Cisco Systems is adding a China business unit to its Asia division, the company said late Monday, highlighting the strength of the Chinese market and Cisco's efforts to grow in the country, reported IDG News Service.
Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan will fall under the company's new Greater China unit starting next month, Cisco said. Japan will retain its own unit and the rest of the Asia-Pacific region will remain a joint unit.
Cisco took 49 percent of China's market for enterprise Ethernet switches in 2008, according to Gartner. "In the rest of the world it's ... usually 70 percent and above," said Naresh Singh, a principal analyst at Gartner. Investment in IT by the government and by state-owned enterprises is set to continue fueling China's market for networking equipment, Singh said.
Cisco competes in China against local network gear makers Huawei Technologies and ZTE, as well as against H3C, which is owned by 3Com.
Cisco's three Asia business units account for about 15 percent of its global revenue, it said. The restructuring is meant to support its investment and growth plans in the region, it said.
