Large NAC vendors - Cisco, Symantec and Vernier? Step away from the NAC please!

Looks like Simon, the CEO of Vernier Networks was trolling again and look who he hooked, Dennis Fisher, Executive Editor over at SearchSecurity.com.  Dennis writes an article on NAC growth being sluggish.  It is the typical out-of-date drivel about people waiting for Cisco and Microsoft (he does not even mention the TCG/TNC or any of the recent interoperability with Microsoft) before deploying NAC enterprise wide. 

Dennis does mention that there are many department and branch office deployments taking place. He also mentions that Internet Research Group says the NAC market will top 300 million this year, on the way to 1 billion by 2010.  He even says some organizations have already gone ahead with deployments.  So he seems to contradict himself a bit to me.  He also quotes Pete Lindstrom a bunch.  Funny, I have not seen Pete mentioned too often in regard to NAC.

However, the bonehead quote of the day award goes to Dennis for this beauty, "A handful of mostly large vendors, notably Cisco Systems Inc., Symantec Corp. and Vernier Networks, dominate the landscape at present, with a slew of smaller players scrambling to get into the team picture and attract the attention of potential customers."  Cisco and Symantec I understand, but Vernier Networks?  Are you kidding me?  Did Simon show Dennis those old slides showing Vernier has 30% of the NAC market, while waving his hands and telling him to pay no attention to what the rest of the world knows?  Come on Dennis, when you say stuff like that, you lose all creditability.  Here is another news flash, from Pete this time, "I expect some form of NAC to be integrated into the infrastructure in the next three to five years".  Jeez what a revelation, Pete must have some sort of crystal ball. 

Its articles like this that makes people wonder what passes for news at these places.