Cisco Systems, Inc. Announces Plans to Acquire Land in Massachusetts for Proposed Expansion.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 18, 2000

1.8 Million Square Feet Marks the Newest Cisco Campus, Which is

Expected to Grow Up to 5000 Employees

Cisco Systems, Inc., today announced that it has entered into agreements to acquire more than 580 acres in Massachusetts. The proposed Cisco campuses, called the New England Development Center, will be located within the town limits of Boxborough, Harvard, and Littleton, approximately 30 miles northwest of Boston, along the Interstate 495 corridor. Cisco's newest campus is part of the company's plans for expansion and substantial recruitment in New England. The campus consists of three plots of land along the 495 corridor. The largest piece of land consists of 350 acres of undeveloped land in the town of Boxborough.

"This announcement demonstrates our commitment to the growth of high technology in New England", said Don Listwin, executive vice president, Cisco Systems. "New England continues to be a source of great talent for Cisco. Our five year history in Massachusetts has been very productive and by working with government leaders such as Governor Paul Cellucci, and the local communities, we are taking responsible steps now to prepare for our future growth."

"Cisco is a well-known global leader in the high technology world and I am pleased with their decision to continue their growth in our state," said Governor Paul Cellucci. "This is a clear indicator, not only of the strength of our economy but of Cisco's recognition that Massachusetts is a good source of high technology talent."

Campus Location

The campus is centrally located midway between Route 3 to the north and the Massachusetts Turnpike (Interstate 90) to the south. The proposed Cisco campus is comprised of three sites. Site I consists of an existing 277,000 square foot building on 140 acres of land, to be rennovated to Cisco's specifications. Site I is located at 1414 Massachusetts Avenue, in the town of Boxborough, just south of Route 495, at the interchange of Route 495 and Route 111. Site II, known as Towermarc Business Park consists of approximately 350 acres of undeveloped land, to be improved with 900,000 square feet in seven buildings. The site is predominantly located in Boxborough, Massachusetts, with the remainder (46 acres) located in Harvard, Massachusetts. The office park is proposed entirely within Boxborough. Site III consists of 90 acres of undeveloped land, to be improved with 640,000 square feet in five buildings. The site, owned by Hines is located within the town of Littleton. The three sites combined can accommodate up to 5,000 employees depending on actual Cisco growth in New England over the next several years.

Cisco in New England

Cisco in New England currently has 5 primary locations: Chelmsford, Lowell, Burlington, Lexington, Massachusetts, and Manchester, New Hampshire. Currently, the 1500-person employee base in Massachusetts represents Cisco's Applications Technology Group and 17 other business organizations. The service provider line of business, Cisco's fastest growing line of business, is expanding in New England to include major new initiatives in broadband networking equipment, and solutions supporting DSL (digital subscriber line), and routers that aggregate network traffic. There have been eight New England based acquisitions since 1994, in the total amount of $3.06 billion dollars. Cisco's recruitment efforts in Massachusetts have been substantial in the areas of software engineering, application consultants, hardware engineering and marketing.

Upon completion, the New England Development Center will become one of Cisco's largest business sites and is anticipated to have up to 1.8 million square feet of office space. Specific services have not yet been determined for the new campus. Existing Cisco campuses include on-site dining, ATM, health and fitness facilities, company store and other personal services and amenities. Cisco expects to provide a similar array of personal services on the new campus for its employees.

Cisco Systems began in 1984 and today has $14 billion in annual sales and a market capitalization of over $350 billion. Cisco Systems employs approximately 24,000 employees worldwide. Cisco has a significant presence in strategic technology centers in San Jose, California, North Carolina's Research Triangle Park, Texas and Virginia in the United States.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Cisco news and information are available at http://www.cisco.com.

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