Cisco Systems $6.9 billion acquisition of Scientific-Atlanta will redefine Cisco, making it not only a leading provider of routers and switches for corporate technology networks, but also a large provider of consumer products. Beginning in 2003, with the purchase of Linksys, Cisco started its entry into the consumer market for in-home wireless networks, but Cisco also purchased KiSS Technology, a maker of DVD players and recorders that connect to the Internet. The acquisition of Scientific-Atlanta reflects an even more aggressive consumer market presence, because Scientific-Atlanta's set top boxes permit a TV set to receive and decode broadcast programming. Cisco will therefore be able to provide corporate and consumer networking equipment to cable and phone companies, and Cisco also plans to provide add-on equipment to set top boxes that will help make them multimedia centers. The strategy is risky, and the acquisition is not similar to Cisco's previous 100 or so acquisitions. The normal way has been fast integration (under three months), but the Scientific-Atlanta integration will take two years, says Cisco spokesman Charles H. Giancarlo. Cisco's executives are willing to take the risks in order to be able to offer a comprehensive suite of products. Linksys wireless products will be sold as add-ons to the set-top box so the box can perform as a wirelessly networked media center. That combination will mean that consumers can record TV shows and use the set-top box to wirelessly transmit the program and watch the show at any location in the home and on any device.