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Cisco’s Acacia Deal a Key Component of Its Core Networking Strategy

Cisco will integrate Acacia into its core switching and routing fiscal earnings call, Cisco executives acknowledged that weaker
platforms once the $2.6 billion deal is complete next year. sales in China has a slight impact on the company’s revenues. On
Cisco’s $2.6 billion deal to buy coherent optics company Acacia the earnings call with investors, Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said
Communications is a key element of the company’s long- Chinese government-controlled enterprises were shutting Cisco
term plans and strategies. During Thursday’s Citi 2019 Global out due to the trade war with the U.S. Mora said that while Cisco
Technology Conference, Cisco’s Marilyn Mora, head of investor doesn’t provide long-term guidance, the company was more
relations, provided some additional color on the deal that was focused on integrating Acacia into its core routing and switching
announced in July. “The Acacia announcement is a very important platforms instead of worrying about the potential loss of Chinese
announcement for us as we see three key foundational components customers. Mora acknowledged that Cisco gets a lot of questions
to our strategy and architecture and that being silicon, optics and in regards to how it will manage third-party Acacia customers
software,” More said, according to a Seeking Alpha transcript. once the deal closes in the second half of next year. “We do sell
Acacia dovetails nicely with Cisco’s previous acquisitions of too many of our peers, and we’re going to continue to support
CoreOptics, Luxtera and Lightwire on the silicon photonics side. and sell to those third-party customers,” she said. “As I mentioned
On the ASIC side, Cisco bought Leaba in 2016. Acacia rounds out earlier, we have a longer term play here that’s really about the
those previous investments by bringing components, modules future roadmap.”
and digital signal processors (DSPs) for optical subsystems
within switches, routers and optical networking gear. “So this is
a part of a focused strategy in terms of completing the roadmap
we’re looking at,” Mora said of the Acacia deal. “The way to think
about Acacia as we integrate the silicon, software and optics,
is we want to increase that into our core networking platforms.
”We see the market moving from more systems to pluggable
over time, and this is not happening next quarter or the next two
months. This is going to be a bit of journey over the next two to
three years that we see this happening, and we are going to help
to drive that transition.” According to Acacia’s April annual report,
Cisco accounted for 14% of Acacia’s revenues last year while ZTE,
despite its issues with the Trump administration, was tops at 20%
followed by Infinera (17%), which included Coriant after Infinera
bought it last year, and Adva (15%). During its fourth quarter

Comviva and AsiaHawala Scoop Two Awards at
the Telecoms World Award 2019

Comviva and AsiaHawala have jointly won mobile money service which is powered receive financial-aid, get salary, receive
two awards at the prestigious Telecoms by Comviva’s mobqiuity® platform. pension, give donations, pay bills, pay
World Award 2019. AsiaHawala mobile AsiaHawala leverages mobile phones merchants, shop online, top-up mobile and
money service was declared winner in to provide quick, convenient and cost- internet connection, purchase e-vouchers,
the ‘Best Emerging Market Initiative’ and effective digital financial services to the book flight tickets and make cab payments,
‘Digital Transformation Award- Vendor’ financially underserved consumers and all using their mobile phone anytime,
categories. The awards were presented on create a digital economy. AsiaHawala anywhere. To facilitate registration and
September 24th, 2019 at The Conrad Hotel is an inclusive digital service. The only last-mile services of cash-in and cash-
in Dubai, UAE during the Telecoms World prerequisite for using AsiaHawala is mobile out, AsiaHawala has established a network
Middle-East Summit. AsiaHawala and phone with Asiacell connection; hence the of over 1000 agents spread across Iraq.
Comviva have also bagged the Customer service can be used by all, even unbanked Commenting on the win, Mr. Zring Faruk,
Experience Asia Excellence Awards 2019, consumers. It can be accessed by all Chief Executive Officer, AsiaHawala said,
where they won Silver in two categories phones – feature phones or smartphones “We are very excited that Telecoms World
“Best Use of Mobile 2019” and “Best via USSD or mobile app. With AsiaHawala has recognized us with two awards.
Digital Experience 2019”. AsiaHawala, mobile wallet, customers can do multiple Our strength lies in our ability to serve
launched in December 2005, is Iraq’s first financial transactions – transfer money, diverse consumer segments. On one hand,

41 SEPTEMBER 2019