SWMS TrendSpot: Virtual Networking

Time and again, farsighted tech PR agencies profit by spotting disruption. For example, agencies who in 2009 spotted location-based services and marketing won big accounts. More important, they won the chance to educate media brands quick to chase the trend. Today those agencies enjoy the respect of hard-to-reach journalists, who ask themselves,“What will that agency spot next?”

 

In our SWMS TrendSpot debut, we examine the birth of virtual networking. Two start-ups share the pole position: Nicira and Big Switch. Both are commercializing OpenFlow, the open source protocol that lets users shape virtual networks the way VMware allowed users to shape virtual servers. OpenFlow will empower users to buy low-cost, commodity hardware for their networking needs. This trend threatens Cisco, Juniper and any incumbent whose business model depends on premium pricing for switches and routers.

 

Trade and business media will track this trend next year. Trades will chase it on behalf of buyers; business media will smell the blood on the marketplace floor.