Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) CEO John Chambers, one of the leaders in global high tech, is making another visit to Jerusalem, exactly a year after his last visit. The official reason for the visit, as well as for the previous one, is to attend the President's Conference to which he was invited by President Shimon Peres. Chambers will arrive today for a three-day visit.
In addition to Peres, Chambers will hold high-level political meetings, including meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Finance Yair Lapid, Minister of the Economy Naftali Bennett, Minister of Communications Gilad Erdan, Minister of Education Shai Piron, and Minister of Health Yael German. He will also meet with Cisco Israel employees.
Last year, Chambers visit was marked by Cisco's acquisition of NDS for $5 billion a few months earlier. The acquisition again turned Israel into a strategic powerhouse for Cisco. At the time, Chambers said that NDS was not the end, saying, "You'll see us expand here soon."
Six months later, in January 2013, Cisco did just that, acquiring Intucell for $475 million. The acquisition turned Cisco's Israeli development center into a spearhead in one of the hottest fields in the telecommunications equipment industry: automating changes in receivers and transmitters (RAN).
Now that Israel is back on Cisco's map, Chambers will focus on other things, including the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) (TASE: ELEC.B22) fiber optic venture, in which Cisco is a party. His visit coincides with the announcement of the tender win by ViaEuropa for which Cisco is providing the financing.
Ahead of the visit, he said, "Israel is a global leader in innovation, and Cisco is proud of its longstanding commitment to the country. As we strengthen our partnership with Israel, I believe that together, we can promote change in the country and encourage sustainable growth and productivity, which will influence the region and all of Israel's people."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 17, 2013
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