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Nortel has started a new campaign called Stop paying the "Cisco Energy Tax." which claims that Nortel data networking equipment uses as much as 40% less energy than a comparable network.

So, how did they come to this groundbreaking conclusion? By their own report:

To support its argument, Nortel looked to reports from the Dell’ Oro Group to crunch through the Nortel Energy Efficiency Calculator to estimate how much it is costing businesses to stay with Cisco.

The hired a third party to use a Nortel brand calculator, and punch in numbers... and guess what the verdict was? We can save 6.1 billion dollars by switching everyone to Cisco. Come on now... seriously! The "proof" of cost savings is a Nortel created energy calculator? How about some real world testing?

If you're interested in reading the entire article, here you go:

The rising cost of energy is certainly the attention of everyone in the country as of late. Companies are searching for ways to reduce energy consumption and their spending.

Nortel is capitalizing on this trend by aiming to deliver solutions that are not only energy efficient, but also bring new levels of performance as they migrate toward unified communications in an effort to improve business operations and lower expenses.

According to Nortel, organizations throughout the world have collectively spent an estimated $6.1 billion more on energy expenses in the last five years than they needed to. This number is more than the gross domestic product of a small country. Why this trend toward overspending? Customers are unknowingly selecting a networking solution that is inherently energy inefficient.

Nortel is insisting that customers no longer need to pay the Cisco energy tax. The company is telling the market in no uncertain terms that there is a better and more cost-effective way to do business. The best way to determine this is to do the math.

To support its argument, Nortel looked to reports from the Dell’ Oro Group to crunch through the Nortel Energy Efficiency Calculator to estimate how much it is costing businesses to stay with Cisco. According to Nortel, this process determined that over a five year period, businesses have paid $6.1 billion more in energy costs to power and cool Cisco networks than they would have had if they used a comparable Nortel configuration.
"As companies move rapidly to Unified Communications they require a network that is robust and highly energy efficient,” said Joel Hackney, president, Enterprise Solutions, Nortel.
“The Nortel Energy Efficiency Calculator gives organizations a simple way to calculate how much they can save by working with Nortel. Those savings, particularly valuable in tough economic times, can be applied to driving an entity's overall competitiveness,” added Hackney.
According to IDC (News - Alert) estimations, 12-15 percent of total energy costs for enterprises are network related. A Nortel data network consumes as much as 40 percent less energy than a comparable network from the main competition and can have nearly 50 percent lower total cost of ownership.
Peter Kendall, executive director for Earth Rangers, a charitable organization focused on children and the environment, said in a Nortel statement, "Earth Rangers is dedicated to environmental education that empowers children to make sustainable choices.”
“Doing our part to save energy and maximize resources is important to us, so it is only natural that we would choose the most energy-efficient networking solution available. In addition to reducing our carbon footprint, the Nortel solution has enabled us to lower costs and to free-up those expenditures and apply them to our programs," Kendall added.

Nortel is working to make its message that much more public as it focuses on print and online campaigns. Customers are beginning to pay attention and starting to evaluate their environments.
"Energy costs continue to skyrocket and information technology accounts for up to 25 percent of operational expenses. It only makes sense to deploy the most energy efficient networking equipment as companies begin deploying real-time applications such asUnified Communications ,” said Hackney.
“Nortel helps customers save up to 40 percent on the networking energy costs while at the same time improving business processes, making enterprises more nimble and customer-focused,” explained Hackney.

Nortel is reaching out to the community, asking for their participation in a Buzzboard campaign. The company posted three videos on Buzzboard and is asking visitors to vote on their favorite. This campaign was launched to determine the best way to get the message out to the masses with grassroots videos created by Nortel employees.
The company wants to know which video conveys the message: Stop paying the "Cisco Energy Tax." The winning video will be featured in an online advertisement in October.

According to Lauren Flaherty, chief marketing officer, Nortel, "Today's decision makers are the most-connected, best-informed buyers in history. They want tools that help them gauge cost and value. That's what they're telling us so that's why we are taking this campaign from a buzz to a roar – amplifying the reach of Nortel's energy savings message by moving from a pilot program to a full global launch."

There is no doubt that energy consumption needs to be a primary focus for companies throughout the world, but is Nortel taking too narrow an approach by attacking only Cisco in its campaign? Sure, this company is the dominant player in its market, but it is very likely that Cisco will come out with its own reply and its own energy efficient spin and Nortel may be forced to rethink its tactics.

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