wireless Linksys
router In 1988, the Tsaos had an idea for a product that would allow multiple computers to share a printer. They started DEW International, later renamed
Linksys, and financed the company with their own savings. It was founded in the garage of the Tsaos'
Irvine, California home. Janie quit her job to run the company full-time. It was a gamble for the couple, who had two toddler sons aged 2 and 4 at the time. The company's product was a moderate success and by 1991, it was generating enough profit to allow Victor to also quit his job at Taco Bell and work on the company full-time. During the company's early days, Tsao often worked 100 hours a week, involving himself with all aspects of the business. His wife took charge of sales, and was responsible for persuading the major retailers
Fry's Electronics and
Best Buy to sell Linksys products in 1995 and 1996, respectively. These were crucial breaks for Linksys, quadrupling its revenue to $21.5 million in 1996, and tripling it again to $65.6 million two years later. In 1999, Tsao developed a $199 broadband router designed for home and small office networks, the first consumer router that cost less than $300. It proved to be Linksys' turning point. Sales increased to $206.5 million in 2000, and tech analyst Steve Baker called Linksys the inventor of consumer home networking. By 2004 the company owned 49% of the networking market, with sales estimated at $538 million. The success of Linksys attracted the attention of the networking giant
Cisco Systems, which contacted the Tsaos in 2002. In March 2003, Victor and Janie Tsao agreed to sell the company to Cisco in a deal valued at $500 million. The following year, the couple was jointly named Entrepreneur of the Year by
Inc. Magazine. They continued to work for Cisco as senior vice presidents until 2007, when they retired from corporate life and shifted their focus to Miven Venture Partners, an investment firm they had founded in 2005. ==Family==