Future of Technology?

This is a partial transcript from "Your World with Neil Cavuto," May 25, 2004, that was edited for clarity.

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: Just think of it as your fastest Internet connection (search) on steroids. And the guy behind it, none other than Cisco Systems’ CEO, John Chambers, who told me recently it has huge implications.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN CHAMBERS, CISCO PRESIDENT & CEO (CSCO): I think the major impact of this announcement is going to be over the next 10 to 20 years in terms of the capabilities it means for the new Internet. It has 100 times the capacity of the current technology that is out there today.

It is designing products that literally will be always available. It’s a systems approach to the market that just allows you to add functions or features easy. It will bring a new level of gaming and new level of video capabilities to the market that people are just beginning to imagine. So you’re really talking about the company perhaps that brought you routing and the Internet 20 years ago taking it to the next generation at this point in time.

CAVUTO: Is this a Juniper Networks (search) killer?

CHAMBERS: Neil, I think what you are talking about is Cisco and Juniper both had good products in the first generation of routing. This is the next generation. It is truly modular, it is very flexible.

It was designed from the beginning from a hardware and software perspective to scale, where I would compare the routers from the prior generations, both ours and our competitors, being designed for two to three to four-year life cycles. This one is designed for two to three decades if we do it right.

CAVUTO: What I’m not sure is where all this is leading. I mean, obviously, the goal here is faster Internet access, faster Internet use for both the end customer and those who are providing the service. But how fast does this eventually get? Will I be able to find stuff before I even ask for it?

CHAMBERS: I think you are beginning to see many aspects like that, Neil. If you think about it, back to the old mainframe days, IBM designed their original computer thinking that the mainframe computer might sell seven computers during its history.

We designed our high-end router 10 years ago, the GSR, with the intention for it to be perhaps — to sell a thousand units. We’ve now sold over 25,000 units. What it says is the Internet is here to stay and we are just beginning to enter the next generation of applications and capabilities.

CAVUTO: You know, a lot of people are salivating at the bump-up in your stock of late, and they’re kind of saying, oh, maybe we’re going to go back to the heady days of 2,000. How do you react to people like that who get giddy again thinking we can revisit those kind of days? Is it realistic?

CHAMBERS: Well, I think the end of the 1990s, early 2,000s were clearly a point in time we will not see again. But I think the early ‘90s, ‘90 through perhaps ‘97, are indicative of what normal markets will occur in fast-growth industries.

Time will tell if Cisco can grow as fast as I hope and believe that it can. But if you begin to look at our product leadership, our technology leadership, our business leadership, and how we are changing the Internet in ways that we are just beginning to imagine, I think this positions us very well. So I’m very optimistic about our future.

CAVUTO: John, if you can indulge a political question on my part. After all, I work at Fox. Do you find that the presidential contest is one that is crucial for your industry? Does it matter to you one way or the other whether John Kerry gets in there or the president is reelected in there?

CHAMBERS: Well, I think whoever leads the U.S., high technology is independent of Republican or Democratic politics. There are very strong supporters in both categories.

If you look at the role the president can play, in terms of broadband to every American home within the next five years at an affordable price, the importance of creating jobs in this country, et cetera, I think that is very important to both candidates. I, myself, am a backer of President Bush, as you know. I believe that he has been a very good president and will be for the next four years.

CAVUTO: Well, do you fear, John — I don’t want to put words in your mouth — that if he does not get reelected, some of the tax benefits that have accrued to corporate America, everything with capital gains, to just cuts in marginal tax rates, would be compromised under a different administration?

CHAMBERS: Well, I think the technology is really bipartisan. If you look at what goes on in this industry, both the Democrats and Republicans realize what it means to the future of our country, how it will change education, health care, how it will enable many of the goals that they have as political leaders.

So I think technology is very friendly to both parties and has a lot to do with the future of our country. And so I think you’ll see us remain literally bipartisan in our approach to the industry and vice-versa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAVUTO: All right. John Chambers.

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