Live from the Cisco CES press conference

12:56PM PT We're here, and there's some seriously smooth jams playing. We don't mind telling you that this is the smoothest press event we've been to, hands down. Someone call a doctor, we're having a relax attack.

1:34PM Okay... Q&A, and we're going to split! No gear? No stay.

1:33PM "This isn't about the future... this is about execution."

1:32PM Prices range from $299 to $999. Good old affordable $999.

1:31PM Apparently the components of this system are available NOW on Amazon, Fry's, and the Linksys site. NOW people... do you get it?

1:30PM "So the home audio has been a pain point for my home contractor..." More family issues for Ned. This stuff is real, folks.

1:30PM More video showing off the system we saw earlier. "iPod or iTunes streaming..." That's a hook.

1:29PM "Consumers say they love the content, but frustrated that they can't get to it in different ways." "We all have our content digitized, but if you don't have your device handy, you can't get to it -- the Wireless Home Audio system will let you get to it anywhere in a house." Like Sonos?

1:28PM "You're no longer hostage to where you can get your content."

1:28PM Ned is discussing his personal problems with uploading pics of his family. Apparently the Media Hub can solve some serious issues in his life.

1:27PM Yes, a NAS. Totally NASesque. NASty, you might say.

1:26PM Wha oh! The Cisco Media Hub -- by Linksys, of course. More video! Just showing off that hub we saw earlier. We wonder, won't you grow tired of the blue LEDs?

1:25PM And we thought Macworld was dry this year.

1:25PM "The first announcement we've made today is the launch of our Cisco Device Connections program..." He's propping their interplay platforms.

1:24PM Ned is back... finally -- this guy is so smooth. Kind of like those earlier jams.

1:20PM Now they're showing off some of their EOS-powered live sites. Atlantic Records? You don't say...

1:18PM "We think this is game changing for the media companies." "We make it easy to create community based experiences..." Let us guess... that you can monetize?

1:17PM EOS: like magnets for money!

1:17PM This actually seems to be focused on the backend -- providers. Not really related to the end user, accept to illustrate how someone might siphon their money for content.

1:16PM "From music to movies... personalized, immersive, and interactive... hoping audiences get closer to the action. Welcome to Cisco EOS..." Pounding techno... good start. We're seeing some content delivery systems flipping around. If you're worried about monetizing your content -- guess what? You're in luck.

1:15PM "Consumers want to experience content with the brands they love..." Hey, some video!

1:14PM "There's fragmentation in the market, providers want to know how to monetize assets..." Ah yes... monetize those assets. This is actually quite dry.

1:13PM Head of Cisco EOS: "EOS was formed years ago -- but the business model has changed. We've spent years listening to customers. WE heard over and over that media needed a platform... so I'm proud to introduce EOS, a simple, easy to use platform to provide media to users."

1:12PM "What we're rolling out today is a new platform and new products that make the media enabled home possible."

1:11PM "Whether it's our STB business, or where we've innovated in DVR, or home networking, we've built those products, but we've also built platforms."

1:11PM "There's a lot of places to get content... if I want to watch Spider-man, I can do that, but if I want to watch a movie... it's a lot harder. We're going to address that. And users are stuck with how they get access to that content."

1:10PM "We've found that they want to have connected devices in the home. But today there are 3 challeneges. 1: it's hard... it's not simple to setup and get devices together. 2: managing content... people have huge collections of content, it's spread all over the place, and they're worried about it -- they're looking for ways to manage that content. 3: how do you discover content?"

1:09PM Ned Hooper, SVP: "I want to talk about customer pain points in the marketplace, we have some of the leading content websites, we understand consumers -- we know what their frustrations are."

1:08PM "Out of all our partners, 10 of them tie directly to the consumer. So with that, Ned, take it away."

1:07PM He's listing other speakers -- here's hoping they're not hopped up quite like this. "So if you ask where we're going, it's one united front. This is different though, we have 168 million products in the marketplace." "But we've been quiet -- we're not going to be quiet anymore." "We'll talk about how we might change the entertainment industry, we'll talk about partnerships and platforms."

1:06PM "If you look at where we're going -- we planted a lot of seeds. In the last year we moved to a single focus on the consumer. That's the space we'll be in in the coming years."

1:05PM "As we talk about our products, we're trying to show how they play together -- so there's seven announcements, but there will be a steady stream every two months this year."

1:04PM It's clear that John doesn't do a ton of keynotes -- he's speaking quite fast.

1:04PM "People talk about devices... but we think it's ahout the network." "It will move fomr a generation about data and voice, more to visual networking, wired and wireless." "We think the key content will find you, and we see changing business models reflecting this."

1:03PM "Our strategy doesn't change. In 1997 we said this is how the internet would evolve, and a year ago we outlined market transitions... we said the next gen of this tech would be from the consumer up, not the other way."

1:02PM Wow he's talking fast. "We want to change the world... we're looking at the role networking will play in that. This isn't a series of product announcements, but this is how we see the industry evolving."

1:01PM "We think of things for 5 years down the road, we look at our strategy and how we execute it. A large part of what we talked about at other CES was about strategy, this is about execution."

1:01PM "Thank you -- we have an action packed 55 mins. Thanks for joining us. I'll provide the overview of where we're going to go." "Everything I say today is subject to the safe harbor act..." Yes! Get out of jail free.

1:00PM Cisco CEO... John Chambers... smattering of applause.

12:59PM Looks like we're getting ready to start here in a bit... oh wait, more smooth jazz.

12:58PM Did we mention these jams are smooth?

12:56PM PT We're here, and there's some seriously smooth jams playing. We don't mind telling you that this is the smoothest press event we've been to, hands down. Someone call a doctor, we're having a relax attack.