Belkin buying Linksys
It looks like Cisco is jettisoning Linksys and the rest of its home networking business unit after all.
Previous reports of Cisco looking to sell its home router division have turned out to be true.
Belkin announced this afternoon that it is planning to acquire Cisco's home networking business unit, which includes the Linksys brand.
While Belkin will also be grabbing some other products, resources, and employees from Cisco's home networking group, it maintained that the Linksys name will remain intact.
Belkin also promised to offer support for Linksys products, and guaranteed that it would honor valid warranties for current and future Linksys products.
Linksys will enhance Belkin's capabilities to meet the needs of OEMs, as well as provide access to a large user base. Belkin and Cisco intend to pursue a strategic relationship focused on a variety of initiatives, including retail distribution, strategic marketing, and products for the service provider market.
Cisco originally purchased the home router company for $500 million in 2003.
After selling or killing off a few other consumer-focused units and products (such as the Flip camcorder), San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco appears to be dedicated to only business and enterprise products.
The buyout is also expected to grow Belkin's reach considerably. After the transaction closes, Belkin asserted, it will account for approximately 30 percent of the U.S. retail home and small business networking market.
Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but the merger is expected to be completed by March.
This story originally appeared at ZDNet's Between the Lines under the headline Belkin buying Cisco's home networking business Linksys.