Cisco said it is also looking to create a venture capital fund to invest in new Brazilian technology companies and entrepreneurial activities. Cisco said it will invest up to 50 million reals to be combined with local investors partnering with the fund.

The company will also expand its year-old manufacturing operations in Brazil. Currently, the plant in Manaus makes set-top boxes but Cisco will expand that to include routing and switching products.

Partnerships include an intellectual property swap with Intelbras involving Cisco's Unified Communications Manager Business Edition 3000 and Intelbras' 10,000 resellers. Another is a workforce transformation arrangement with Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Comercial for 1,000 Rio students interested in a career in networking.

in Network World's Data Center section.