Cisco and Vsys to Develop Advanced Unified Communications Services for Latin American Companies

ACAPULCO, MEXICO--(Marketwire - September 2, 2009) -  Today at Networkers Mexico 2009, Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) announced that it will work with Vsys to develop a technological platform that will allow midsize and small companies to enjoy the benefits of Cisco® Unified Communications in the same way as large corporations and enable them to increase collaboration and productivity.

The goal of this collaboration is to help organizations overcome adoption barriers of information technology (IT) business solutions by offering Cisco Unified Communications as a service. Enabled by Cisco technology, Vsys provides unified IP telephony, unified messaging, unified personal communication, unified voice and Web collaboration, and unified mobile convergence to companies through a monthly rent on a per-user basis. With this model, companies avoid upfront investments, deploy solutions developed by highly trained experts, and avoid the costs and challenges associated with operating the systems and solutions.

Companies of all sizes are adopting managed services or IT solutions from virtual service providers as a service to gain competitive advantages in a rapidly changing business environment.

Managed services are one of the most effective methods for companies to reduce IT costs while gaining access to innovative network technologies that can establish a competitive advantage. The service provider manages and administers the network equipment and applications, reducing hardware and operational costs for the client.

Managed services also eliminate the risk that the company will need to make a large capital expenditure to accommodate unplanned business changes, such as increased bandwidth or performance requirements.

Highlights / Key Facts:

• IT spend in Mexico sits below 1.5 percent of GDP, and the figure decreases even more in small and medium-sized business. The barriers to adoption of technology are related to the high upfront investment that companies have to exercise under traditional business models; the lack of internal expertise to install, operate, use and maintain technology; and the impact of keeping the infrastructure updated.

• Enabled by Cisco's new virtual service provider (VSP) model, Vsys will offer packaged services to meet the voice communications and collaboration needs of small and medium-sized businesses. The Virtual Service Provider (VSP) is an innovative business partnership comprising different providers and business entities to deliver tailored solutions for specific vertical markets.

• Vsys services are currently available in Mexico, and it aims to launch the services throughout Latin America over the next 12 months.

• Vsys will work with other service providers in Mexico and Latin America.

Supporting quotes:

Santiago Chico, CEO Vsys

"It has been proven that implementing new technologies makes companies more productive and more competitive. We believe that partnering with leading technology companies such as Cisco and offering IT as a service will enable Mexican and Latin American companies to become better suited to compete globally."

Julian Garrido, CTO and director of business development for Vsys

"In this economic environment, companies need to focus capital resources in their core business. We provide the technology platform as a service that allows SMBs to use the tools that in the past were just available to large corporations."

Rogelio Velasco, director, Cisco Mexico

"We are confident that Vsys solutions will spark innovation in the service provider space through effective business solutions for small and mid-sized organizations. This collaborative initiative illustrates our commitment to deliver new business models and increased ability to compete in the Mexican and Latin American markets delivering the latest solutions."

Carlos Medina, director, Managed Services, Cisco Mexico

"The Vsys partnership is a testament that Cisco's vision for managed services is quickly becoming a reality. Working with Vsys we can create the right solutions designed to meet the specific business needs of our customers."

About Vsys

Vsys (Vsys S.A. de C.V) leverages technological disruption like virtualization, web 2.0, and broadband growth in order to develop a vertically integrated set of managed solutions based on a service oriented architecture. Vsys solutions can be found at www.vsys.com

About Cisco Systems

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. Cisco equipment in Emerging Markets is supplied by Cisco Systems International BV, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cisco Systems, Inc.

Cisco, the Cisco logo, and Cisco Systems are registered trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. in the U.S. and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. This document is Cisco Public Information.

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