One key highlight of the research was investment protection. Many customers indicated that their Cisco investment was expected to last 6 to 7 years. In contrast, non-Cisco customers indicated a 4- to 5-year lifecycle for comparable competing products. A “good enough” network is often sufficient for today’s needs, but does not provide the flexibility or investment protection to carry the business beyond years four or five. Roadmap inspection (studying product end of sale/end of life announcements) shows that Cisco products have significantly longer lifespans than similar competing products.