Juniper leaps into switching market

Vendor has Cisco in its sights as it adds to its portfolio with three new series of Ethernet switches

Juniper Networks has thrown down the gauntlet to rivals Cisco, HP ProCurve and Foundry by announcing its entry into the $4bn Ethernet switching market.

The networking and security vendor’s new EX-series family of enterprise switches comes in three forms: the EX 3200 series; the EX 4200 series; and the modular EX 8200 series. All run on Juniper’s carrier-class Junos software.

According to the blurb, Juniper’s new switches will deliver “the operation simplicity, carrier-class reliability and infrastructure consolidation and integration that help high-performance businesses accelerate the deployment of business-enabling applications and services across the network”.

Hitesh Sheth, executive vice president and general manager of the Ethernet
Platforms Business Group at Juniper, said: “For many enterprises, legacy network infrastructure has become a pacing factor in meeting their high-performance business requirements.

“Enterprises can no longer afford the complexity, cost and risk of turning on new network features for fear of taking down the network. Through the introduction of our high-performance family of Ethernet switches based on Junos software,
Juniper is delivering a solution that meets the business, economic and technical requirements of today's service-enabling network infrastructure.”

The EX 3200 and 4200 series – whose list prices start at $4,000 and $6,000 respectively - are expected to be available in March. The EX 8200 series is expected to be available in the second half.