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News Analysis: Cable WiMAX

By: Gary Kim

Comcast (News - Alert) Corp. and Time Warner Cable Inc., are talking about major investments in a new wireless company that would be operated by Sprint Nextel Corp. and Clearwire Corp.

Sprint and Clearwire (News - Alert) are trying to raise at least $3 billion for a joint venture, and Comcast reportedly is talking about investing perhaps $1 billion while Time Warner Cable kicks in $500 million.

Bright House Networks is said to be considering contributing between $100 million and $200 million.




Intel Corp. might be willing to put in about $1 billion or more. And Google (News - Alert) is said to be considering an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars.

The plan would give the cable operators a national footprint, something many consider essential if cable companies are going to try to add a quadruple play offer.

Cable operators have invested in joint ventures with Sprint (News - Alert) twice in the past, so the partnership would not be unusual. Cable was a partner in Sprint PCS in the early 1990s and most recently rolled out “Pivot” mobile service using Sprint facilities.

If the deal does reach fruition, Dish Network and DirecTV (News - Alert) probably will have to respond. In fact, both satellite operators have in the past discussed investing in WiMAX themselves.

If the cable operators are heavily involved with Sprint, it seems unlikely the satellite providers will give that idea a second look. IT

 

News Analysis: Comcast, BitTorrent (News - Alert) Agree To Collaborate


By: Gary Kim

Sometimes it takes the threat of serious legal or regulatory action before service providers do what they ought to be doing. So it was when Madison River was “shamed” by the Federal Communications Commission for blocking VoIP packets. So it was when AT&T broke itself up in the 1980s, setting off a process of industry reorganization, rather than face an antitrust lawsuit that undoubtedly would have led to the same result, but on terms imposed on the company from outside.

Now comes word that Comcast Corp., under fire for traffic shaping of peer-to-peer traffic, has decided to work with BitTorrent to improve the ways BitTorrent works on Comcast networks.

As part of the agreement, Comcast will experiment with ways to more effectively manage traffic on its network at peak times, said Ashwin Navin (News - Alert), the president of San Francisco-based BitTorrent. And in a switch that is logical, Comcast says it will stop shaping BitTorret packets — slowing them down at times of peak congestion — and instead look at ways to slow traffic only for really-heavy users.

Peak-hour congestion was the reason Comcast had resorted to the traffic shaping in the first place, so the new approach offers some hope that lighter or typical users will not find their torrents intentionally degraded.

But that still leaves Comcast with the challenge of dealing with unusually-heavy use by consumers.

The cable operator said it must have the means to slow the delivery of some traffic on its network in order to provide adequate service to its overall customer base.

Rafat Ali, PaidContent editor, says that as part of the deal, Comcast will not cause “connection resets” it had used to disrupt torrents, for example. Comcast’s network will be optimized for media delivery, says Navin.

Comcast is increasing capacity overall and particularly for upstream traffic, moves it was planning anyway.

For its part, BitTorrent is developing new client features to optimize for access networks, and in all likelihood this will include managed P2P that fetches content from local servers whenever possible, rather than reaching across the network, and will work with Comcast on such remedies.

There are some probable repercussions. Though the average P2P application user will find an enhanced experience, very-heavy users might still find themselves subject to throttling at peak hours. It’s hard to believe such heavier users will not, at some point, find themselves forced to pay higher rates for such use, if they want a “non-blocking” experience.

More significant are the implications for the “network neutrality” debate, the issue having been, in large part, “no network management.” Comcast and BitTorrent clearly are going to work together to optimize Comcast’s network for media delivery, which is management of a pro-social type. That is why, as appealing as network neutrality might sound, it has a downside: as more and more users consume and use real-time communications and media, an unmanaged network begins to interfere with the user experience.

That isn’t to say ISPs should be able to block packets they dislike for competitive, political or other reasons unrelated to managing shared network resources. But there are times when users benefit from management: such as when spam filters or anti-virus and other threat measures are undertaken by the network, on behalf of users.

In fashioning a non-blocking compromise with BitTorrent, Comcast has just made life more difficult for those who advocate more-active forms of “network neutrality.” IT

 

News Analysis: Cable VoIP: Important for the Little Guys, Too


By: Charlotte Wolter (News - Alert)

The impressive VoIP subscriber numbers racked up by major cable operators have generated big headlines in the past year. But, the gains made by smaller cable providers are, by their standards, equally impressive and may be even more important for the long-term financial health of those service providers, according to a research by New Paradigm Resources Group Inc. (NPRG), a Chicago-based consulting and research firm.

The advantage that VoIP offers smaller players is not to be measured in sheer dollars. “Do not be expecting any of these other cable companies to double or triple their profits because of VoIP any time soon,” says NPRG in a brief report on its ongoing research.

However, in an environment where they serve a defined service area and video revenues have been flat or nearly so, and they must be concerned about a large competitor, such as a telco, coming in to compete with them in their core business, the VoIP revenue, “has the promise of being significant,” Joe Kestel, director of industry analysis, NPRG, tells Internet Telephony (News - Alert). “We have seen an uptick in the share of revenue that they are getting from voice.”

The most significant benefit of VoIP offerings may be the tremendous marketing push these smaller competitors can get from being able to offer triple-play packages. Kestel points out, “In consumers’ minds increasingly ... people are thinking of those companies much more as communication providers without differentiating between who provides voice or the Internet. So they have the ability to offer triple play and to market themselves as complete providers. That is definitely part of the equation here.”

Another advantage is entry into markets where they have never been able to compete before VoIP. “Dollar for dollar, the other cable companies can not compete with these industry giants, but their success in rolling out a new product to capture what was once a telco-only revenue stream cannot be ignored,” says NPRG.

However, there are potential hurdles facing all cable operators, one of the most significant being the migration to DOCSIS 3.0, which marks the cable industry’s acceptance of SIP as its communication protocol, replacing cable’s home-grown NCS protocol, an MGCP derivative. While the migration of the core VoIP software to SIP may be very manageable in terms of capital outlay, the question mark is the VoIP terminal adapters deployed in consumers’ homes, sometimes integrated into cable modems. It may be possible to upgrade some remotely with new software downloads. But, if not, the cost of changing out millions of devices in the field could be punishing. This is especially true for smaller operators, which tend to serve rural and suburban areas and have fewer capital reserves. Cable operators could put off that judgment day, but not if they wish to move into mobile broadband, which requires SIP.

The other big hurdle is moving up in bandwidth, with 100 megabits per second widely considered the required goal. “As recently as the middle of last year, we would hear people question if consumers really are going to need that kind of throughput,” says Kestel. “But we have seen things evolve since then. Now we hear a lot of saying, if not this year or next, then by 2010 [100 megabits] will be table stakes, and it becomes the ultra-broadband or wideband market.” IT

 

News Analysis: Unified Communications (News - Alert) Landscape Evolves


By: Greg Galitzine

Unified Communications (UC) is once again undergoing a major transformation. Recent news from a number of major players in the space, including Nortel, Microsoft, Aspect (News - Alert), and IBM speaks to a measure of evolution in this market, which means that enterprise users should soon see the fruits of all this activity in the form of easier access to the applications and tools designed to make them more efficient as they go about their business.

The advantage that VoIP offers smaller players is not to be measured in sheer dollars. “Do not be expecting any of these other cable companies to double or triple their profits because of VoIP any time soon,” says NPRG in a brief report on its ongoing research.

For example, Aspect recently announced a corporate strategy to educate the market on the role of contact centers in the development of an organization’s overall unified communications strategy. To whit, the company is promoting the fact that it’s all-in-one, IT-ready Aspect Unified IP and PerformanceEdge (News - Alert) solutions are the perfect solution to power unified communications for the contact center.

Mike Sheridan, senior vice president of strategy at Aspect Software, believes that organizations of all shapes and sizes need a unified communications strategy that takes the front lines of customer contact into account.

“Without the contact center insight, organizations are at an extreme disadvantage when it comes to crafting and executing a unified communications strategy, and most importantly, delivering the experience today’s consumer demands and deserves,” Sheridan added.

Aspect also announced an agreement with — and equity investment from — Microsoft (News - Alert). The companies have formed a multiyear strategic alliance to help deliver unified communications to contact centers around the world. A key element of the partnership is that Aspect will design its Aspect Unified IP contact center solution to interoperate with Microsoft’s platform for software-powered voice and unified communications and will offer it as the leading option to new and existing customers.

As TMC president Rich Tehrani (News - Alert) wrote at the time of the announcement, “The Aspect management team should be commended for getting the company to this point. Microsoft also deserves a great deal of credit for making an investment and by doing so developing a great relationship with the premiere call center company in the market.”

Speaking of Nortel (News - Alert), the company recently spoke of the progressing relationship with Microsoft under the Innovative Communications Alliance and the availability of four new joint unified communications solutions and a slew of new customers.

The joint products include the Converged Office unified communications suite, Multimedia Conferencing, and solutions for branch offices and hosted service providers.

Not to be overlooked in the UC space, IBM (News - Alert) announced it would invest $1 billion over the next three years to fulfill its unified communications and collaboration vision. The investment will fund product and technology advances as well as an increase in the development of new services.

Mike Rhodin, general manager of Lotus software, IBM software group said that the unified communications market is growing, “driven by employees’ changing habits and the increasing need for immediate access to information and people.”

IBM is working to make unified communications capabilities available to users across a wide range of environments, including Lotus Sametime, Notes, and Connections, as well as Microsoft’s Outlook and Office, and across a variety of business applications and line-of-business specific applications.

In a nod to serving mobile workers, IBM executives say that over the next 12 months the ability to leverage the company’s unified communications services will span multiple mobile devices from leading providers RIM, Apple, Sprint-Nextel and Symbian (News - Alert). IT

 

ENTERPRISE NEWS

www.tmcnet.com/1858.1
NEC (News - Alert) Expands UNIVERGE360 UC Initiative with New Enterprise and SMB Solutions
NEC Unified Solutions has introduced UNIVERGE360, a UC solution that enables businesses to integrate the tasks employees perform with automated business processes. NEC unveiled a new set of solutions for enterprises and small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) based on the concept of “role-enabled communications.” This refers to solutions that let companies tailor communications capabilities based on the roles users play rather than the other way around.
www.necunifiedsolutions.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1859.1
WYDE Voice Launches Wideband Audio Conferencing Appliances
Startup WYDE Voice launched a pair of voice conferencing appliances based on the Asterisk (News - Alert) platform that support 16-bit, 16 kHz wideband audio. WYDE Voice is offering two models designed to enable wideband voice for conferencing environments: VM1000 ($160 per port and up) and VM3000 ($140 per port and up). These enable a variety of capabilities, including instantaneous active speaker update, real-time conference control using SIP, Web service API for integration with third-party applications and sites, pre-configured call flows, and integration with/support for authentication protocols such as RADIUS. The appliances accommodate 500–7,000 concurrent G.711 callers and as many as 3,000 16-bit/16 kHz iSAC callers.
www.wydevoice.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1860.1
Objectworld (News - Alert) Enables Unified Communications without VoIP
Objectworld has announced that its Unified Communications Server now enables businesses to “reap the benefits of unified communications as an adjunct to existing PBX systems.” Objectworld UC Server Standard Edition provides support for a very wide range of PBX systems from AVAYA, Mitel, Nortel, Cisco (News - Alert), NEC and other vendors.

www.objectworld.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1861.1
snom Expands Beyond the Desktop with Cordless Phone for VoIP
snom technology AG (News - Alert) has announced the launch of its new IP DECT phone for VoIP users, the snom m3. The company’s first cordless offering, the snom m3 provides an indoor range of 50 meters and an outdoor range of 100 meters, and is an expandable system with multiline functionality for up to eight handsets – allowing for up to three parallel calls at time. It has a backlit color display and operates for 10 hours talk time or 100 hours standby. The m3 also offers three-way conference calls, call transfer, music on hold, call forwarding, and speed dialing with an address book allowing up to 100 entries.
www.snom.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1862.1
Xangati (News - Alert) Launches Rapid Problem Identification Applicatio
Xangati has announced Virtual Task Manager solution, a rapid problem identification application that can be deployed right to the front line support groups in either enterprise or service provider settings. The solution enables the first tier of customer support to have visibility into a customer’s network and what the subscribers are doing at any given time.
www.xangati.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1863.1
IBM Touts Web 2.0 Tools for Enterprise Productivity
IBM unveiled a set of collaboration and social networking services designed to help organizations get the most performance out of their employees. The new offering, billed as “Enterprise Adaptability” services, include a unique way of measuring the return on investment of a company’s forays into social networking, as well as ways of automatically identifying key talent, and other social network analysis.

www.ibm.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1871.1
Dell (News - Alert) Chooses VMware ESX 3i Hypervisor to Simplify Virtualization
Dell has chosen VMware ESX 3i hypervisor to simplify virtualization, enabling Dell customers to now purchase virtualization-enabled servers in a single click. Dell customers can now reduce capital and operating costs, improve security, ensure business continuity and deploy green IT environments, by making virtualization more mainstream.
www.dell.com
www.vmware.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1864.1
Microsoft, Nortel Expand Unified Communications Offer
Microsoft and Nortel today announced the availability of four new joint unified communications solutions offering enterprise users greater choice as part of their ongoing Innovative Communications Alliance (News - Alert) (ICA) partnership. The joint products include the Converged Office unified communications suite, Multimedia Conferencing, and solutions for branch offices and hosted service providers.
www.microsoft.com
www.nortel.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1865.1
Vertical Intros Flexible Finance Solutions
Vertical Communications (News - Alert) has announced the availability of Vertical Flexible Finance Solutions. In partnership with a financial services company, TAMCO, Vertical Flexible Finance Solutions enables SMBs and enterprise customers the option to lease or rent any of Vertical’s telephony solutions, preserve cash, gain tax benefits and have the ability to upgrade their telephony system with the Shield Program.
www.vertical.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1866.1
VoIP Made Easy with the UniPhyer
Phybridge (News - Alert) has introduced the prototype of its UniPhyer IP Telephony gateway, which, according to CEO John Croce, will offer “a new way of launching converged networks,” eliminating QOS and other issues that often plague the convergence of voice services onto an enterprise LAN. The UniPhyer is a 24- or 48-port gateway designed to interoperate with legacy PBX (News - Alert) infrastructures, eliminating the cost barrier of a complete system forklift required to switch to an all-IP infrastructure.
www.phybridge.com

 

SERVICE PROVIDER NEWS

www.tmcnet.com/1882.1
Communicado (News - Alert) Now Offering Streamline Management as a Service Version 2.3
Communicado has announced the release of Communicado Streamline Management as a Service Platform version 2.3, bringing VARs, MSPs and Integrators a more effective and easier-to-deploy solution for remotely managing their customers’ converged communications environments. Streamline 2.3 includes enhancements to speed deployment and agent configurations as well as easier processing, expedited troubleshooting, automatic reporting, an intuitive scheduling interface, and more.
www.communicado-inc.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1879.1
Veraz Networks (News - Alert) Intros New Network-adaptive Border Controller
Veraz has announced availability of its Network-adaptive Border Controller, the next generation of Session Border Controllers (SBCs) capable of meeting the demands associated with increasing network complexity. The Veraz Network-adaptive Border Controller provides security for multimedia sessions and network interconnection, while reducing OPEX (News - Alert) through centralized management, billing, and routing.
www.veraznetworks.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1881.1
Microsoft’s Silverlight to Bring Applications to Mobile Webbr> In an effort to both boost Silverlight interest and snag part of the market involving rich Web content on mobile phones, Microsoft has announced a deal with Nokia (News - Alert) to bring its Silverlight to many millions of mobile phone handsets. Conceivably, Web 2.0 applications may soon run on your cell phone. Initially, Silverlight will make its appearance on high-end Nokia “smart phones” powered by the Symbian operating system, in particular Nokia’s S60 platform, used in 53 percent of smart phones made by LG, Samsung (News - Alert) and of course Nokia’s own products, such as the new N96 phone. As expected, Microsoft is currently developing a version of Silverlight to run on its own Windows Mobile software.
www.microsoft.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1884.1
RadiSys (News - Alert) Adds N+1 Redundancy to Convedia CMS-9000 Media Server
RadiSys has added N+1 media processing card (MPC) redundancy to its Convedia CMS-9000, making it the industry’s first media server to offer this type of failover. RadiSys already offers this 1+1 fault-tolerant redundancy in its system control cards — but now has taken the next logical step and added it to its media processing cards as well. This capability allows a “spare” RadiSys media control card to seamlessly take over, should there be a “rare” failure of an active card.
www.radisys.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1880.1
MEN Micro’s Rugged SBC Offers Multicore Technology with a Flexible Mezzanine Card Extension
MEN Micro Inc now offers a 6U (10.5-inch) high SBC in a CompactPCI (News - Alert) form factor that combines Intel’s multicore technology with a flexible mezzanine card extension (boards that piggyback onto the SBC) and rugged design to provide exceptional performance, even in industrial applications. The new, scalable D9 can be equipped with the Intel (News - Alert) CoreT2 Duo, CoreT Duo or Celeron M processors to support a multitude of dual-core and single-core CPUs depending on specific application requirements.
www.men.de

 


www.tmcnet.com/1883.1
LightEdge Solutions to Offer HD Phones as Part of Hosted Voice-over-IP Service
LightEdge Solutions announced the availability of high-definition phones for its Hosted Voice-over-IP service. The Des Moines, Iowa-based company now offers the Polycom (News - Alert) SoundPoint IP 550, 560 and IP 650 phones with Polycom HD Voice technology. Said LightEdge Solutions’ Chairman and CEO, “Now, small and medium-sized businesses can take advantage of the price advantages of Voice-over-IP yet receive call quality and richness that surpasses that of their traditional PBX system.”
www.lightedge.com
www.polycom.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1873.1
Sandvine (News - Alert) Helps First Media Deliver Broadband Services
Indonesian broadband provider PT First Media Tbk, has long been a Sandvine customer. As part of its growth strategy First Media wanted better visibility into its networks to achieve its goal and picked Sandvine’s PTS 14000 and Intelligent Broadband Network Solutions (News - Alert) to solve the challenge. Sandvine also helped the provider optimize its existing network, as well as ensured fair utilization of network resources among applications and subscribers.
www.sandvine.com

 

WIRELESS NEWS

www.tmcnet.com/1885.1
Comba to Deploy Wireless Coverage at Shenyang Olympic Center
Comba Telecom Systems has developed a multi-system wireless coverage project for the Shenyang Olympic Center, a multi-use stadium occupying over a million square meters with a seating capacity of 60,000. The stadium will be hosting football matches in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Comba has accomplished a project to design, implement and test a multi-frequency wireless enhancement system to facilitate comprehensive mobile signal coverage within the stadium that includes TD-SCDMA, GSM900/1800, WiFi (News - Alert) and WAPI (WLAN Authentication and Privacy Infrastructure) networks.
www.comba-telecom.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1891.1
Juniper Networks (News - Alert) Supports WiMAX Broadband Wireless Networks
Juniper has introduced support for WiMAX broadband wireless networks with its Service Provider Steel-Belted Radius (SBR) Authentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA) Server. The company will provide support for mobile WiMAX (News - Alert) as a separate software module for SBR Carrier AAA server in Q3 2008.
www.juniper.net

 


www.tmcnet.com/1887.1
Hughes and Intelsat (News - Alert) Join Hands to Deliver Innovative Cellular Backhaul Solution in Brazil
Hughes Telecommunicacoes do Brasil, a Brazilian subsidiary of Hughes Network Systems (News - Alert), has signed an agreement with Intelsat to deliver a new cellular backhaul solution in Brazil. This will enable cellular service providers to cost-effectively extend their cell networks to rural areas and sparsely populated regions of Brazil. The solution is designed for fast and cost-efficient service rollouts in rural and remote areas throughout Brazil which offers cellular operators a feasible means to address their Universal Service Obligations.
www.hughes.com
www.intelsat.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1892.1
Infineon Introduces Voice-Over-WLAN for Mobile Handsets
Infineon Technologies (News - Alert) is set to launch VoIP functionality for low-cost mobile phones. With the solution, operators will be able to offer fixed-mobile convergence by integrating WiFi on its mobile phone platform. The solution also helps to significantly reduce the bill-of-materials (BOM) cost for WiFi enabled cell phones by up to 50 percent compared to existing solutions.
www.infineon.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1886.1
Wayne State University Adopts 802.11n WiFi Technology
Wayne State University has adopted 802.11n high-performance WiFi technology. Their $1.3 million technology initiative is expected to more than double the capacity of the University’s current wireless network, wireless@wayne, within its Midtown Detroit campus. The initiative will also upgrade the technology to the latest 802.11n products provided by Meru Networks (News - Alert). Meru explained that 802.11n provides faster data transfer rates, travels twice as far as current standards, and is more reliable.
www.merunetworks.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1889.1
Telespree Enhances Mobile Phone Customer Care Experience
Telespree Communications has launched its new suite of Self-Care applications enabling consumers to manage their account directly on their mobile device without the assistance and high costs associated with personal customer care, sales clerks or an IVR. The applications will also allow providers to reach their users through dynamic, on-device Self-Care services. The offerings include Telespree’s Over-the-Air (OTA) Activation and Service Enrollment applications as well as Check Balance, Top Up, Pay Bill, Add Features, Change Plan, Change Phone Number, Transfer Balance/Gift, My Account and other options.
www.telespree.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1890.1
JayBeam Wireless Launches 700 MHz Antennas
Jaybeam has announced new wideband 700/800 MHz dual polarized base station panel antennas. Operating over the full 695–896 MHz frequency band, these new antennas allow Auction 73 winners to deploy new 700 MHz services at existing 800 MHz cell sites without increasing the number of visible antennas per sector.
www.jaybeamwireless.com

 

OTHER INDUSTRY NEWS

DEVELOPER

www.tmcnet.com/1904.1
Kwingo Launches Productivity Tools for Mobile Devices to Support Various Languages
Mobile software applications developer, Kwingo, has announced the launch of tools that are designed to serve professionals in the field using Web-based mobile devices for communications between individuals who speak different languages. The offering can be accessed and used for free on Web-enabled handsets, PDAs, or PC-type devices and can provide productivity and safety-related phrases in both English and Spanish.
www.kwingo.net

 

SIP

www.tmcnet.com/1902.1
Microsoft Enters the SIP Trunking Arena
Microsoft will introduce the first service pack for the Response Point business VoIP system this summer, according to a recent announcement at the Microsoft Small Business Summit. The service pack will include new features, chief among which is digital voice services, better known as SIP trunking. Previous Response Point releases only allowed analog lines to connect to the PTSN, but now small businesses will have the ability to connect via the Internet, leading to cheaper calls and easier management.
www.microsoft.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1903.1
Ingate Strengthens Security for VoIP, SIP Trunks
Ingate Systems (News - Alert) has announced the addition of another layer of security for SIP-based applications with the Ingate Enhanced Security Module, a software add-on for all Ingate Firewall and SIParator products. Boasting an Intrusion (News - Alert) Detection System/Intrusion Prevention System (IDS/IPS) for SIP, the software makes it possible to detect and protect against attacks based on the protocol. IDS/IPS has the ability to protect the network against attacks targeting SIP devices on the LAN, such as SIP phones. Augmenting Ingate’s existing security technologies, Ingate Enhanced Security Module further strengthens security for VoIP, SIP trunking and other SIP applications.
www.ingate.com

 

CHANNEL

www.tmcnet.com/1899.1
3Com (News - Alert) Selects NETXUSA as Value-Added Distribution Partner
3Com has selected NETXUSA as a value-added distributor to deliver 3Com’s Secure Converged Networking (SCN) solutions to resellers and service providers that serve the fast-growing small- and medium-sized business (SMB) market. NETXUSA (News - Alert) will carry the new 3Com Asterisk Appliance, an open-source voice-over-IP (VoIP) system based on Digium’s Asterisk Business Edition software.
www.3com.com
www.netxusa.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1900.1
Digium and Westcon Group (News - Alert) Bring VoIP Solutions to SMBs
Westcon Group is now offering Digium’s complete line of Asterisk-based telephony solutions to its global community of reseller customers. The collaboration between the two companies will enable Westcon resellers to deliver open source-based, non-proprietary VoIP solutions to small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) more economically. Solutions include Digium’s Switchvox (News - Alert) IP PBX, Asterisk Appliance, Asterisk Business Edition software and appliances, and Digium’s complete line of analog, digital and voice processing telephony cards for Asterisk servers and appliances.
www.digium.com
www.westcongroup.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1901.1
ABP (News - Alert) to Distribute for Para Systems and Minuteman Power Technology Products
ABP Technology is set to become a distributor for Para Systems and its Minuteman power technology products. ABP will focus on the distribution of such products as uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems, power distribution units (PDUs), keyboard-video-mouse (KVM), surge suppressors and power monitoring and management software.
www.abptech.com
www.minutemanups.com

 

IP CONTACT CENTER

www.tmcnet.com/1897.1
Sennheiser’s UI 760 Makes Headsets Multi-Purpose
In a bid to bring even more enhanced communication capabilities to agents and customers, Sennheiser Communications (News - Alert) is offering the UI 760 Universal Interface. The UI 760 is designed specifically for Sennheiser headsets and replaces the UI740 AND UI 750. The UI 760 offers simultaneous headset connectivity to multiple communication devices such as a telephone console and PC.
www.sennheiserusa.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1898.1
BioLab Implements Autonomy (News - Alert) etalk for its Contact Center
Autonomyhas announced that BioLab, a Chemtura company, has chosen Autonomy etalk solutions to replace its existing systems for BioLab’s contact center. BioLab is implementing etalk’s call recording and agent performance evaluation solutions as a means of enhancing productivity and customer support in its contact center.
www.etalk.com

 

TELECOM EXPENSE MANAGEMENT NEWS

www.tmcnet.com/1905.1
TEM Software Asentinel (News - Alert) 5.0 Granted United States Patent
Asentinel’s Telecom Expense Management software Asentinel 5.0 has received United States patent. Version 5.0 features a Java-based EDI translator, and is built on AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) technology, which powers a business intelligence engine delivering enhanced and streamlined reporting. The patent has 56 claims covering a broad range of TEM functions and ways of importing invoices in an efficient and consistent processing, when received from multiple vendors. It is entitled as Systems and Methods for Processing and Managing Telecommunications Invoices.
www.asentinel.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1906.1
Aberdeen (News - Alert): Best-in-class TEM Requires Focus on Wireline and Wireless
Aberdeen Group, an industry research firm, recently published its benchmark report, Execute on Wireless Expense Management to Drive ROI. As the title suggests, wireless TEM or wireless expense management (WEM) has become its own discipline. To learn more about the report, and current trends in the WEM market, log on to TMCnet for a recent interview with Aberdeen’s analysts.
www.aberdeen.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1907.1
Gartner (News - Alert) Report Highlights Trends and Competition Among Telecom Expense Management Firms
A recent Gartner report for 2007 — MarketScope for Telecom Expense Management — indicates that not all TEM providers are equal. In fact, the IT research and advisory firm gave only three TEM providers its “strong positive” grade: Tangoe, Invoice Insight and Rivermine (News - Alert). The findings in Gartner’s report will be discussed at the fourth annual National Summit on Telecom Expense Management, scheduled for June 2-3 in San Francisco.
www.gartner.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1908.1
Avotus (News - Alert) Introduces French Version of ICM Usage Management Solution
Avotus Corporation and eProcurement solutions have introduced a French version of Usage Management/Call Accounting (ICM UM) software. This new French version will feature translated user screens and reports, and will be maintained and kept in sync with all future ICM Usage Management releases. Also, it will be available for the Cisco Call Manager IP PBX as well as other popular platforms, according to Avotus.
www.avotus.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1909.1
Control Point Solutions (News - Alert) Reports 500 Percent Growth for its TEM Solutions
Control Point Solutions, a provider of voice, data, and wireless telecom expense management (TEM) solutions, has reported 500 percent growth of their Telecom Service Inventory Reconciliation Services in 2007. According to Bob McMullan (News - Alert), CEO of Control Point Solutions, We leverage our proprietary technology in combination with our domain expertise to drive results for our clients.”

www.controlpointsolutions.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1910.1
Veramark Releases New VeraSMART 7.0 Communication Management Software
Veramark Technologies (News - Alert) Inc. has announced the commercial release of its VeraSMART Communications Management Suite software, version 7.0, including enhanced technologies like user-configurable dashboards with more than 55 standard report templates that enable customers to create several unique reports. It offers new TEM features, additional integration with the Microsoft environment, and enhanced support for varied business groups and carrier networks.
www.veramark.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1911.1
Visicom Launches TEM Technology Platform
Visicom announced Clearview, a proprietary technology platform that offers clients “greater visibility and control over their telecommunications expenses.” Clearview is a Rich Internet Application (RIA) or Web-based application that utilizes Asynchronous Javascript and XML (or AJAX) technology to create its dashboard. Featuring customizable reporting, a user-friendly dashboard and a high level of security, this new Visicom solution enables users to view their TEM activity through a client web portal.
www.visicomcorp.com

 


www.tmcnet.com/1912.1
TEM Solutions (News - Alert) provider Telesoft Intros Vendor Feed Insurance Servic
Telesoft Corporation recently introduced a new vendor feed insurance service that allows customers to insure against vendor feed changes. The vendor feed insurance program protects customers from unexpected expenses and relieves budgetary pressures. It allows customers to more effectively budget their telecom expenditures and can save them thousands of dollars in professional services.
www.telesoft.com

 

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