Cisco Could Raise South Korea Investment

SEOUL, South Korea -- Cisco Systems (CSCO) CEO John Chambers said Wednesday he won't be surprised if the company's planned $2 billion investment in South Korea ends up bigger.

"Two billion was our first step," Chambers told reporters. He refrained from providing specifics on how the money would be spent, but said if it proves successful more was likely to follow.

Previous investment plans by Cisco -- the world's biggest maker of computer networking gear -- in South Korea and other countries have generally ended up larger and in "a different mix" than anticipated, Chambers said.

San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco, founded in 1984, makes routers and switches that companies use to send data on the Internet and internal networks.

It has recently been expanding aggressively into other areas, including servers, and making acquisitions including Pure Digital Technologies, which makes the popular Flip camcorders.

Chambers met South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday.

Lee's office, in a release after the meeting, said Cisco's $2 billion plan would be spent over five years, and outlined other specifics, including $500 million in investment and loans for South Korean IT and communications companies.

Chambers said Wednesday that Cisco is not ignoring its home market, the United States, when formulating investment plans.

"You'll see a number of announcements over the next month in terms of commitments in the U.S., resource commitments, financial commitments," he said, without providing details.

Chambers would not provide specifics on the company's acquisition plans, but said more were coming.