In response to those findings, Cisco created the Location Solution for the health-care industry, the In-Store Mobility Solution for the retail industry, and the First Mile Wireless Solution for the oil and gas industries.
With the Location Solution -- a combination of Cisco's Unified Wireless Network software and Wi-Fi tags -- businesses can track high-value assets and gather related information such as temperature, battery power, humidity levels, and usage status.
Cisco teamed up with AeroScout and WhereNet for chokepoint technology that wirelessly monitors passageways and associated tags. When a tagged asset moves through a chokepoint, an alarm can be triggered, which is particularly useful in health care for tracking expensive hospital equipment. "We've been doing location for years, but what people want is status, meaning knowing when something is in use at a hospital," Cohen said.
The In-Store Mobility Solution integrates unified communications -- a term that refers to combining various forms of communication into one user interface -- and Cisco's wireless technology so that retailers can consolidate multiple applications across a single wireless infrastructure and deliver them to employees, suppliers, and customers anywhere in a store. Shoppers get access to information and self-service shopping carts. For example, shoppers can receive promotions, create shopping lists, and navigate a store directly from an interactive shopping cart for an improved customer experience, according to Cisco.
Cisco also created a product specifically for the oil and gas industry because of its harsh physical environment and limited infrastructure. The First Mile Wireless Solution is comprised of Cisco's 1500 Series wireless "mesh" access points with blast-proof hardened cases, a wireless network management system, and backhaul technologies that include Wi-Fi bridging, WiMax, and satellite. The goal is to connect isolated drilling sites to corporate headquarter networks, but the system will work for any business dealing with a harsh environment.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
Maintaining existing network infrastructures often incurs huge technical debt before newer technologies are adopted over time.
Amid ongoing regional uncertainties, telecom infrastructure in the Middle East has expand to include terrestrial low-latency network infrastructure, which offers resilience and agility in navigating political complexities without relying solely on undersea networks.
