versions of the WRT54G (and its sister the WRT54GS), with many different specifications. Here's a nearly complete list. I think it's missing a few of the newest versions, but they run the sucky VxWorks firmware, not Linux. (Some smart people have actually found a way to replace VxWorks with Linux, but the new models are so limited memory-wise that it really isn't useful.)

      Also, the WRT54GL is basically a WRT54G version 4. It's the safest bet if you want a new router to run custom Linux firmware on.

  2. One word - Inprise by tomhudson · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Borland - Inprise - Borland.

    1. Re:One word - Inprise by AntiNazi · · Score: 5, Funny

      If they wanted to, they could always do "Linksys by Cisco" - reaping the benefits of both brand names.

      They are already doing this. I have one sitting on the desk next to me. Doesn't say "by Cisco," but it has the Cisco Systems name/logo on it along side the Linksys one. Of course it is no longer functional. Good thing they are stackable so I can build lego like creations with the pile of dead Linksys devices.

  3. Cisco recently raised their brand awareness by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    With their iPhone breaking network at Duke.

  4. Should have been the plan from the beginning by bconway · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The uninformed user knows Cisco as "the network company that the Internet is connected with." Being able to put that logo on consumer-grade broadband and networking products would/will continue to be a huge boon for marketing. Had someone told me 10 years ago that I could own *my very own* full-featured Cisco router for under $100, I would've given a finger to sign up.

    --
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  5. Cisco is a stronger brand name by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I never even think of "Linksys" when I'm cooking.

  6. Shouldn't they have told me? by BrooksMarlin · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm a loyal customer who has used "linksys" as his nationwide wireless ISP for years. You'd think they would have sent out a letter to me or something.

    1. Re:Shouldn't they have told me? by Mr.+Underbridge · · Score: 5, Funny

      I'm a loyal customer who has used "linksys" as his nationwide wireless ISP for years. You'd think they would have sent out a letter to me or something.

      I certainly expect a press release on what they plan to use for the default WAP name, just to eliminate the guessing.

  7. Name Recognition by Gaspo · · Score: 5, Informative

    Cisco definately does have name recognition amongst most consumers. I work retail at a location which sells a lot of networking equipment, and whenever people ask "What's this Linksys stuff?", I always respond that they're a division of Cisco. Most of the time, that gets a favorable response, and I see a good bit of Linksys hardware leave the shelf because of that fact. A good move by Cisco.

  8. I'm not sure this is a good idea. by djh101010 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Don't get me wrong, I'm sure some reallllly smart marketing type people at Cisco ran some sort of study or something but, Linksys is consumer stuff. Cisco is enterprise stuff. Why dilute the brand for the enterprise stuff with consumer-grade equipment being associated with the name? Then again, where is there more money to be made? Not sure I have an answer but I'd be interested in hearing what others think about keeping the identity separate vs. combining them into one. Seems to me that "Linksys, a division of Cisco" would be as confidence-boosting as calling it Cisco, to the consumer. And I'd prefer to know that if something says Cisco, it's the real deal, not some 60 dollar best-buy grade piece of switchgear.

  9. Crap by DoofusOfDeath · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now people won't value my hard-earned Linksys Network Engineer certificate...

  10. Killed by Broadcom by jihadist · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The linksys brand was solid, until their routers started using broadcom chipsets, and immediately began to suck. Millions of people who would have bought linksys if their "computer literate" neighbor had been able to recommend it thus did not buy linksys. Cisco, being smart MBAs with the souls of paperclips, have now decided to use a brand everyone still trusts before they pump up sales and ditch the company to toolish shareholders before retiring to Cuba.

    --
    Anti-Globalism
  11. Black and Decker and DeWalt again? by calmdude · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Black and Decker used to be a trusted name amongst professionals until they started making toasters, household electric screwdrivers, etc. It eroded the brand. Black and Decker then took DeWalt, a brand that had languished against its competitors, but revitalized it by becoming the new name for Black and Decker's professional line of tools. Same tools, just a new name to get away from the consumer-grade equipment.

    The same may happen to Cisco. Sometimes it's best to have a "professional-grade" brand versus a consumer-grade one.

    Click here to learn a little bit more about the Black and Decker and DeWalt name game.