Here is a candid video interview with an Intel CFO Andy Bryant who discusses a reorganization that is taking place and how Intel is going to go about taking back share from AMD. They think they will take share back in Q3, Q4 and beyond. Intel believes their chip products are superior and they hope that the latter half of the year will be a bright spot in their future.
April 2006 Archives
Microsoft has recently had a patent approved in an area that allows communities to be built around TV content. The idea is to be able to click on a link in a program and go to a chatroom.
The same idea can obviously work with voice as well. This is a great application for voice communities. Even better – video communities where you send a video clip of what you think about the show, etc.
Perhaps the patent is more complicated than this article lets on but it seems very trivial and I can't imagine anyone getting a patent for something that seems so obvious. Then again I am not a patent attorney.
As I see this concept as integral part of all future TV watching this patent is a nice feather in Microsoft’s cap.
The same idea can obviously work with voice as well. This is a great application for voice communities. Even better – video communities where you send a video clip of what you think about the show, etc.
Perhaps the patent is more complicated than this article lets on but it seems very trivial and I can't imagine anyone getting a patent for something that seems so obvious. Then again I am not a patent attorney.
As I see this concept as integral part of all future TV watching this patent is a nice feather in Microsoft’s cap.
A well-known VoIP company I cannot identify will have a huge voice community announcement next week. Keep your eyes peeled on this blog for details.
Look no further than this article to see just how hot cable telephony is getting. Recently, Comcast showed a threefold increase in profits, largely lifted by the increases in high-speed Internet and digital phone subscriptions.
In the US, phone companies are launching IPTV services as fast as they humanly can to keep up with cable companies. Consumers seem to enjoy bundled pricing and convenience. This means if phone companies can’t get a triple-play strategy working they may have to rely on business customers for future earnings growth.
In the US, phone companies are launching IPTV services as fast as they humanly can to keep up with cable companies. Consumers seem to enjoy bundled pricing and convenience. This means if phone companies can’t get a triple-play strategy working they may have to rely on business customers for future earnings growth.
The Vonage IPO values the company at $2.65 billion according to TMCnet’s Bob Liu.
For the full year, marketing expenses totaled $243.4 million in 2005, nearly as much as the $258.2 million garnered in telephony services revenue.
Just over 30 million shares will be sold by the company which is the equivalent of 20% of the company. With only one-fifth of the outstanding stock floated to the public, it would be impossible for any prospective M&A buyer to take over the company without privately negotiating with investors and management. After the IPO, the company will have 155.7 million shares outstanding, valuing the company at $2.65 billion at the mid-point of the proposed IPO pricing range.
The company chose to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange with a proposed ticker symbol of “VG.” I wonder why they didn’t choose the NASDAQ.
This could be great news for the VoIP industry and I wish them well.
For the full year, marketing expenses totaled $243.4 million in 2005, nearly as much as the $258.2 million garnered in telephony services revenue.
Just over 30 million shares will be sold by the company which is the equivalent of 20% of the company. With only one-fifth of the outstanding stock floated to the public, it would be impossible for any prospective M&A buyer to take over the company without privately negotiating with investors and management. After the IPO, the company will have 155.7 million shares outstanding, valuing the company at $2.65 billion at the mid-point of the proposed IPO pricing range.
The company chose to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange with a proposed ticker symbol of “VG.” I wonder why they didn’t choose the NASDAQ.
This could be great news for the VoIP industry and I wish them well.
The massive amount of traffic we are receiving daily at TMCnet has caused us to continually upgrade our web infrastructure. This weekend or next we will be upgrading vital components with the goal being to provide you faster access to the latest communications technology and news. You may see a slight hiccup this Sunday or next as we transition to a server that sounds more like a jet engine than a computer. I am also convinced I can sear some tuna by touching it to the back of this computational bad boy.
Moreover, much of our software is being tweaked to ensure optimal performance. Thanks for making TMCnet the largest communications and technology community in the world. We should be passing the 1 million unique visitor mark per month mark any day now.
One last point… Thanks to you, TMCnet is in the top 1,400 sites in the world as ranked by Alexa. We are no Vonage (Alexa: 708) or Skype (Alexa: 209) but we’re getting there. :-)
Moreover, much of our software is being tweaked to ensure optimal performance. Thanks for making TMCnet the largest communications and technology community in the world. We should be passing the 1 million unique visitor mark per month mark any day now.
One last point… Thanks to you, TMCnet is in the top 1,400 sites in the world as ranked by Alexa. We are no Vonage (Alexa: 708) or Skype (Alexa: 209) but we’re getting there. :-)
I am intrigued by the new software defined circuit and packet processing technology from Carrier Access... FLEXengine is used for cell site access, switching center and transport hub locations. FLEXengine integrates data interworking functions to optimize the transport of 2G and 3G broadband data over both existing and new packet-based broadband wireless access networks.
Carrier Access says the technology will allow wireless carriers to save money when upgrading cell sites to mobile switching centers deploying new web and video data services.
The question we all want to know is will this technology actually lower cell phone bills? :-)
It is a commendable accomplishment and one that has ramifications that may not be immediately obvious. Skype has reached the 100 million user mark. I went to the company’s website to see how many downloads there have been but couldn’t find this info. Instead I found a banner announcing the 100 million user mark.Congratulations Skype!
Here is one of the graphics the company uses in an e-card you can send to a friend.
940,000 unique visitors with four days left to go!
I got this message today from my web team just now. As you may recall we are hoping TMCnet will break one million unique visitors in a month as measured by WebTrends. Thanks again for being a visitor to TMCnet, our blogs, news sites, etc. We are very excited about hitting this new goal. If you think our site is useful, please tell you friends and colleagues about us.
We all remember the infamous scene in Risky Business where Tom Cruise stalls the Porsche in his parent’s driveway as he backs it out of the garage. True car buffs recall this was a Porsche 928 – a car that didn’t make it because Porsche aficionados think Porsche engines need to be in the rear.
But what on earth does Tom Cruse have to do with the VoIP industry? After all, we haven’t seen any VoIP industry insiders screaming on Oprah's couch. Then again Oprah would likely never invite a VoIP insider on her show!
The similarity is all about risk and there could be lots of it. Consider that even though private companies aren’t bound by Sarbanes-Oxley (Sox) many investors are beginning to expect the companies they invest in to run as if they are bound by Sox.
A company called Aperio CI makes a point to tell the VoIP market that service providers need to be concerned about the following:
Fraud Detection/Prevention
Wholesale Reconciliation Issues
Legal Compliance
Aperio’s CEO Duffy Mich tells me there are a number of reasons VoIP providers are at risk. For example if a residential line is used for commercial purposes or the line gets used for outbound telemarketing.
In addition, international offerings increase risk as they have higher termination costs and the potential for premium call rates to cell phones, etc.
Another concern VoIP providers should have is telecom fraud as VoIP lines can become free neighborhood phone booths and subsequently can increase service provider cost substantially.
In addition there are wholesale reconciliation issues such as access/egress fees that could be increased by incumbents to ensure their own compliancy.
Aperio CI recommends daily, near real-time monitoring of raw switch analysis and pattern analysis. In addition they recommend a tiered response to users suspected of fraud. They think you should use three levels of notification:
Notice (first time offenders/valued customers)
Warning (Second time offenders/valued customers)
Suspension of Service (low margin/repeat offenders)
Beyond dealing with risk the company feels a business should focus on data analytics in their VoIP service business. You need, churn predication, marketing effectiveness analysis and customer support analysis.
It should also be noted that data analytics needs to be implemented to detect fraud, increase billing accuracy and meet legal mandates.
In the end every business is a risky business in that there are always potential pitfalls you can avoid. After all, you probably don’t to be the company running around in the living room in your underwear playing air guitar to Bob Seger. The question is how will you protect yourself from the risk knowing ahead of time there are things you can do to increase profit and decrease exposure?
But what on earth does Tom Cruse have to do with the VoIP industry? After all, we haven’t seen any VoIP industry insiders screaming on Oprah's couch. Then again Oprah would likely never invite a VoIP insider on her show!
The similarity is all about risk and there could be lots of it. Consider that even though private companies aren’t bound by Sarbanes-Oxley (Sox) many investors are beginning to expect the companies they invest in to run as if they are bound by Sox.
A company called Aperio CI makes a point to tell the VoIP market that service providers need to be concerned about the following:
Fraud Detection/Prevention
Wholesale Reconciliation Issues
Legal Compliance
Aperio’s CEO Duffy Mich tells me there are a number of reasons VoIP providers are at risk. For example if a residential line is used for commercial purposes or the line gets used for outbound telemarketing.
In addition, international offerings increase risk as they have higher termination costs and the potential for premium call rates to cell phones, etc.
Another concern VoIP providers should have is telecom fraud as VoIP lines can become free neighborhood phone booths and subsequently can increase service provider cost substantially.
In addition there are wholesale reconciliation issues such as access/egress fees that could be increased by incumbents to ensure their own compliancy.
Aperio CI recommends daily, near real-time monitoring of raw switch analysis and pattern analysis. In addition they recommend a tiered response to users suspected of fraud. They think you should use three levels of notification:
Notice (first time offenders/valued customers)
Warning (Second time offenders/valued customers)
Suspension of Service (low margin/repeat offenders)
Beyond dealing with risk the company feels a business should focus on data analytics in their VoIP service business. You need, churn predication, marketing effectiveness analysis and customer support analysis.
It should also be noted that data analytics needs to be implemented to detect fraud, increase billing accuracy and meet legal mandates.
In the end every business is a risky business in that there are always potential pitfalls you can avoid. After all, you probably don’t to be the company running around in the living room in your underwear playing air guitar to Bob Seger. The question is how will you protect yourself from the risk knowing ahead of time there are things you can do to increase profit and decrease exposure?
Karen Greenwald the head of the Burbank Group wrote an article for TMCnet a while back and was subsequently given an award by the prestigious Summits Awards website. She is quite talented and we are proud to have her as a contributor to TMCnet. Here is the link to the release.
Interesting info on what VoIP adoption looks like in the education market:
Of the surveyed institutions, 43 percent reported that they are using VoIP. However, almost all of the users noted that the VoIP network currently covers less than 25 percent of their campus. Among those who assigned their VoIP network a grade, the responses averaged out to a solid B – a 3.13 grade point average. However, 25 percent gave the network an “incomplete.”
The most frequently mentioned benefits of the VoIP network were improved end-user features (cited by 46 percent of the users), cost savings (cited by 31 percent), and overall network efficiency (cited by 23 percent).
These VoIP users do have concerns and ongoing challenges when it comes to their use of the technology. Security was named by 77 percent of the users as a concern, with Quality of Service and emergency 911 issues cited by 69 percent. Sixty-two percent pointed to management as an issue.
Other challenges cited were cost, user training, complexity, and help desk issues.
“There is obviously tremendous interest in Voice over IP networking on North American campuses,” said Jeri Semer, executive director of ACUTA. “Our survey suggests that our member institutions are being very methodical about how they are migrating to this advanced and beneficial technology.”
Recently I read an article regarding MySpace.com being banned in a University (it is also mentioned in the first article link) and whether this could lead to VoIP being banned as well. I find it interesting that VoIP in universities seems to be coming up more and more recently.
Bear Stearns analyst says VoIP offerings are not of the same quality level compared to the LECs. In addition, AT&T earnings were above expectations and headcount reduction is ahead of schedule.
See video for details.
See video for details.
I wasn’t aware of yet another VoIP patent, 5,572,576. I haven’t heard about VoIP patents since the RTI Vs. Google case. It seems this patent was at the center of a lawsuit between AOL and Klausner Technologies. Klausner was seeking $200 million. The lawsuit is settled. The terms do not seem disclosed.
Here is an open letter to the industry. TMC is growing very rapidly in print, online and at our events. Many of you know our track record. If you don’t, here are some of the details.
TMC launched the first magazine in the world in the call center space, the VoIP space, the SIP space and the IMS space. We also run the best-attended events in VoIP and TMCnet, our web portal is on track to exceed a million unique visitors a month.
With that, we are looking for marketers, salespeople and editors who want to work in a great environment with an incredible team. If you have related experience and are a top performer, please respond to this post.
Please forward this post to anyone who you think is a good fit for the above positions. Thanks!
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