July 2006 Archives

Apparently Rich Tehrani was able to get a hold of Iain Milnes, who tells Rich that the work stoppage at Zutys is --hopefully -- temporary. At least until theyget some funding.

 Here's what Rich wrote:

Update:

I just spoke with Iain Milnes the founder of the company and he said they are ceasing operations and terminating employees temporarily -- until they get financing. They feel they have a great product portfolio and a great channel – I agree. They are looking for investors who see this value. Contact iain.milnes@zultys.com for details.

I just heard that NexTone Communications has been added as a sponsor of Thursday's Web Summit titled VoIP Peering - Why The Time Is Now. NexTone joins XConnect, Kayote Networks, J. Arnold & Associates, and TMC in Thursday's event.

Register now.

Skype announced 4 new WiFi phones today:

Belkin WiFi Phone for Skype  
Edge-Core WiFi Phone for Skype
NETGEAR WiFi Phone for Skype
SMC Wi-Fi Phone for Skype

With Skype software pre-loaded and an intuitive interface, the WiFi phones offer the freedom of Internet calling without being tied to a computer. Consumers can initiate Skype calls from access points anywhere in the world.

For more information, check out the Skype store.

Informa Telecoms and Media has just issued a report stating that the number of 3.5G mobile broadband subscribers worldwide will boom more than ten-fold from 2.5 million in 2006 to more than 300 million in 2011.

However, market growth in the coming year will likely be restrained by a lack of devices and content, according to the report Future Mobile Broadband: HSPA, EV-DO, WiMAX & LTE.

"A lack of compelling devices and content led to delayed launches and slow take-up of WCDMA and EV-DO services, and early HSDPA and EV-DO Revision A services are expected to suffer from the very same problems," says Malik Saadi, principal analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media and co-author of the Future Mobile Broadband Strategic Report.

Saadi notes that most HSDPA services are launching with only PC cards and notebooks, although a number of early handsets are also arriving. "However it is striking that as of June no major vendor has unveiled plans for EV-DO Rev. A handsets, although data cards are on the way."

The report posits that 3.5G  handsets will start to mature in 2008, leading to a sharp increase in sales and subscribers in 2008-09. By 2011 85% of 3.5G devices sold will be handsets, and the remaining 15% will be notebooks and PC cards.

• Babble’s FreeB calls are limited to 30 minutes each day.
• After that the standard low-cost Babble rates apply.
• To activate the service, the one-off text message will cost £1.50p, which at today’s conversion comes out to ~$2.75.