Belkin Buying Linksys from Cisco (Update: Deal Completed)
Cisco seems to be moving away from the consumer market and is looking for a buyer for Linksys. Belkin's purchase of Linksys is expected to be completed in March 2013 for an as of yet undisclosed amount.
Source: Belkin and Cisco.
Update (Mar 18, 2013): On January 25, we reported that Belkin will be buying the Home Networking Business Unit from Cisco, which consists of the Linksys brand. Well, less than two months later, Belkin has announced that the deal is completed.
Belkin:
Linksys’ technologies, including its routers and the popular and innovative Smart Wi-Fi portfolio and services, will be managed and maintained as a separate brand and product portfolio.
According to the press release, consumers can expect new Linksys-branded products to arrive in the market in spring, which is between now and June.
Source: Belkin.
---
Cisco has been moving away from the consumer electronics market segment for a while now. They ditched the Flip camera approximately two year after purchasing the developing company a while back. And now they are selling off Linksys to Belkin.
Linksys was the arm of Cisco responsible for producing routers and wireless access points for the mass consumer. Cisco bought Linksys for US$500 million in 2003. Now Belkin is buying the business from Cisco and the deal is expected to be concluded in March 2013.
While no price for the sale has been announced, Bloomberg speculates that Linksys will not be able to garner the same value because the networking business is a mature market with small margins.
Source: Bloomberg and Ars Technica.
Our articles may contain affiliate links. If you buy through these links, we may earn a small commission.