But there are probably other reasons for Brocade's change of heart, starting with the mounting competitive threat from Cisco: History shows that companies that pursue proprietary networking technologies are heading down a cul de sac (see FC Market Gets Rattled).
Another reason may be that Brocade's corporate culture seems to be evolving toward a policy of openness with the rest of the industry after its acquisition of Rhapsody Networks last fall (see Brocade Scoops Up Rhapsody). Rhapsody had been philosophically inclined to partner with other software and hardware vendors to increase the value of its intelligent switching platform. Several of the startup's executives are now sprinkled throughout the upper ranks at Brocade, including Mike Klayko, former CEO of Rhapsody, who is VP of marketing; and Dave Stevens, Brocade's VP of strategic alliances and business development, who held a similar position at Rhapsody.
Whatever the cause, if Brocade is really attempting to play well with others, it's a step forward -- and away from the company's previous vision of a single vendor asserting its control over the rest of the industry.
Todd Spangler, US Editor, Byte and Switch
A detailed examination of the SAN switch segment is included in the current Byte and Switch Insider report -- "Fibre Channel Market Update" -- which is available here
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