This is the time of year that I’ll make my industry predictions for the next calendar year. First of all, I would like to say that there will be a 2013. I know the Mayan calendar ends on December 21st, but if I really believed that, then I wouldn’t really be making any 2013 predictions, would I? Plus, even if the Mayans are right, then no one will be around to know I predicted a 2013. So I don’t see a downside to predicting a 2013.
1. Mobile Congestion will continue to be a story in 2013. We’ve seen improvement regarding this issue in 2012, even though there were still some issues that made the news. I just think with more and more LTE devices coming on the market, and the continued surge in smartphone and tablets, and the video consumption that occurs with them, that we’ll see some major meltdown somewhere in 2013.
2. PSTN sunset will generate more buzz in 2013 than ever before. Carriers and some vendors want these to just “go away” since they’re a pain to manage. But as Hurricane Sandy proved to those in the Northeast, the old POTS kitchen phone worked, while those relying on IP phones and cell phones (i.e. need power!) couldn’t communicate. There won’t be any significant movement to the PSTN sunset in 2013.
3. VoIP is moving to the mobile arena. It’s there now because of Skype and Messenger apps, but people will actually start to use these more in 2013.
4. If you haven’t heard of WebRTC (Web Real Time Communication) you will by the end of 2013. Actually, if you read my blogs, you’ll know what it is by the end of January 2013 since in January I’ll write a series of WebRTC blogs and it’s impact on application developers.
5. The role of the Session Border Controller will continue to evolve. Due to the vast types of media passing through SBCs (video and voice in different types of formats) and the number of networks these SBCs need to interface with (4G, WiFi, SuperWiFi, DSL, Cable, etc.) the “evolved” SBC will need to deal with different interconnectivity and media conversions.
Bonus prediction. The New York Mets won't win. But I may take a trip to Citi Field, we'll see. Definitely will take a trip to Vegas to see the Area 51's play.
