July 2008 Archives

Years back I coined a term Just in Time Communications (JITC) to encompass the idea of removing latency from human communications. Art Rosenberg is credited with coining the term Unified Communications and he often writes on the matter. JITC did not stick as a term but UC did.

The funny thing is Art's most recent article talks about removing the latency from UC and reminds me exactly why I liked the term JITC to begin with -- it is this human latency that needs to be removed from the equation.

I am not reopening the discussion of which term makes the most sense. I want the undustry to move forward and grow and term wars are really stupid. Plus, I really don't have a few hundred million dollars lying around to compete with the Microsoft UC ad campaign.

Still, I thought it worth pointing out and sharing Art's concluding paragraph which is really JIT-like.

The bottom line, however, for reducing human contact latency is that individual end users, whether inside or outside an organization, have to be able to initiate and respond to business contacts wherever they are, in whatever modality of contact is available to them, and as independently of the other parties as possible. The primary exception will remain synchronous conferencing (voice, video conversations) that are specifically "person-to-person." This is where callers may benefit from "ASAP" (As Soon As Possible) call connections that will exploit federated presence and availability management technology along with "smart-phone" mobility. That combination will make a voice connection as soon as all parties are available and accessible.

Fuel Prices Fuel Technology

July 31, 2008 4:39 PM | 0 Comments
As fuel prices increase, so does the desire to come up with reasonable alternatives. Some of these efforts revolve around conservation and others have to do with new technologies which make it possible to bypass oil, coal and natural gas.

Today is an unusual day as we have new examples in each category. Detroit has a new mobile web traffic monitoring service which is ad supported and allows drivers to tap into 600 traffic cameras. The theory here is you will see where the traffic is and drive around it. Hopefully this will reduce traffic and save drivers time.

The service called Mobileyes has been launched by 3rd Dimension, Inc. In addition to Detroit, the 3rd Dimension real-time mobile phone traffic service is already available in Hartford, Conn.; New York; Los Angeles; Kansas City; Houston; Knoxville; Indianapolis; and Washington, D.C. It is compatible with data enabled phones on the Sprint, Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile networks; users can access the service from anywhere on popular smart phones such as the BlackBerry, Palm Treo and the Motorola Q.

In other news of the latter type, MIT researchers have found a way to imitate photosynthesis and in doing so can now take the energy of the sun and store it by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. The breakthrough here is the catalyst made from cobalt phosphate which allows this to happen and moreover a side benefit is that excess solar power can now easily be stored as hydrogen molecules which can power a clean burning generator.
Mobile carriers are so in the driver seat. They really are. There is a good deal of money to be made in this space for a reason that may not be obvious. It is kids. You see, one of the most powerful tools in the game of leverage over kids is the phone.

You might even argue that it is really the only leverage some parents have over their kids.

It is for this reason T-Mobile has a Family Allowances plan allowing parents to keep a lid on the phone costs of their kids and spouses. T-Mobile has extended the plan to not just minutes but through a simple interface you can take control of downloads, games, ring tones and more.

In my opinion, this sort of plan is a great idea in an electronic world and there should be controls like this on video game consoles and the like. I would envision tying the use of these gadgets and gizmos to getting good grades, not skipping class, staying sober, not smoking or whatever family metric fits the bill (pun intended) .

If you remember, I discussed this exact sort of application in a recent article on Sonus over a month ago. It is extremely rewarding for me to see advanced services like this deployed and more importantly it is great to write about the potential for a service to be successful -- only to see it rolled out a short time later.

I just reached out to John Nye, VP of Application Services at Sonus Networks. and this is what he had to say about this T-Mobile news, "This announcement is validation for the services we're offering through our IMX Multimedia Platform, which enables carriers to build differentiating applications quickly and cost-effectively. With platforms of this nature, carriers can develop a host of applications ranging from parental controls to video sessions to call blasts, all of which allow them to meet the evolving needs of their customers and generate new revenue streams."

Now I am not 100% sure this service will be the chart topper T-Mobile hopes it will be but what is great is that it is out there, customers will try and there is a chance it could be a game changer for the industry. It could also morph into something better or go away.

As technology evolves, no one knows what the hot application of tomorrow will be and by rolling lots of services out inexpensively you get a chance to see what works and what doesn't and in the end this drives up ARPU and hopefully reduces churn.

If you are interested in this space be sure to to check out Sonus CTO Vikram Saksena at his keynote speech at ITEXPO in Los Angeles, CA September 16th, 2008.

In an effort to compete with PAETEC/Allworx, we can possibly expect Covad to make an acquisition before the year is over of a small PBX player which competes with Allworx. I have heard talk of this and numerous comments which have led me to beleive this development has a high degree of likelihood.

Cuil Analysis

July 30, 2008 8:06 AM | 0 Comments
cuil.jpgI am impressed with aspects of Cuil like the user interface but sadly, this search engine is not the Google killer that many (including the company) had hoped. I launched the new search engine with the same level of excitement in fact I had when I tried Searchme last year.

Just like Searchme, I believe the Cuil user interface is different enough from Google to appeal to a wide audience. The problem with both of the new search searchme.jpgengines is that they aren't very accurate and the results that come back from Cuil seem way off base regardless of search term.

Tom Keating mentioned this as well and so did Luca Filigheddu and Erick Schonfeld. Luca shows that it is not just Google doing better than Cuil but all search engines are more accurate than this start-up founded by ex-Googlers.

So are we destined to have Google be our primary search engine forever? Possibly. You see the size of the Internet is just so vast these days that the cost to launch a new search engine in exponentially greater today than when Google launched.

On top of that, Google has toolbars on so many computers that its access to actual click streams is much greater than any other search engine.

So I guess I shouldn't be so surprised by these poor Cuil results but like many, I often wish the underdog would win and given enough time, money and additional Google defectors, Cuil may just become a force to be reckoned with. 

My Tips to Resellers and VARs

July 29, 2008 5:31 PM | 1 Comment
97 Degrees in Dallas And it is Cool

Well it is relatively cool anyway. Compared to the rest of thee week, 97 feels downright arctic.wink I think the humidity levels are lower as well. I had a great talk today at IP Sizzles 2008 and I am as enthused as ever about our space.

One part of my discussion centered around how my talks used to focus on making money selling VoIP then making money selling IP communications and now it is just communications. It could have even been technology as I focused on things like UPS systems, SANs, RAID systems, disaster recovery, etc.

The reseller of today has to seize opportunities and be smart enough to listen to customer needs and sell them solutions. The era of box pushing is over.

Ribbit Sold to BT

July 29, 2008 9:43 AM | 0 Comments
Seems like the rumors were true. Ribbit was sold to BT for $105 million according to ZDnet. Here are some thoughts on the matter from Andy Abramson as well.

Why would BT buy a company focused on communications development? The primary reason is that they see communications changing rapidly and they want to be on the leading, not trailing edge of this trend. Perhaps most importantly, they don't want the future of telecom to be exclusively in the hands of Google and Apple. This is a smart move by the UK-based telecom giant.

Will BT be successful in this move?

It is unclear becasue large service providers do not generally have similar cultures to Silicon Valley start-ups. Think total opposite in fact. In order to make this acquisition work, the founders will need to stay on for a while and be motivated to perform.

They will also need to stay a standalone company. If they get rolled into BT you can start writing the obituary today IMHO.

This transformation of communications is exactly why you need to be at the Communications Developer show this September in LA. C U There.smile

Early Morning at IP Sizzles

July 29, 2008 7:35 AM | 0 Comments
Here is a nice shot of Dallas in the morning before the sun comes up. Temperatures are probably in the low 90s now. I am only partly kidding. This week is a scorcher.

I speak soon at the IP Sizzles 2008 conference and I can't wait to be in front of the international reseller community again.

Blogged via wireless handheld.


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View From The Sheraton

July 28, 2008 10:00 PM | 0 Comments

IP Sizzles 2008 has kicked off and I am heading there now. Here are some shots from the show hotel and the kick off SIP Margarita party.

Blogged via wireless handheld.


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En Route to IP Sizzles 2008

July 28, 2008 2:20 PM | 0 Comments

It is safe to say I am now in Dallas and will soon be at the Sheraton Grand DFW the show hotel for the event where I will be giving a keynote address tomorrow.

Oh and the seat next to me was not empty. I can't complain as the plane had power and the ride was only moderately bumpy. Then again we are only about halfway there.

Blogged via wireless handheld.


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On My Way to IP Sizzles

July 28, 2008 6:50 AM | 0 Comments
I am off to Dallas and wouldn't you know it - LaGuardia Airport is mobbed. Perhaps as busy as I have ever seen it. Didn't the nightly news tell us people aren't traveling?

Is this a positive trend for the airlines and the economy. Hope so... But most of all I hope the seat next to me is empty.smile

Blogged via wireless handheld.


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The IP communications space has so many players and I wonder if it isn't a problem that many of us in the press and blogging community spend so much time talking about the well-known companies at the expense of smaller players who also produce large amounts of innovative technology.

I couldn't help thinking about this as I met recently with Fred Hakim the founder of Dalcom Telecom. The company has built a robust IP communications network and manufactures a telephone called DalPhone which is tightly coupled with the network. The phones are based on USB and work with Windows XP.

dalcom-dalphone.jpg

I found this phone pretty interesting - it isn't the fanciest but it seems to be bulletproof in terms of NAT penetration and voice quality over extreme wireless network conditions was impressive.

In addition, the phone is configured to work with a browser and pulls up appropriate screens based on buttons that are pushed. For example if the phone needs to be recharged, you press a button which pops an HTML page which allows you to enter your payment.

In a demo at TMC headquarters Hakim showed how you could get a phone number (or multiple numbers) assigned to your phone in near real-time and at that point the phone is up and running.

The phones also have unique eight-digit numbers on the back allowing them to connect with one another for free and directly.

The phones coupled with the network are perfect for vertical markets such as jewelry, real estate or any where a PBX is not required and remote workers need access. The company's' solutions also work well for a service provider such as a rural telco looking to move to VoIP.

Other areas where this solution would make sense are dating sites or social networks.

If you are interested in learning more, give Fred Hakim a call at +1(516)466-7733 or send him an email.

Road Warrior Bible

July 27, 2008 3:38 PM | 0 Comments
Everyone needs an ultimate guide. Whether you like to fish, run marathons, play chess or whatever. Andy Abramson recently published what I would consider to be a road warrior bible and it is full of great resources to not only handle your technology needs but it also discusses services which ship luggage.

Andy has a specific blog entry with these tips and an entire blog category titled Working Anywhere which will chronicle his future writings on the topic.

The Old Muppet Guys

July 27, 2008 3:34 PM | 0 Comments
As part of my regular weekend diversions I suggest you check out the old guys from the Muppets. The Internet -- a place full of sarcasm and the one place where the pair belong.

This is a 4-part series totaling about 60 seconds.


Fuel Cells Power Base Stations

July 27, 2008 2:49 PM | 0 Comments
We live in a world obsessed with treating the environment better. While this statement does not apply to the entire world, the green technology movement in Europe and the US seems to be growing faster than ever. Still, when ensuring your carrier network has redundant power, you have options which are not really environmentally friendly. Diesel generators and batteries are but a few examples. Sure, there are cleaner diesel generators now than ever but still, it is diesel and it does generate a good amount of carbon.
 

This is why I found my recent meeting with Sandra Saathoff of Relion (formerly Avista Labs) very interesting. Her company makes fuel cells and targets carrier networks where there is a need for 100W-12KW. The company's technology has applications in DLC, fiber, wireless base stations, backhaul, disaster response and repeater stations among others.

relion-i1000.jpg

Relion's products such as the I-1000 1kW PEM fuel cell (pictured above) use hydrogen for power and give off water so from an environmental perspective, this is a great solution. There are of course hydrogen storage issues and Saathoff admits freely her company's solutions are not perfect for all situations.

She also says that her company is benefitting from areas which are banning diesel generators as her company's solutions do not have acid spills or HAZMAT certificates associated with them. She also points out that Relion's solutions are hot swappable and redundant and at certain power ranges and run times, Relion's solutions are cost competitive.

I asked if her company will build larger systems to target data centers and her thought s are that for now it makes sense to focus on increased power density in the fuel cells they currently produce.

Other companies are also supplying equipment in this space. Motorola for example provides fuel cell technology to back up their Tetra base stations (see video below).


As an aside, if your base station doesn't need to be on the ground, you have the option of flying it 12 miles in the air and allowing the sun to power it.
 

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My take is that fuel cells are great for the environment and should be seriously considered as an alternative to diesel and batteries. Of course the issue with hydrogen in cars is how to get it efficiently and how to keep it stored at ultra-low temperatures. Similar issues need to be worked out for stationary fuel cells but the good news is that the intense focus on alternative energy sources is helping "fuel" the cause to get hydrogen more broadly distributed.


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