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Just before ITEXPO in Los Angeles Sept. 1-3 be sure to check out the Avaya session titled Technology on Tap: The Social Enterprise - Are you ready for it? This is where you can learn how to integrate Facebook, Twitter and other platforms into your enterprise and customer communications.

Taking place Monday August 31, 2009 at the (show hotel) Westin Bonaventure in Los Angeles from 7:00pm-9:30pm, attendees will have a chance to listen to and meet Paul Dunay the author of Facebook Marketing for Dummies and get a chance to check out Avaya Labs innovations.

Social media is becoming a more important element in corporate marketing and communications and I really give Avaya tremendous credit for choosing to educate companies on the topic.

As an added bonus the event will conclude with some handcrafted ales from the Bonaventure Brewing Company. Here are more details and event registration.

If you are interested in Dunay you can find a mini biography below:

Paul Dunay has spent more than 20 years in marketing, generating demand and creating buzz for leading technology companies such as Google, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, Nuance, Cisco and BearingPoint. He also has delivered work for American Express, Motorola, Genzyme, Novartis, Citigroup, Cendant and Ernst & Young.

Paul currently is the Global Managing Director of Services Marketing for Avaya. His unique approach to integrated marketing has been recognized as the 2008 Winner of the DemandGen Award for Utilizing Marketing Automation to Fuel Corporate Growth, a 2007 & 2006 finalist and the 2005 winner of the Driving New Demand award by the Information Technology Services Marketing Association (ITSMA).

Google today unveiled Listen, an application which allows users of the company's Android devices to search for content in podcasts based on keywords in the headline and description of the content. To me the incredible thing about this application is that it doesn't work with the iPhone, Windows Mobile or Nokia devices. No, this app is Android only at the moment. And while we may seem "Listen" on other platforms soon, for now Google has the potential to use the app to push sales of Android devices.

Google needs to walk a fine line between developing applications which have the ability to be used by the largest potential audience possible while at the same time they need to ensure Android is differentiated in the market with unique applications. What I like about this app in particular is that it leverages something Google does well, search and extends it nicely while users are on the go. And as it so happens, finding interesting podcasts is something many users grapple with so it will be interesting to see if the app gets extended out to the Pre and other gadgets and if this move marks a new trend of Android specific apps for Google.

Here is a new page dedicated to most of the features, benefits and events at ITEXPO West 2009 which takes place in Los Angeles in 13 days. We will update the page as new things happen or are worth sharing. In addition here is the first show daily from the event which is an electronic newsletter designed to keep you posted on the show. Be sure to register ASAP to get these delivered to you via e-mail.

Facebook and social networking in general are having challenges monetizing the tremendous volume of page views they generate but undeterred, social networking leader Facebook is expanding its potential to make money by selling virtual and physical goods in its gift shop. The company is running tests which allow users to purchase various goods for credits.

This may be a good time to address the fact that as of now this service is so entrenched that it has replaced telephone numbers as a primary form of communications for many. You could argue FaceBook already has a replaced most every phone company as the network of choice for communications. Skype and Twitter are other competitors in this regard but communicating in 140 byte increments seems crude to me - like using smoke signals. I still think Twitter is part fad.

But getting back to Facebook - what if the service is able to become a competitor to eBay and/or Amazon. Imagine Facebook emboldened by a model of revenue generation which works.

I would think the people in the company think massive profitability is around the corner as waiters in numerous Silicon Valley restaurants seemed to be happy to share stories about how much Facebook execs spends on wine and food in their restaurants. Whether the company has too much money, thinks they are entitled to work hard and play hard or feel they will be the next Google from a profitability perspective is unclear at this juncture but I am sure we will learn more soon.

What is crystal clear today however is that traditional carriers have lost their lock on their customers and every day they lose it a little more. It is the exact opposite of the grip of a hungry boa constrictor which tightens after each exhalation.

It is tough to know in advance if Facebook will be successful as a "baby" Amazon but so many people live within the application and it seems there is the potential for the company to come up with a way to benefit financially from all the clicks and eyeballs.

And if they do, carriers should be more concerned than they are now. After all, Google, Skype and Facebook are all gunning to be the primary keeper of the customer relationship and as they become more entrenched, carriers have the challenge of figuring out how best to integrate with applications from leading web vendors without becoming a simple commodity broadband provider.

Expect the conversation to continue at ITEXPO in Los Angeles September 1-3, 2009. It should be very exciting. The industry is at a crossroads.

With all the uncertainty in the world there are some things which we can agree upon. For example the demand for certain areas of technology has increased to grow even while global economies have not. We have seen that video, wireless and broadband are all segments of the market where new opportunities have presented themselves. Open-source too is another area where companies are looking to spend more. This is especially true in telecom where open-source intersects with SIP trunking to build new solutions which save money from a hardware and service perspective.

In order to help the world get the most out of open source communications we have a variety of open-source communications training courses in Los Angeles at ITEXPO Sept 1-3, 2009 which will help people receive certifications which will in-turn assist them in their career. Certifications in fast-growing areas such as this in fact have the ability to help people get jobs.

Two of particular interest are focusing on Switchvox and Asterisk - Switchvox training takes place September 1^st and Asterisk 123 training takes place Wednesday September 2^nd.

If you are a reseller, integrator, channel partner, enterprise/SMB IT/telecom worker, carrier operations manager or developer you can benefit from the Asterisk course and Switchvox training will appeal to anyone having anything to do with SMB phone systems. The certifications you achieve will be invaluable and I hope to see you at the show.

We have done our utmost to have ITEXPO be the most complete event it can be. There is literally enough information to keep you busy for all three days of the show (Sept 1-3) and you will likely need to bring others with you to keep up with all the opportunities once you are there. If you are trying to absorb it all you will likely want to follow this simple process.

Go to the conference home page at itexpo.com and click on the blue attendee link at the top of the page.

Click where the red arrow points

 

 

This is where much of the information you need is located. Be sure to register ASAP so you can get on the list for new events as they are added and of course the important show news and happenings. This conference promises to be one of our most exciting ever and I look forward to seeing you all there.

The goal of ITEXPO is not only to be the most complete educational experience in the communications and technology markets we also want to make the show fun and exciting. This is why we still give away a car after doing so for a decade at a variety of shows we have hosted. In addition, we will also be giving away the following gadgets at the keynote sessions.

• Sling Box
• Netbook
• iPhone 3Gs

Come to all of them in a few weeks in Los Angeles if you want a chance to win these shiny new toys.

Recently some media outlets reported incorrectly (links intentionally left out) that Truphone is not working on the iPhone due to a bug in Apple's OS. As it turns out this was a mistake which was caused by misreading  a reference to the bug in a Truphone newsletter. I did just test the application out on an iPhone and it is fine. Here is more if you are interested.

I came across this press release and article on Brightcom's telepresence solutions which will be on display at ITEXPO. Telepresence is just one area of the market which makes the event a must-attend as companies can use the technology to cut travel costs and reduce their carbon footprint. Often in fact a travel budget is cut and an IT department is then left scrambling trying to find a video solution which will take the place of the lost airline seats/dollars. In fact this is why now would be a great time to register to attend the event and come visit Brightcom and the other video vendors at the show.

I started my day today with a cup of coffee and this article from Carl Ford about some areas of discussion at the upcoming 4GWE show in about two weeks in Los Angeles, California. White space, backhaul and machine to machine communications are just some of the areas he touches on and will be covered at the event. It should make for a crucial educational and networking experience and Carl and I look forward to seeing you at the show.