Cisco Systems Inc., the largest maker of networking equipment, agreed to buy Starent Networks Corp. in a deal valued at $2.9 billion, its second multibillion-dollar acquisition in less than two weeks. Cisco will pay $35 a share in cash and assume outstanding equity awards, according to a statement on Wednesday. Cisco has bought about 130 businesses in its 25-year history, using them to enter new markets, such as cable set-top boxes and home wireless routers. Cisco has about $35 billion in cash and short-term investments. Starent's equipment helps wireless carriers understand the kind of traffic that's crossing their networks, enabling speedy routing of that information to mobile devices.
