Cisco the king of vendors

Cisco has pipped arch rivals Juniper Networks and Alcatel-Lucent for the prized AT&T super router contract to deal with the surging demand for video and other rich media applications. The deal is estimated by analysts to be worth in excess of $500 million over several years.

Cisco announced AT&T had selected its CRS-1 router to upgrade the telco's global IP backbone. The super routers are more than seven feet high and manage huge volumes of traffic at network junction points and are part of AT&T's announced upgrade to 40gbs for its core network.

The win cements Cisco's position as the leading IP vendor in the U.S. market and also confirms the troubles Alcatel-Lucent is having post merger to build market growth following the consolidation of the U.S. telco majors. 

Cisco has also ridden the boom in internet telephony, with Comcast and Time Warner both using Cisco gateway boxes to support the sharp increase in digital voice products. Despite its IP strength Cisco stock has struggled as the market has downgraded companies with exposure to the troubled telco sector

For more:
- Cisco's AT&T announcement
- AT&T Enlists Cisco To Bolster Network Amid Traffic Boom Report

Related articles:
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- Microsoft and Cisco make nice Report