The four-year pact will allow C&W, the world's largest Web hosting company, to use equipment and technology produced by Cisco, the global leader in Internet networking systems. In return, Cisco will gain access to C&W's worldwide customer base.

An estimated 80 percent of all data that travels across the Internet passes through Cisco routers and switches.

Safer, Faster, Cheaper

Privately managed Internet-based networks are becoming increasingly popular as companies look for cheaper, more secure and more efficient ways to communicate among themselves and with customers.

C&W said that through Cisco, it plans to become the "first company to provide on a global basis both fully managed local area network (LAN) and wide area network (WAN) components for a single IP (Internet Protocol) platform -- required to support the latest developments in desktop-to-desktop data, video and voice communications."

Officials of both companies said the technical and marketing agreement focuses specifically on the "growing demand for new and innovative data and voice convergence solutions."

Networking Struggling

The networking industry as a whole has struggled, and Cisco has not been immune to the troubles. The company's share value has fallen 14 percent in the last year. Cable & Wireless has had an even tougher year, with its shares falling 60 percent.

The two giants have allied before in specific regions of the United States and the United Kingdom.

"By expanding our relationship with Cisco, we are better positioned to utilize Cisco's technology leadership and distribution channels to deliver new IP solutions to the market quickly," C&W spokesperson Don Reed said.

C&W said it plans to introduce additional services in the United States during the second quarter of 2002 and in Europe and Japan later this year.

Working on 'Wi-Fi'

Founded in 1986, San Jose, California-based Cisco has more than 36,000 employees worldwide. Its revenue for fiscal 2001 totaled US$22.2 billion, according to company figures. The company, number 107 on the Fortune 500 list, is scheduled to announce its third-quarter financial results May 7th.

Cisco has focused on forming alliances with industry leaders. The company has agreements in place with such high-tech luminaries as Sony, IBM, Compaq, Microsoft , Intel, Motorola and Oracle.

The company also is investing in a new kind of wireless networking technology called Wireless Fidelity, or Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi is nearly 200 times faster than dial-up access, and more than 4.5 million people are expected to be using the technology by next year, according to research firm Gartner.

'Free To Focus'

Cable & Wireless booked revenue of more than $11 billion in its last fiscal year. The company has customers in 70 countries and offers a full range of telecommunications services in 35 countries.

"The goal is to provide [C&W] with complete network technology and support, saving them time and resources while freeing them to focus on their core business and operations," Cisco spokesperson Bill Nuti said.