Brendan Read
TMC
VoIP
Tablets as Phones...Are There Signs of It Happening?
February 10, 2011I like cellphones as phones and tablets as e-mail/texting/surfing means. I dislike the reverse: for me and many others cellphones are a terrible tool for communications other than voice. The keyboards may be suited for Tweets and texts but are just too tiny for serious e-mail/chat work for all as are the screens. My wife has a BlackBerry smartphone with the touchscreen pad and the only "smart" task (other than making calls) she uses it for is occasionally checking her e-mails.
Wired Best Option For Rural Broadband?
February 20, 2009Now that some $7 billion+ will be spent on rural broadband expansion, thanks to President Obama's just signed $787 billion economic stimulus package, the interesting question becomes which broadband technologies, wired or wireless should be supported i.e. subsidized to deliver it.
To get at the answers let's look at the two key benefits of this program:
1. It opens the door to truly effective e-commerce to residents and businesses, thereby increasing the availability of competitively priced products and services, and enhancing the economy, and to more information and services like distance learning and telemedicine. That means less gas, vehicle wear, and time in the long drives to the nearest urban centers
2.
Taking The Lead Out of Economic Doldrums
November 24, 2008
Contact centers have always to do more with less, and not surprisingly they have been on the practical edge of technology solutions and practices including e-learning, IP telephony, IVR/speech rec, monitoring, telework, and workforce management. Tools and techniques spearheaded by contact centers, such as the shift to home-based workers, are according to the Telework Coalition being watched and adopted by other sectors.
It is a welcome sign that the Obama Administration is tech savvy, which will encourage development of new technologies and methods that will help contact centers, and all other business functions and sectors, become even more productive and efficient. As noted in Rich Tehrani's recent blog "you begin to realize there could be a massive shot in the arm for the tech sector next year."
Our sector has to do our part, instead of relying totally on government. Fortunately the business cases for adopting IP, telework and speech rec especially are powerful, and if deployed on a widespread basis could lower costs across the board while improving productivity sufficiently to pull us out of the doldrums.
Attention Outsourcers and Clients: It's The Service, S*****
October 9, 2008When I saw the press release from the American Teleservices Association and DialAmerica reporting that most major teleservices clients would leave their outsourcer vendors because they were dissatisfied with them i.e. the service they were getting, I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or curse or all three at the same time. Naturally I turned this into an article that I put on our site.
After all, what are teleservices firms in the business for, except to deliver services? If they can't deliver them to their clients' satisfaction then why should they exist?
The underlying issue is quality.
IP-enabled iPhone: The Ultimate Contact Center Handset?
September 25, 2008Imagine being able to take and make calls, receive e-mails, IMs, and SMS, and at the same time manage web-enabled applications like hosted CRM and workforce management in a convenient, go-anywhere, user-friendly wireless appliance.
Imagine no more being tangled up in cords, or fiddling with multiple (and expensive) gadgets.
Imagine having at last a truly usable phone for home workers, including contact center agents and supervisors.
The hard reality is that when you are working from home you do get interrupted, like for deliveries, plumbers, other contractors, family responsibilities: which beats productivity and cost-wise having to leave early/arrive late to handle when working in a traditional office. Such a device would enable you to stay in touch and keep on the go while signing documents, giving instructions, etc.
The reality of having such a tool may be closer than you may think: in the form of an IP-enabled iPhone that acts like a mutant cordless handset.
Home working, customer care insights from ITEXPO West
September 17, 2008While managing the SIP in the Contact Center Certification track at ITEXPO West yesterday I came across two excellent insights courtesy of the speakers and the attendees.
In a discussion following TDI CTO Mark Moore's session on enabling home-based agents arose the issue of how to manage bandwidth at home agents' premises, what with everyone else in the household tapping into wireless networks unbeknownst to the agents.
The concern is to make sure the demand on the pipe at home is not constricted to the point where agents cannot access applications they need. This can be an issue in many households, especially with teenagers...one that I will be looking into...and reporting back on.
I don't have that problem in my household as the cable feed, base set phones (we have IP for residential too as well as for my work) the wireless hub are in my office, and I know exactly how many devices are on it. It helps that my peak usage times (daytime) are not the same as other users: my wife and a tenant, both of whom are full-time students at a local college.
End of the Line for Toll-Free Numbers?
July 31, 2008Today is the 'last run' for the toll-free number connecting New Jersey Transit, the third largest transit agency in the US, with its customers.
Could this be the beginning of the end for toll-free numbers in North America?
NJ Transit has since June been switching callers from 800-772-2222 to 973-275-5555. When you call the toll free number today you will get a recorded message asking you to call the 973 number And according to an opinion piece in the July 22 Cherry Hill (NJ) Courier-Post, after July 31, there will no longer be any message at the 1-800 number.
NJ Transit abandoned toll-free to cut costs. The high gas prices have attracted more riders but have also increased the costs of diesel fuel used on its buses and many of its commuter trains: the agency also has an electrified commuter rail and light rail network.
The technology environment is finally right for ending toll-free service.
Bell Dings
July 28, 2008
Communications giant Bell Canada does not get often get much praise by consumers, telco professionals, and the media in its "home and native land".
This traditional of the traditional telcos has plodded behind the cable companies and others in offering competitive pricing and new services like residential IP and sometimes indifferent service. Not surprisingly, more consumers have let the old TDM-carrying copper wires go dead and instead are plugging into coaxial cable or go wireless altogether--including with firms other than Bell.
Bell, and some of its other communications counterparts have been ripped into by consumer advocates for their decision to charge for inbound text messages, including spam.
IT Expo West--and IP--is Hot!
July 21, 2008Forget about the economic cooldown: the IP solutions market is hot!
As proof, Rich Tehrani reports in his blog that over 90 percent of booth space at Internet Telephony Conference and Expo West (IT Expo) http://www.tmcnet.com/voip/conference/, which is being held Sept.16-18 in Los Angeles is sold out.
http://blog.tmcnet.com/blog/rich-tehrani/apple/itexpo-90-sold-out.html
Few other technologies have the ability to deliver both cost savings and quality service as the IP-enabled applications and tools, which now support nearly every facet of contact center operations: from routing to recording, to CRM, and to linking home-based agents.
If you are a contact center executive you will find a strong ROI from attending IT Expo even with higher airfares and gas costs, You will pick up insights from a great roster of speakers and from finding out firsthand about IP-enabled products and services from exhibitors.
What you will discover will help your operations grow customer bases and revenues and lower costs. For there is nothing like being at an event and a show to learn, network, and try out new ideas, make contacts, check out the latest solutions, and to find the answers that you are seeking.
If you are a solutions firm and have not yet made up your mind whether to exhibit I invite you to check out the value prop ASAP and sign up before the space is all sold out.
Vonage Injunction
March 23, 2007
A federal judge today issued a permanent injunction against Vonage due to cited use of Verizon Communications' patents (found to be the case in a previous jury decision).
The judge said "he will not formally enter the injunction for another two weeks while he considers Vonage’s request to stay the injunction. Vonage is requesting a stay of either 120 days or until its appeal is heard," according to MSNBC.
Great. Time to find another carrier.
Read the full article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17756147/
TES
The judge said "he will not formally enter the injunction for another two weeks while he considers Vonage’s request to stay the injunction. Vonage is requesting a stay of either 120 days or until its appeal is heard," according to MSNBC.
Great. Time to find another carrier.
Read the full article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17756147/
TES
