Cisco will host a live backbone switching webcast on Wed Dec 4, 2013 to discuss BYOD, mobility, security and how Cisco backbone switching addresses these customer needs. This is the second webcast in the Cisco switching webcast series. You can view the first one, Cisco access switching webcast, at any time as it is now an on-demand video.

This backbone switching webcast comes at a critical time, as BYOD and mobility are creating major impact to the workplace.  According to a recent study on BYOD and mobility,

• 75% of employees think that the IT department should help secure personal devices used at work;
• 63% of IT pros say the biggest network issue will be the increased bandwidth requirements;
• 39% of them say that network latency is a problem because of mobile devices;
• And 39% of them have seen serious issues tied to network performance as a result.

To help address these challenges, Cisco continues to innovate so that your network becomes simpler, more secure and more robust for BYOD and mobility. Cisco's newest backbone switching product line, the Catalyst 6800 series switches, will start shipping in December this year. When you join this webcast, you'll learn the latest on this exciting new product family. To get a preview, here's a video that demonstrates how Catalyst Instant Access, a technology based on Catalyst 6800ia and Catalyst 6800/6500 switches, can help simplify your network and improve your work efficiency.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO-aHWg3tJA

Did I just mention Catalyst 6500 switches? That's another reason to join this webcast. There's a lot of noise out there to speculate the retirement of this legendary Cisco backbone switch. Really? Take a quick read of this Lippis Report. With its large footprint of nearly 800,000 systems, 110 million ports shipped and tens of thousands of customers who depend on it everyday, Cisco will continue to invest in this major platform. Its Supervisor Engine 2T portfolio has plenty of room to grow. You'll get a great update when you join this webcast, and see how Catalyst 6500 continues to serve in the Cisco BYOD solution.

I'll leave you with a couple of Cisco backbone switching challenge questions. If you can answer both of them, congrats! If not, then you'll be even more motivated to join the Cisco backbone switching webcast to chat with our experts.

1. Why do the new Catalyst 6800 series switches have a gold color, instead of the traditional Cisco teal color?
2. Why does the smaller Catalyst 6880 seem to have a higher model number than the bigger Catalyst 6807? 6880 is higher than 6807, correct?

Your thoughts?