Cisco Systems Inc is stopping a flagship effort to digitise the modern city in the latest example of a big tech company struggling to enter a new market, reported the Wall Street Journal.

The ongoing pandemic has affected Cisco’s core business of networking equipment supply and has limited the ability of local governments to finance such projects.

For years, city planners and local governments have been preparing for technologically advanced urban landscapes, which includes features such as self-driven cars, 5G enabled communication across the city that enables better adaptation to smart devices. 

This vision was a promising new market for Cisco, which is known for providing routers and other networking gear to corporate customers. It became a high-profile initiative for Chief Executive Chuck Robbins, who made efforts to venture into selling software services.

A company spokesperson said, “We recently decided to stop sales and eventually support [for] the Cisco Kinetic for City product line to align our product investment to evolving market needs and customer requirements.”

In 2016, Cisco bought Jasper Technologies Inc for $1.4 billion to help with its so-called ‘Internet of Things’, the connected devices that also would underpin a smart city. The next year, it launched Cisco Kinetic for Cities.

The budget of local authorities for smart cities have been seriously affected by the pandemic. According to a survey by the National League of Cities, which is an advocacy group for a large number of cities, 65% of cities in the US are delaying or canceling infrastructure projects.

Despite the pull-out, Cisco said it is not backing out from business with local authorities and is committed to working with cities in areas such as network connectivity and security.