Examining Cisco's Small Business Video Surveillance

by John Honovich, IPVM posted on Jun 10, 2009 About John Contact John

Cisco is making a major push into the small business market. As part of this, Cisco is increasing both their product offerings and marketing of video surveillance products.

Cisco's success (or lack thereof) in the enterprise video surveillance market is a topic of frequent discussion within the industry (see my recent analysis of their situation).

In parallel to this, Cisco is investing over $100 M USD into the small business market. Video surveillance is one of their key areas.

The Cisco small business surveillance solution consists of 4 IP cameras, VMS software and a Storage Server.

How Will it Do?

While the offering needs a number of enhancements to expand, I think it has potential. Unlike Cisco's enterprise video surveillance offering, the cost and complexity of the small business solution is comparable to its peers. Given this, Cisco's marketing and distribution power should be able to promote the wide use of this offering.

Inside the Pro Section

Premium members may read:

  • An analysis of the product's strengths and weaknesses
  • A breakdown of the cost structure of the solution
  • Comparison to leading IP video surveillance alternatives (like Axis, D-Link, ACTi)
  • Examination of features needed and future developments
  • Comparison between Cisco's enterprise and small business offerings

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