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Leaked RIM Letter: Apple Nailing us, Our Apps Suck

June 30, 2011

A leaked letter from a RIM worker discusses how the company is getting beat by Apple and how its apps are sub-par. Suggestions on how the company can improve include focusing on the user experiance, recruiting senior software leaders and enable them to make critical decisions. Moreover the suggestions include cutting projects to the bone - focus more on end-users and less on carriers. The video below was used as reference.

The letter goes on to say to say there needs to be more marketing to drive consumer demand and Canadians are too nice - get rid of the dead wood and non-performers.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Apple, Blackberry, Broadband, FCC, Financial, Gadget, Google, IP Communications, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Wireless

Sprint Tries Desperately to Block AT&T, T-Mobile USA Merger

June 28, 2011

At a time when wireless broadband is becoming so important to US consumers and businesses, how can it make sense to have less choice in the market? Moreover, as carriers shift from all-you-can-eat pricing to a tiered system, isn't it obvious that wireless charges for consumers are going to skyrocket?

These are some of the arguments opponents to the merger of AT&T and T-Mobile USA are making but AT&T spends so much on lobbying and is so well-connected, they seem to be close to getting their deal done.

The situation for Sprint is so dire, the company's CEO Dan Hesse is doing virtually anything he can to prove the deal is bad for consumers. This includes an 18-state push and tripling of the time he spends in front of Congress and regulatory bodies.

Generally any action has positives and negatives associated with it and Hesse has to prove that on balance, AT&T will either provide inferior service or higher prices as a result of this merger.

Certainly the momentum is on the side of AT&T and not Sprint but the government does need to sign off on this deal and if he can find enough sympathetic listeners he may be able to kill this deal or at least make AT&T have to give up some very painful items to get it done.

More from Bloomberg BusinessWeek.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Apple, Communications Developer, Consumer Electronics, E-Commerce, FCC, HD Voice, IP Communications, Networking, SIP, Smart Grid, Social Networking, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, VoIP, Wireless

Verbalizer: Bringing the Power of Google and Voice to Hackers

June 28, 2011

Google Voice Search for Desktop is good but it can be improved and that's the idea behind The Verbalizer from Breakfast which is an open-source development board designed to help even those who aren't extremely technical to build their own voice powered features into Google's new service.

The video below will give you a good idea of how it works and the project reminds me a great deal of the early eighties when I first witnessed a TI PC which had TTS built-in.

Posted in Communications Developer, Google, IP Communications, Speech Technologies, Technology, Unified Communications

Avaya's Support Strategy Emulates Successful Cancer Diagnostic Systems

June 23, 2011

It is an unusual occurrence for me to receive a call from any company to discuss their support. Generally the media gets all warm and fuzzy about tangible things like new product launches – scoops and items you can put in the category of breaking news. Ironically though if you ask most companies what differentiates them from the pack, service and support is typically the most common answer. Yet, I can’t remember other companies asking me to meet their new head of global services.

Posted in Avaya, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, E-Commerce, FCC, Google, HD Voice, IP Communications, Microsoft, Networking, Nortel, SIP, Technology, Unified Communications, Video, VoIP, Wireless

Now You Need to be a Lawyer to Understand Tech?

June 23, 2011

It seemed to start off slowly but now the trend is gaining momentum - lawsuits over patents in tech are everywhere and its tough to make decisions which are best for your company when you aren't sure if the products and services you are purchasing are infringing on the patents of others.

I must say that when the number of stories of tech patents gets to the dizzying level we are seeing today, it isn't good for anyone. Well except lawyers of course. Sure it is great to protect peoples' inventions but at the same time there are some very silly patents out there which are being used to "extort" money out of companies who have successfully put together a suite of products and services consumers want.

Solving the problem is beyond the scope of this entry but to get an idea of what set me off take a look at some recent stories in the patent space:

Oracle versus Google on Android Infringement
Oracle's Android claims slashed by US patent authorities
Ruling awaited in Kodak patent battle with Apple
Dolby Sues Research in Motion for Alleged Patent Infringement

Posted in Apple, Blackberry, Google, Microsoft, Nortel, Technology, Unified Communications, Wireless

Quad: The Death of E-mail and Cisco's Social Enterprise Ambitions

June 20, 2011

Quad moves to the cloud, has native Cius tablet support and offers better interoperability

Last week I took a train into the city from TMC’s Connecticut HQ to spend time with the Cisco Quad collaboration team – using Cisco telepresence technology and it was a fascinating look into the company’s foray into a post-email, collaborative enterprise world. First things first, I wrote about Quad and spoke with Murali Sitaram VP/GM of Cisco's Enterprise Platforms unit last September and since then Quad has not been talked about much in the media and has limited buzz in the market. Moreover, Cisco is repositioning itself – lightening up on consumer products meaning much of the company’s messaging has been in other areas of the market including launching consumer telepresence product UMI – something which should never should have gotten the green light.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Android, Apple, Avaya, Broadband, CRM, Call Center, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, Conference, Conferencing, Consumer Electronics, FCC, Fax, Gadget, Google, IP Communications, Microsoft, Networking, Nortel, SIP, Social Networking, Speech Technologies, Technology, Twitter, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Wireless, iPad

Telecommuting Tax: Now The States Are Killing Jobs

June 16, 2011

In August of last year I explained why there are so few jobs – in part the problem revolves around demonizing the successful by our politicians and in-part because of excessive taxation. Part of the support for my post was an opinion piece from Michael Fleischer of Bogen Communications – a company in the telecom space I have followed for over a decade-and-a-half. Some of you may think Fleischer is complaining too much and he needs to give back more of the money he earns to be fair – but you should know that in New Jersey he has to pay $74,000 so a worker can take home $44,000. He doesn’t mention this but I will – if he then is lucky enough to make profit he could pay 50-60+% of that money back out to the government through federal and state tax as well as various fees – real estate taxes, regulatory compliance, etc.
Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com

This week Fleischer was on Fox Business and isn’t any happier with the state of the US economy and has nothing for venom to spew at politicians who make it more difficult for his company to succeed.

Posted in Broadband, IP Communications, Networking, Political, SIP, Skype, Technology, Unified Communications, VoIP

Ericsson Telcordia Acquisition Analysis

June 14, 2011

TMCnet's latest addition to our writing team is Peter Bernstein and he has some excellent analysis of the acquisition of Telcordia by Ericsson. He believes in general the deal is a good move for Ericsson but as always, there are potential pitfalls which he details.

His intimate knowledge of the companies and space mean he mentions a number of points the financial analysts missed.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Broadband, Cisco, Communications Developer, IP Communications, IPTV, Optical, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, WiMAX, Wireless

Top 20 VoIP Innovators

June 13, 2011

Tom Keating has a slideshow of the top 20 VoIP innovators of all time and if you want my thoughts check out the comment on his post. It is really well done and will take you back if you have been in the biz for a while.

Here is a preview- Polycom is on the list but I won't tell you where.

Posted in Broadband, Cisco, Communications Developer, IP Communications, Open Source, SIP, Skype, Technology, Unified Communications, VoIP, Wireless

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