Tag Archive
IBM Scores Record Cloud Deal
In what’s being touted as the largest enterprise cloud-based communications deployment to date, IBM (IBM) said that Panasonic will shift its entire workforce to the hosted LotusLive e-mail and collaboration service – abandoning the Exchange server, from Microsoft (MSFT).Panasonic will start by porting over 100,000 workers in various departments, then include 380,000 …(311 words) Related Topics: IBM,... »
Microsoft and HP launch UC partnership
Microsoft and HP have signed a major deal to deliver an end-to-end unified communications offering to customers. The companies will be investing $180 million in developing their UC services. Article Related Topics: market, Microsoft, unified communications »
Skype for Business brings on new talent
As Skype gets more serious about its business VoIP offerings, it is bringing on new talent. David Gurle will be taking over for Stefan Oberg as the new General Manager and Vice President of the Skype for Business unit. Gurle came to Skype from Thomson Reuters where he served as Global Head of Collaboration Services... »
Packet8 Service Down
Almost exactly one year ago 8X8’s Packet8 VoIP service suffered a major outage due to DNS issues. It now appears that both their domains 8×8.com and www.packet8.net are down. But more importantly their VoIP phone service is down. Stay tuned while I try and find out more… Update #1: from Joan Citelli Director,... »
Internet on TV is a highlight at Consumer Electronics Show
The Consumer Electronics Show can look like a circus, a flea market or a fraternity rush, but it’s best viewed as a venture-capital pitch. But instead of suit-clad investors, the audience is anybody who might throw down a credit card at an electronics store. The companies introducing their wares at CES may act like they... »
Skype To Focus on Business and Collaboration
Skype has made a strategic hire to head the unit called Skype for Business. What makes the hire strategic is the person’s background with Reuters, Microsoft and VocalTec. Given the experience David Gurle has, and the moves Skype is making, I would say that SIP, video and the business markets are their core objectives for... »
Google becoming “giant monopoly”: German minister
Internet search engine Google Inc is becoming a “giant monopoly” like Microsoft and could face legal action if it does not become more transparent, Germany’s justice minister said. In an interview with weekly magazine Der Spiegel, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger said she was concerned the firm was accruing too much power and information about citizens via programmes... »
So What Should Motorola Do Now?
Earlier this week, when Google announced its Nexus One phone, it appeared that the new Android-driven connected device ecosystem is going to be a three-headed monster: Qualcomm as provider of the chips, Google as maker of the operating system and HTC as the preferred device manufacturer. (In the PC-centric WinTel world, the infamous troika... »
Microsoft Preempts Apple with Tablets, Yawn.
Consumer Electronics Show (CES) — Microsoft Corp., Lenovo and others have announced new tablets this week, preempting the expected Apple Tablet announcement coming later this month but unlikely to kill the buzz around Steve Jobs’ latest gadget.Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced three new Windows-based tablet PCs during his keynote at …(451 words) Related Topics: consumer,... »
Microsoft, AT&T Tackle TV Everywhere
Consumer Electronics Show (CES) — Microsoft Corp. is wading into the anywhere, any time television fray with Mediaroom 2.0, which will make use of the cloud to provide a way for users to pull down content to various devices in the home, including a PC, TV, mobile phone or Xbox …(268 words) Related Topics: AT&T,... »
Microsoft Channel Digs Discounts
Service-focused solutions providers could stand to gain from Microsoft’s (MSFT) license discounting. The company is making a push to jolt adoption of Windows 7 and the upcoming 2010 – and where partners usually might feel shorted by discounts cutting into margins, they are reporting satisfaction with increased customer service opportunities. …(78 words) ... »
Google Nexus One Review
The Nexus One. In the modern climate of hyped (and over-hyped) smartphone launches, Google’s official entry into the phone-sales game has excelled in a department where many find difficulty: generating legitimate excitement. Of course, long before the name Nexus One or the recent bounty of pictures and details existed, the very concept of a... »
What Palm Needs to Do to Bounce Back
The last few weeks have been dominated by speculation over two things: the Google Phone and the Apple tablet. One is now a reality. The other is still a myth. And beyond this twin-headed meme, attention has been paid to little else. Forgotten is the fact that BlackBerry is still outselling its rivals and... »
Information Week Says Skype and Avaya Are Talking Enterprise Market
When the news gets slow around the holidays you can always expect the rumor mill to be running at full tilt around the household company names. Well, I don’t think this is a rumor at all when I read that Skype and Avaya are in talks to bring Skype into the enterprise. One reason is back... »
How Prices Compare on Different App Stores
With an increasing number of companies launching mobile app stores, we decided it was time to compare them. We wanted to find out the average cost of a paid application on various stores. We asked our friends at Mobclix, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based startup that offers mobile analytics and runs a mobile ad exchange, if... »
Top Stories of 2009: SIP trunking and Unified Communications gain momentum
In 2009 it was hard to look through VoIP news and not bump into another announcement about a SIP or Unified Communications (UC) deal. Both items have gained momentum and are becoming the rule in the VoIP world. According to Infonetics, SIP trunking service revenue is expected to have an 89 percent compound annual growth rate... »
App Analytics Startups Flurry & Pinch Media Merge
Mobile application analytics startups Flurry of San Francisco and Pinch Media of New York are in the process of merging their operations, according to Flurry CEO Simon Khalef. The new combined entity will be called Flurry Media and will maintain offices in both locations. Here is a breakdown of the deal and what it... »
Rumor Mill: O2 buying Jajah
VoIP start-up Jajah may be purchased by O2 for $200 million according to a daisy chain of reports originating from a Hebrew-language news site but re-reported in the Washington Post, on Reuters and CNET. According to reports, Jajah representatives were not available to confirm the $200 million purchase or the bidding war that preceded it.... »
Twitter May Be Profitable — No, Seriously!
Team Twitter: Biz Stone, Ev Williams & Jack Dorsey. Photo by Om Malik We, like so many others, have joked about Twitter’s non-existent business model and its frothy billion-dollar valuation. Apparently we might have to stop that – at least for now. The San Francisco-based micromessaging company is said to be profitable, according to a report... »
Why O2 Wants to Buy Jajah
O2, a division of Telefonica, a Spanish telecommunications company, is in talks to acquire Jajah, a VoIP startup, for about $200 million, Reuters reported today. The company had raised $35 million from various investors including Deutsche Telekom, Intel Capital and Sequoia Capital. According to some rumors, Microsoft and Cisco Systems were also bidding for... »
Case Study: How one SMB got a makeover with UC
Mailing brochures and making calls on your old legacy POTS phone is so over. In the age of unified communications (UC) even small businesses are looking like enterprise operations when they employ the latest communications advancements. With all the recent talk of VoIP equipment sales and how SMBs are upgrading to IP communications and UC in... »
Positron Telecommunication’s Innovative Asterisk-on-a-Card
In the January issue of Internet Telephony Magazine is a TMC Labs review of Positron Telecommunication Systems V114 analog PCI “Asterisk-on-a-card”. They also have an ISDN version and a E1/T1 version. I thought I would share the review here since this is a very innovative product. It is pretty cool to have... »
So the Google Phone Is Real
Yes, Virginia, there really is a Google Phone! And no, I don’t mean all those Android-powered devices, but instead a Google-branded phone that’s made by an original equipment maker. The company has started giving away these devices to its employees, who started tweeting about it last night, and it had to make an announcement... »
Microsoft Cedes to Europe’s Antitrust Regulators
Windows users in Europe soon will get to choose which browser they want on their computers.Microsoft Corp. has struck a deal with Europe’s antitrust regulators; it will let consumers choose which browser they want installed. Options will include Internet Explorer, Mozilla’s Firefox, Google’s Chrome or Apple’s Safari.The agreement takes effect …(102 words) ... »
Adtran throws hat into UC arena
When you think of Adtran, you might usually think of DSLAMs, routers and LAN equipment, but you might also have heard they are dabbling in IP-PBX systems and SIP trunking. As they ramp up their VoIP technology line-up, they are also exploring Unified Communications (UC). The company plans to launch an IP-PBX capable of supporting 2,000... »
Predictions: The Fabulous 5 for 2010
As the first decade of the 21st century draws to a close, we are on the cusp of another massive change in technology, one that will involve a new, more dynamic two-way experience with the web. However, instead of making specific predictions as to which technologies will win (or lose) in 2010, I am... »
Tandberg Enhances Movi, But Will Cisco Slam the Video Interoperability Door?
Videoconferencing is becoming more critical to businesses, especially with many enterprises employing remote teleworkers. As such, having high-quality HD video has become a requirement, as is the ability to simultaneously collaborate within the videoconferencing session. Well, today, TANDBERG announced new advanced capabilities for Movi, its business-quality PC video solution. Movi offers... »
Tying Up Loose Ends: Microsoft, Yahoo, Nortel & Avaya
Minutes after the U.S. stock markets started winding down for the weekend, a few technology giants made some announcements that amount to nothing more than tying up loose ends. Avaya got the go-ahead from Canada to buy Nortel’s PBX business for $900 million in cash. Microsoft & Yahoo finalized their search agreement that was first announced... »
What I Think About the Bing Outage
Bing, the upstart search engine nee portal nee discovery service that had been riding the crest of a goodwill wave, saw that wave come crashing down last night — both literally and figuratively. The site was down from 6:24 p.m. to 7:10 p.m. PT, according to some reports. And with that crash came the... »
Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone 1.3 Released
Yahoo! released an update to Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (version 1.3) today. The new version adds some of the most frequently requested features for the app including: Allowing users to update their display image within the iPhone application Sending iPhone stored photos and videos through IM ... »