The world's largest maker of computer networking equipment announced three acquisitions in the past three days. Not since November 2012 had Cisco purchased three companies in the same month.
The latest was Wednesday's agreement to buy 1 Mainstream, an early-stage start-up, whose software helps media companies deliver Web-based video.
The price wasn't disclosed, but a person familiar with the transaction said it's $100 million to $150 million. A Cisco representative declined to comment on the terms.
Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins, who succeeded the legendary John Chambers three months ago, is putting his stamp on the company, doing his part to revive growth and keep it from sinking into the dreaded legacy-tech abyss.
"Chuck has been very clear that we're going to be more acquisitive as it relates to moving into new markets," said Rob Salvagno, a 15-year Cisco veteran who took over as head of corporate development under Robbins. "Market transitions are happening at a much faster pace. What you see with regards to our acquisition activity this week is really reflective of that dynamic."
Cisco has a mountain to climb. Sales in fiscal 2015 rose 4.3 percent and have increased less than 8 percent for five-straight years. The company's primary challenge has been finding traction in new businesses beyond switches and routers, while also vying with emerging competitors that are pulling businesses away from proprietary systems and into the cloud.
Relative to some other big legacy companies, Cisco is healthy, said Maha Ibrahim, a partner at Silicon Valley venture firm Canaan Partners. Dell went private in 2013 and recently agreed to acquire EMC, Hewlett-Packard and Symantec are splintering apart and IBM has spent the past three years shrinking.
