Good Week for Cisco, Industry
Cisco announced last week that net sales for its third fiscal quarter were $4.8 billion, up from $4.7 billion in the same quarter a year earlier and the same as the second quarter of fiscal 2002.
Net income followed a similar trend: The networking company earned $729 million in the quarter ended April 27, or 10 cents a share.
The news was in sharp contrast to the companys year-ago report in which Cisco posted a third-quarter loss of $2.7 billion.
The report gave Wall Street a much-needed shot in the arm, pushing the tech-heavy NASDAQ up 7.8 percent and the Dow up 3.1 percent a day after the news was announced.
“The old Internet economy tended to focus on speed,” said Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers at NetWorld+Interop last week. “Today, its about profits.”
Ah, the difference a year can make.
As a point of reference, Joseph Panettieri, former ZD columnist and editor in chief of Smart Partner, predicted in August 2001 that May 8, 2002, would be the date to watch for any sort of tech rebound because of Ciscos expected third-quarter results.
California, Oracle Dispute Software
Oracle has agreed to rescind a $95 million software contract with California, but the company is not going quietly.
Last week, the state agreed to an offer from Oracle and reseller Logicon to take the deal off the table, but Oracle warned state officials that doing so could have a negative ripple effect. In particular, almost 50 state and local agencies have begun using software from the contract, which was signed a year ago. The software used by the agencies was bought under discounts outlined in the contract.
“If the state elects to withdraw from this contract, these savings will be lost,” according to Oracle Chief Financial Officer Jeff Henley, who cited a report by Californias state auditor that the state could save up to $163 million over the next 10 years due to the contract.