Cisco Overtakes Riverbed As Leading Provider Under Consideration for WAN Data Compression and Acceleration Technologies, According to New Research from TheInfoPro

Business Wire, July 9, 2007

TheInfoPro's Wave 3 Networking Study finds that adoption of Wide Area Network (WAN) data compression and acceleration technologies is rapidly increasing, with the majority of enterprises looking to Cisco and Riverbed to be their providers.

NEW YORK -- TheInfoPro (TIP), www.theinfopro.net, an independent research network and leading supplier of market intelligence for the Information Technology (IT) industry, today announced that in a reversal from its Wave 2 Networking study, Cisco has assumed the position of lead "in plan" vendor over Riverbed - by a nearly two to one margin - for Enterprise organizations' WAN Data Compression and Acceleration technology needs. Packeteer, Expand Networks, Juniper, Blue Coat and F5 Networks were also mentioned as providers under consideration.

To view a rich media presentation of findings visit: http://www.brainshark.com/theinfopro/netwrkng_pr2

According to TIP's Wave 3 Networking Study - which details technology adoption trends and timeframes, management techniques, and vendor performance data for the Networking industry - within the next 12-15 months, over 50% of Fortune 1000 (F1000) and Midsize Enterprise (MSE) organizations anticipate having WAN data compression and acceleration technologies in use, potentially doubling the current adoption rate. Within those organizations that currently have WAN data compression and acceleration in use, spending on these technologies is expected to increase 39% - one of the largest jumps in spending among the data infrastructure segment. WAN data compression and acceleration technologies was Number 3 on TIP's technology Heat Index[TM], which gauges the immediacy of user needs and planned spending for each technology, coming in behind only 10Gigabit backbone upgrades and continuing adoption of SSL VPN. In comparison, the Wave 2 Study saw WAN data compression and acceleration technologies in the Number 10 spot.

"Within F1000 organizations, alone, there is a huge shift toward WAN data compression and acceleration adoption, with over 70% expecting to have them in use within the next 12-15 months. This jump in adoption is primarily due to the fact that enterprise organizations have come to realize that these solutions will continue to save them time and money month after month," said Bill Trussell, TIP's Managing Director of Networking Research. "Most of these organizations are looking to implement WAN data compression and acceleration technologies to solve domestic remote office WAN performance issues, as well as improve data transfer times and reduce delivery errors. In addition, a return on investment is expected within 12 months of implementation."

About The Wave 3 Networking Study

Over 130 one-on-one interviews with F1000 and Midsize Enterprise (MSE) decision makers were completed for the Wave 3 Networking Study, providing commentary and insight on their Networking Technology Roadmaps, spending plans, and vendor performance, including ratings and detailed narrative commentary. Networking companies detailed in the study include: 8e6 Technologies, Ahnlab, AIMWorks, AirDefense, Alvarion, Apple, Aruba Networks, AT&T, Avaya, BEA, Blue Coat, BMC, Check Point, Cisco, Comstructure, Dell, Digium, Enterasys, Expand Networks, Extreme Networks, Extricom, F5 Networks, FireScope, Fluke Networks, Force10 Networks, Fortinet, Fortress Technologies, Foundry, Good Technology, HP, IBM, Invoice Insight, IronPort, Juniper, LeftHand Networks, McAfee, Meru, Met-Net, Microsoft, Mitel, Motorola, Nevis Networks, Nortel, NRG, PacketMotion, Palo Alto Networks, Qwest, Red Lambda, Redline, Riverbed, ShortTel, Siemens AG, Sourcefire, Sprint, Varonis, Vercuity, Verisign, Verizon, Vontu, Woven Systems, and Zix Corporation

About TheInfoPro

TheInfoPro (TIP) is the only independent research network for the Information Technology (IT) industry. Through a peer network of over 900 of the world's largest buyers and users of IT, including Citigroup, FedEx, McGraw-Hill, MasterCard, Pfizer, Vodafone, PepsiCo, JPMorgan Chase, and Harvard University, TIP delivers detailed budget, vendor performance and technology roadmap data without spin or bias. Known as the "voice of the customer," TIP helps IT professionals, technology providers, and institutional investors make sound decisions on technologies, vendor relationships and investments. Founded in 2002 by alumni of Gartner, Giga, EMC, and Bell Labs, TIP is headquartered in New York City, with offices in San Francisco, Chicago, and Boston. To learn more, visit www.theinfopro.net or call 1-212-672-0010.