News Archive - May 2010
Verizon pledges to promote new Motorola smartphones
May 28, 2010
Motorola signs deal with Verizon Wireless to ensure that its upcoming smartphones receive a heavy marketing push from the carrier.
Does cloud computing need LAMP?
May 23, 2010
The LAMP stack is a collection of open-source technologies commonly integrated to create a platform capable of supporting a wide variety of Web applications. Do we need something similar in the cloud computing space?
Cisco to launch $500 home TelePresence
May 21, 2010
Cisco Systems is testing a consumer version of its Telepresence videoconferencing system and expects to begin selling the product late this year for around $500.
The SIP Forum and the i3 Forum Partner to Promote Interoperability of SIP-based Carrier Services
May 20, 2010
The SIP Forum and the i3 Forum have joined forces to help spur the interoperability of SIP-based carrier services, including Fax-over-Internet-Protocol (FoIP) interoperability on a global basis.
Google tries freeing Web video with WebM
May 19, 2010
Google unveiled an open-source, royalty-free video codec called WebM, lining up commitments from Mozilla and Opera to support the encoding technology in their browsers and pledging to support it on its YouTube site.
Microsoft kills off Response Point IP phone
May 18, 2010
Microsoft has announced the official cancellation of Response Point, a small-business phone system that routed calls over Internet Protocol networks. — Odd that we've never even heard of this product. Clearly, Microsoft failed to market this at all.
Google to Buy Global IP Solutions (GIPS)
May 18, 2010
Google has offered just over $68M to acquire Global IP Solutions (GIPS), the creator of the free speech codec iLBC and the wideband speech codec iSAC. Both of these codecs are popular with VoIP equipment manufacturers.
Google: Microsoft Office 2010 A Cloud Collaboration Wannabe
May 17, 2010
Google says Microsoft Office 2010, Microsoft’s new suite of office productivity applications, lacks the cloud collaboration chops that Google has honed over the last four years with its cloud-based Google Docs offerings. — Are they kidding? They seriously want to compare Google Docs with Office? That's like Yugo vs. BMW.
LTE subscribers to hit 200 million by 2015
May 17, 2010
Mobile operators committed to LTE (Long-Term Evolution) wireless broadband will pick up more customers over these next five years by offering dual-mode devices that can use both 3G and LTE.
Cisco Stands By Its Telepresence Bet
May 14, 2010
Cisco is serious about video. Not just the kind running through its routers and switches, but also the burgeoning market for pricey videoconferencing systems, what it calls "telepresence." One metric for that enthusiasm: Last month it closed a deal to acquire Norwegian videoconferencing firm Tandberg for $3.3 billion.
Skype won't be developing software for Windows Phone 7
May 13, 2010
Skype has just revealed that they don't have any development plans for bringing their popular VoIP service to Windows Phone 7.
One in four U.S. homes ditch landlines
May 13, 2010
During the last half of 2009, 24.5 percent of all U.S. households had at least one mobile phone and no landline telephones, representing a 1.8 percent increase compared to the first half of 2009.
Clever Verizon Service Cuts Mobile Roaming Fees in Europe
May 10, 2010
Verizon Business says it can help European companies cut back on mobile service costs, including international roaming fees, with a new service offering. — It's unfortunate this author called this a "clever trick", given how widely used this "clever trick" is, but it's nonetheless worth noting that Verizon supports bypassing carrier fees with callback services.
VMware Acquires GemStone For Building Cloud Computing Applications
May 10, 2010
By adding GemStone’s caching techniques for speeding applications, VMWare can offer Java developers the modern middleware they need for cloud-based applications.
Google Android surpasses iPhone in U.S.
May 10, 2010
Google's Android operating system edged out Apple's iPhone operating system for the No. 2 spot in the U.S. consumer smartphone market in the first quarter 2010.
Hotel network crushes Cisco’s grand vision
May 6, 2010
Cisco and its latest sidekick Tandberg believe videoconferencing has now reached the tipping point to go mainstream, but as the company learned first hand today, fancy front-ends count for nothing if you don't have the right plumbing.
Cloud computing for business goes mainstream
May 5, 2010
Cloud computing has been an information technology buzzword for many years. Now it is going mainstream.
Video calls have reached the mass market
May 5, 2010
Skype now owns 12% of the international voice market, up from 8% in 2008. In the last quarter of 2009, Skype users made 36.1 billion minutes of phone calls. Now, video is growing in popularity.
Skype Rolls Out New Calling Plans
May 5, 2010
People can now call landline and mobile phones worldwide more simply and affordably than ever before, thanks to the new monthly calling subscriptions offered by Skype that extends to 170 countries.
H.264 patents: how much do they really cost?
May 4, 2010
The biggest fear expressed from opponents of the H.264 standard and advocates of competing standards is cost. But are those fears justified? The bottom line is that it is pennies per user.
T-Mobile considers 4G network partnership
May 4, 2010
T-Mobile USA is considering leasing network capacity from the private equity firm Harbinger Capital to build its 4G wireless network.
More people buying Wi-Fi-enabled devices
May 4, 2010
As more electronic devices become networked, consumers are flocking to gadgets with built-in wireless access.
IBM Buys Cast Iron Systems to Bolster Its Cloud Offerings
May 3, 2010
IBM announced that it has acquired cloud integration specialist Cast Iron Systems to broaden the delivery of cloud computing services for clients.