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Cablevision's WiFi Network in New York City

May 9, 2008

WiFi is not new and providing WiFi to a city is not new. What is new and worth noodling on is the fact Cablevision will soon have a WiFi network in New York City -- well over the next few years really.

The network will be voice-ready -- supporting WiFi telephony/VoWLAN and speeds could reach 1.5 Mbps.

Over the decades, Ethernet technology has always evolved to kill the competition. Although LTE and WiMax will be viable options, one wonders what would happen if WiFi continues to evolve -- like Ethernet to eventually cover more and more areas of the world.

Of course this scenario seems unlikely based on the fact that most companies haven't figured out how to make money in the WiFi ISP space. Still, it will be worth watching to see how this all plays out.

After all, I still don't have a WiMax or LTE radio in my cell phone or laptop.

See Also:

Posted in AT&T, Blackberry, Broadband, Cisco, Consumer Electronics, FCC, Google, IP Communications, Microsoft, Nortel, SIP, Skype, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Vonage, WiMAX, Wireless, Yahoo

SkyFire: The Cure for iPhone Envy

May 8, 2008

Do you have iPhone envy? I do. In fact, just this past Sunday I walked into the AT&T store and I browsed TMCnet on the iPhone and was blown away at how easy it was to surf on this phone compared to a Windows Mobile 6 device. I then asked if there was a firm ETA on the 3G iPhone (there isn't) and as I walked into the nearby Starbucks with my family I debated with my wife the pros and cons of switching to the Apple device from my HTC 6800 on Verizon.

I was close to deciding to switch to Apple (you already know I hate the soft keyboard) when I received my text message invite to the Skyfire Beta 0.6 release of their new browser.

Posted in Apple, Blackberry, Broadband, Consumer Electronics, E-Commerce, FCC, Google, IP Communications, Microsoft, SIP, Skype, Technology, Verizon, VoIP, Wireless, Yahoo

Skype as David, Telcos as Goliath

May 7, 2008

OK, now I have heard it all. Large, incumbent telephone companies are going to launch a competitor to Skype.

But before I proceed with my thoughts, as often the case with such amazing speculation, it is good to air out the details before dismissing them outright. After all, an informed reader may think they know better than me and I have been wrong in the past. Pobody's nerfect as they say.

The Details

Apparently ThinkPanmure, a research firm has been speculating for years that incumbent telecoms from around the world will work together to make a software package that will interoperate on various networks and leverage 3G and wired broadband investments.

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Blackberry, Broadband, Consumer Electronics, IP Communications, Microsoft, SIP, Skype, Technology, Verizon, Video, VoIP, WiMAX, Wireless, Yahoo

Google Pushes Verizon on 700 MHz Open Access

May 6, 2008

Many of us thought the open access provisions of the 700 MHz auction were taken care of and this was the reason Google got involved in the auction in the first place. It seems now that Verizon is saying that open access means open access to any application on their approved devices.

This as opposed tot he concept of bring whatever device you want to the party and it will work fine.

Google's attorneys are writing letters tot he FCC about the matter and this debate underscores the different points of view held by carriers and and Internet companies.

Matthew Lasar over at ars technica has a great article on the matter.

See Also:

Update: Google concerned about Verizon's open access

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Blackberry, Consumer Electronics, FCC, Google, Technology, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Wireless

Avtech Software Protects Data Centers

May 4, 2008

Companies spend incredible sums of money on their communications and technology infrastructure but all too often they do not focus enough attention on protecting the investment in such equipment. As telepresence, unified communications, handheld devices, mobility and IP communications turbocharge corporate productivity; a simple air conditioner malfunction can put an end to racks of equipment which house the tools many corporate workers need to get their jobs done.

Having said that there are companies whose main focus is to ensure your data center functions at all times regardless of humidity, fire, flood or other factors which generally do not mesh well with your typical server.

I recently caught up with Michael Sigourney, the founder of Avtech Software to discuss how his products are helping companies protect their investments in technology and productivity.

The company’s flagship product is the 26W and for a list price of $1,195 you get hardware, a web interface, alerting and the ability to begin corrective action such as initiating a system shutdown in the case of triggered events.

The Ferrari red colored box (which not coincidentally contains a bright red circuit board) allows connections for a variety of external sensors such as power, flood, smoke, motion, air flow, room entry, sound, light, panic buttons and more.

The data the box collects is output into an unmodifiable file which is great for companies who need such a feature to help them with regulations relating to compliance. And yes, of course you could export this file and modify it elsewhere if needed.

Sigourney proudly tells me that every branch of the US government and the majority of the Fortune 1,000 use his products and even some military aircrafts and missiles have his technology in them.

The company’s latest product the Signal Tower is fairly unexciting as it is essentially a traffic light which can be seen any angle and set to signal problems. Green, yellow and red lights can blink, etc in conjunction with an alarm depending on network and other events.

But having a product that is boring does not mean it is not useful.

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Blackberry, Broadband, Call Center, Consumer Electronics, Google, IP Communications, Microsoft, Technology

Blackberry Outage

May 3, 2008

If you are having trouble getting e-mail on you mobile device it just could be because there was a scheduled Blackberry outage that ran over by approximately six hours.

Engadget has more details and to be honest, I did some searches for others covering this news and couldn't find anything. Either I am just not having a good search day or this is an unusual scoop by engadget. Of course this could also mean engadget has it wrong so feel free to comment on whether your RIM device has been working overnight.

See also: Zenprise on BlackBerry Outage

Posted in AT&T, Blackberry, Consumer Electronics, IP Communications, Technology, Verizon, Wireless

Nortel's Joel Hackney Discusses Earnings

May 2, 2008

Nortel announced earnings today and to get more detail on the news I had a chance to speak with Joel Hackney, President of the Enterprise Solutions Group at Nortel.

Some details worth sharing... The company's net loss widened but revenue was up 11% and gross margins have been increasing for six quarters. Operating margin was just under 5% which is up from the prior year.

Overall, this interview shows that many communications companies continue to do well in a slower economy.

For more details, check out this podcast interview.

You can find more Joel Hackney interviews here.

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Conferencing, Consumer Electronics, E-Commerce, FCC, Google, Green, IMS, IP Communications, IPTV, ITEXPO, JITC, Microsoft, Nortel, Open Source, Patent, Personal, Podcast, Rates Technology, SIP, Science, Security, Speech Technologies, TMCnet, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, WiMAX, Wireless

Interop Bound and Thanks

April 27, 2008

Another year, another Interop. I am off once again across the country to Vegas where I will likely spend more time standing in line than I will sleeping. How amazing is the fact that you can build a city in the middle of nowhere and after fifty years get people from all over the world to come visit your city and spend their precious time waiting. Waiting to gamble; waiting to eat; waiting for a hotel room; waiting, waiting, waiting.

Thankfully I will have all my gadgets and gizmos and will continue to blog and email away while I wait, wait for everything.

Having said all that, although I do despise the cab line that comes with the Vegas airport I do like the fact that the airport is not too far from the strip and moreover, at least Vegas is closer to Connecticut than California is.

How is that for turning my lemons into lemonade?

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Conferencing, IP Communications, IPTV, Microsoft, Nortel, Open Source, Patent, Security, Skype, Speech Technologies, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Vonage, Wireless, Yahoo

PhoneTag, The New Simulscribe

April 25, 2008

Jamie Siminoff beams with enthusiasm as he explains to me in this podcast about his excitement regarding his company's name change from SimulScribe to PhoneTag. According to Siminoff, sales have increased dramatically since the announcement of the new name and moreover, his customers feel more comfortable recommending the service to others as the name is now easy to remember.

Why else is Jamie so happy, what new features does the service now offer and where is his laptop located? Well for answers to these and other pressing questions, be sure to check out the podcast.

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, Call Center, Cisco, Consumer Electronics, IP Communications, Microsoft, Nortel, Podcast, SIP, Security, Skype, Speech Technologies, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, VoIP, Vonage, Yahoo

Blackberry Voice Search

April 23, 2008

TellMe just launched a new application which allows people to use their Blackberry for voice search. utilizing the TellMe speech recognition engine and Microsoft Live Search, you can have search results automatically localized if you happen to have a GPS-enabled Blackberry.

This is a pretty big deal as it brings voice and local search together and shows where the search business is headed. It also shines light on what the real reason was for Microsoft to purchase Tellme. Not that any of us are surpised of course.

What might be worth discussion however is the fact that Microsoft would support RIM with an application which makes the Blackberry more attractive.

Posted in AT&T, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Conferencing, Consumer Electronics, E-Commerce, FCC, Google, IP Communications, Microsoft, Nortel, SIP, Security, Speech Technologies, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, VoIP, Vonage, Wireless, Yahoo

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