Cisco Brings Internet of Everything (IoE) Innovation Center to Berlin

BERLIN, GERMANY--(Marketwired - Sep 17, 2014) - Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) and the City of Berlin today announced openBerlin, a Cisco® IoE Innovation Center, to be located in Berlin's Schöneberg district. Cisco Internet of Everything (IoE) Innovation Centers are aimed at catalyzing and showcasing IoE innovation and development, bringing together customers, industry partners, startups, application developers, accelerators, government organizations and universities. Berlin is one of six new Cisco IoE Innovation Center locations, including Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Toronto, Canada; Songdo, South Korea; Barcelona, Spain; and London, England.

The official opening of the center is planned for 2015. Cisco intends to invest close to $30 million in the new site over the coming years.

Cornelia Yzer, Senator for Economy, Technology and Research at the State of Berlin, sees the commitment of Cisco as a tribute to Berlin: "Innovation and Berlin go hand in hand. We see the decision of Cisco as a confirmation of our strategic course in economic policy. Not only does Berlin stand for creativity and ingenuity, but also has the power to apply technology in real life and become a reference city for the solutions of tomorrow. For this we need strong partners like Cisco."

"We consider Germany as an innovation stronghold, especially when it comes to manufacturing and logistics, as reflected also in the Industry 4.0 strategy of the federal government. Therefore, we decided to bring our global IoE Innovation Center for manufacturing, transportation and logistics to Berlin, taking advantage of the strengths and future potential of Germany. With openBerlin and its ecosystem of partners, our aim is to accelerate innovation and the adoption of the Internet of Everything in Germany," said Michael Ganser, senior vice president Central Europe at Cisco.

According to a recent study, Germany is one of the countries with the greatest potential to benefit from IoE, thanks to its well-trained engineers and its innovation power. Cisco estimates the potential IoE Value at Stake for the German economy to be more than $900 billion (close to 700 billion EUR) over the next 10 years.

openBerlin, a Cisco IoE Innovation Center: a platform for technology ideas and open innovation

Part of the center is an R&D lab, dedicated to the development of industry solutions and solutions for specific customer requirements. In the lab area, Cisco experts, together with industry partners and ecosystem startups, will develop proof of concepts, features and functionalities, and do rapid prototyping. The center includes a dedicated space to demonstrate IoE in action, and open areas where customers, startups, open communities, researchers, entrepreneurs and technology enthusiasts are invited to work and brainstorm on new ideas and technologies.