Cisco is continuing down the path toward a major consumer products launch, apparently hiring a PR firm this week to manage its push into the home. That move follows its recent acquisition of Moto, a consumer products design firm, ostensibly to put a little bit of “Apple” into its consumer product design.
Details are very scant at this point (somewhat surprising for Cisco, which lately has taken to counting down the days to major product launches).
What could it have up its sleeve? Here’s five guesses reading the Cisco tea leaves:
1. Better looking, more functional consumer routers and Wi-Fi boxes. A little Dullsville, but Cisco is already down this route with its Valet line. There is an opportunity, though, to add more capabilities to those boxes, including turning them into a VoIP box or adding femto-style voice/data capabilities.
2. Telepresence for the home. Again, Cisco already has this in the pipeline, announcing its plans earlier this year and trials with Verizon and France Telecom. Word that it plans to sell a $500 telepresence system for the home broke last month, though both the costs and “network effect” problem — who will consumers videoconference with exactly? — could limit the opportunity.
3. Remote energy automation solution. Cisco’s big smart energy push recently came in its core router market with new smart grid boxes — but it’s been eyeing opportunities in the home, as well. Smart energy start-up Greenwave was founded by ex-Cisco and Linksys employees. Certainly, Cisco sees the same opportunities for itself.
4. A home automation uber remote control. Energy management could be just the leading wedge in a bigger-picture home automation push. Such systems have typically been very expensive and high end, but if Cisco can leverage the mass-market economics of its home router business it could help define a more affordable product in this important space.
5. An over-the-top video box. There are certainly over-the-top TV box players ripe for the picking (and we all know how Cisco likes to do acquisitions). With Google moving strongly into this market via Google TV, Cisco wouldn’t be alone. But when it comes to new consumer opportunities, that’s typically not a bad thing anyway. Think this is too far from Cisco’s network roots? Consider it already acquired flip video camera-maker Pure Digital to fuel its home video ambitions.
Those are our ideas. Got any other thoughts about what yet-to-be-launched Cisco consumer products you may soon be using in your home?