Dell hires former Cisco systems VP

Dell has hired Cisco Systems veteran Dario Zamarian to lead its networking business, naming him as its first vice-president dedicated to that division, reports PC World Business Centre.

Zamarian has joined Dell as vice-president and general manager of the networking division, the company recently announced. Zamarian worked at Cisco for six years, most recently as vice-president of systems and network management.

Networking has been a fairly small part of Dell's business so far, but the company has become more active in this area as it gears up to compete with the likes of Hewlett-Packard and Cisco in supplying all parts of a data centre. The appointment of a vice-president to lead networking may signal an accelerated push into this arena.

Swedish wireless equipment maker, Ericsson, has tentatively agreed to purchase the multi-service switch (MSS) division of bankrupt networking giant, Nortel, in a cash deal worth $65 million, states Telecommunications Industry News .

Since Nortel entered bankruptcy protection in January 2009, Ericsson has shown a keen interest in its assets, acquiring its wireless networking division for $1.13 billion last November.

Ericsson's acquisition of the switch business is subject to approval by bankruptcy courts and regulatory authorities.

PMC-Sierra, which designs chips for storage and computer networking devices and laser printers, slashed its outlook for the current quarter, offering a new revenue forecast which is at least $10 million below what Wall Street expected, says Bloomberg Businessweek.

The company didn't give a reason for the lower numbers in a statement released after the market closed Tuesday. A representative didn't immediately return a call for comment.

The stock fell 6.6 %, to $7.35 in extended trading, after the revised outlook was reported. It had risen 2c to close the regular session at $7.79.