Computer network equipment maker Cisco, has acquired Google-backed Meraki, a provider of cloud controlled wireless networks, for $1.2bn.
Cisco have said that this move is another step in the company’s evolution towards software-centred solutions.
Rob Soderbery, senior vice president at the Cisco Enterprise Networking Group, said: “The acquisition of Meraki enables Cisco to make simple, secure, cloud managed networks available to our global customer base of mid-sized businesses and enterprises, these companies have the same IT needs as larger organizations, but without the resources to integrate complex IT solutions.”
Since being founded in 2006, Meraki has so far raised $80m in funding. Meraki raised $20m in a Series B round, $15m in Series C and $40m in a series D, with Sequoia Capital, a subsidiary of US-based venture capital firm Sequoia, as the primary investor.
The company’s $5m series was led by Sequoia in 2007. The Series A followed funding from angel investors, including Google. Meraki was founded in 2006. Other backers of the company were venture firms DAG Ventures and Northgate Capital, according to news provider TechCrunch.
With this acquisition, Meraki will form Cisco’s new Cloud Networking Group.
Last week Cisco agreed a deal to acquire data management firm Cloupia from $125m.