Smartphones killed the video star
Just as the latest mobile phone to be able to record 1080p video is launched, Cisco has announced a restructure of its consumer business, which includes closing down its Flip business.
Cisco only acquired the stand-alone, entry-level digital video camera company a couple of years ago, but in that time the functionality available on smartphones has progressed rapidly, and most of them can deliver much of what the Flip could now.
This announcement comes hot on the heels of an internal memo from John Chambers - the Cisco CEO - stressing that Cisco needs to get its act together and refocus on doing what it does best. That doesn't include making consumer products, it seems.
As well as getting rid of Flip, Cisco is refocusing its home networking business (Linksys) on more profitable areas and aligning it more closely to its home video platform offering. It's also integrating its Umi tablet into the TelePresence division, as well as some other video technologies. In short, this looks like a major reining of Cisco's consumer-facing video operations.
"We are making key, targeted moves as we align operations in support of our network-centric platform strategy," said John Chambers, Cisco chairman and CEO. "As we move forward, our consumer efforts will focus on how we help our enterprise and service provider customers optimize and expand their offerings for consumers, and help ensure the network's ability to deliver on those offerings."
