SAN JOSE, CA: Cisco Systems has launched a radio station on its
news channel website, News@Cisco.com, in a bid to boost its position as
a technological innovator and to educate its customers and the media
about its intellectual capital.
Cisco already uses The FeedRoom, a broadband news company, to broadcast
video channels through the website. Senior executives appear in video
presentations produced by Cisco, discussing a range of technologies and
business issues the company is currently working on.
The radio channel has been added to support the media channel, as well
as to offer in-depth analysis on technology and corporate issues.
"It also allows us to go international, because you can't always send
video tours to Europe," said Gretchen Vogel, editorial manager in
Cisco's corporate PR department.
Currently, the News@Cisco site includes radio releases on such subjects
as wireless LANs, virtual private networks, and storage network
benefits.
The radio station was also employed during last week's Comdex Fall
2001.
CEO John Chambers gave the keynote address of the conference, talking
about the company's Net Impact concept.
A radio interview with a Cisco VP who has been working with Chambers on
Net Impact was posted on the website on the same day, along with a more
traditional Q&A.
Vogel said the multimedia newsroom has been a success for the
company.
When it was launched in December 2000, the page had 13,000 hits a
month.
That figure now stands at about 640,000 hits each month.
Cisco has found the site particularly beneficial for getting senior
managers lined up for press interviews.
"A lot of people like to turn to the CEO, especially in broadcast,"
Vogel explained. Cisco is able to send media outlets video examples of
executives in action to demonstrate their appropriateness for certain
interviews.
Another advantage for Cisco is being able to show customers the
technology's potential.
"Most companies have focused on communicating internally or through the
supply chain," Vogel said. "We also see Cisco showing other
organizations how to use high-bandwidth services, under-scoring the
business model that Cisco uses for its own customers."
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