XoIP Video/Audio over IP
BT delays Project Bluephone launch
Handset manufacturers given more time to develop UMA standards
Gareth Morgan, vnunet.com 20 Jul 2004
ADVERTISEMENTBT has delayed the launch of Project Bluephone, its package to offer fixed-line and mobile communication from the same device, to give handset manufacturers time to adopt the same standards.
The telco said that it now expects to launch the Bluephone service next spring. It had been due by the end of this year.
Alcatel, Ericsson and Motorola are currently working with BT to develop the Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) standards. BT claims the postponed Bluephone launch is to allow manufacturers to adopt UMA.
"This approach has ultimately resulted in the delay of a few months in our Project Bluephone launch but we firmly believe this is in the interests of our customers," said Steven Evans, chief executive of BT Mobile, in a statement.
Bluephone handsets use a Bluetooth wireless access point, either at home or in the office, and from there connect onto the fixed-line network.
If they move out of coverage range, they switch to Vodafone's GSM or 3G network.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
BT promises Wi-Fi/GSM phone for Christmas Handy gift for the geek that has everything
XoIP Video/Audio over IP
BT promises Wi-Fi/GSM phone for Christmas Handy gift for the geek that has everything
Iain Thomson, vnunet.com 20 Apr 2005
ADVERTISEMENTBT has confirmed that it will have a combined Wi-Fi/GSM phone on the market by Christmas.
Speaking to vnunet.com at the Wireless LAN Event in London, BT's chief executive for wireless broadband, Chris Clark, confirmed the telco's plans to ship a hybrid handset this year.
"We'll have a seamless roaming GSM/Wi-Fi phone by the end of the year," he said.
"In five years' time they'll be very common, though not ubiquitous. Clutter from other Wi-Fi devices may slow growth, although I believe there's a technical fix for that."
Clark also committed BT to launching its Bluephone Project by the end of this spring, although he pointed out that, under the British calendar, spring does not officially end until June.
Bluephone is a handset that can connect to a traditional fixed line via Bluetooth, but switch to the GSM network when out of range of the house.
"Switching networks for mobile devices is key," said Andrew Allison, head of Intel's mobility group in the UK.
"But there are a lot of steps on the way to getting software-controlled radio like this. It's not just a question of sticking everything onto the chip and sticking it in a phone."
BT promises Wi-Fi/GSM phone for Christmas Handy gift for the geek that has everything
Iain Thomson, vnunet.com 20 Apr 2005
ADVERTISEMENTBT has confirmed that it will have a combined Wi-Fi/GSM phone on the market by Christmas.
Speaking to vnunet.com at the Wireless LAN Event in London, BT's chief executive for wireless broadband, Chris Clark, confirmed the telco's plans to ship a hybrid handset this year.
"We'll have a seamless roaming GSM/Wi-Fi phone by the end of the year," he said.
"In five years' time they'll be very common, though not ubiquitous. Clutter from other Wi-Fi devices may slow growth, although I believe there's a technical fix for that."
Clark also committed BT to launching its Bluephone Project by the end of this spring, although he pointed out that, under the British calendar, spring does not officially end until June.
Bluephone is a handset that can connect to a traditional fixed line via Bluetooth, but switch to the GSM network when out of range of the house.
"Switching networks for mobile devices is key," said Andrew Allison, head of Intel's mobility group in the UK.
"But there are a lot of steps on the way to getting software-controlled radio like this. It's not just a question of sticking everything onto the chip and sticking it in a phone."
Monday, June 06, 2005
IP Phone代工商機湧現 台廠積極卡位
XoIP Video/Audio over IP
IP Phone代工商機湧現 台廠積極卡位
代工接單戰況激烈 電信設備廠與網通設備廠紛爭食大餅
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
（記者楊曉芳／台北） 2005/06/07
VoIP市場已在2005年迅速崛起，尤其是美國於2005年3月完成VoIP法令訂定，讓使用環境漸趨完備，同時亦造就美國企業用戶市場迅速成長，由於美國企業用戶主流設備多以IP Phone為主，因此亦推動IP Phone需求大增，惟國際大廠所釋出的IP Phone要求規格愈來愈高，並以整合型IP Phone為主，因此讓不少傳統電信設備廠與網通設備廠因皆只具備其中部分技術，讓代工接單戰況激烈，加上同業廠商儘量避而不談，讓代工接單更見神秘色彩。
智邦（2345）行銷副總陳嘉修表示，這場戰役應是網通廠較有機會，因為整合型產品功能，除了語音及視訊是傳統電信設備廠已具備的技術之外，路由器、Wireless及數據機皆是網通廠的專項，尤其是美國企業市場更重視安全品質，這是目前網通廠整合能力略高於傳統電信設備廠的重要關鍵。
陳嘉修指出，就過去單純的視訊IP Phone來看，或許在價格上，網通廠難以跟傳統電信設備廠相較，但在強調整合性功能之後，網通廠現在的機會已擴大許多。在市場需求驅動下，智邦已具備結合Wi-Fi、Video功能的IP Phone，並預計最快在第四季可開始接單出貨。然是否已接獲國際大廠代工訂單，陳嘉修則是絕口不提。
國際大廠思科（Cisco）、3Com、阿爾卡特（Alcatel）、Avaya及北電（Nortel）皆是台灣IP Phone代工廠極欲爭取的訂單，但目前為止，僅確定思科及北電的IP Phone交由台灣代工，而Avaya僅提出有意釋單給台灣的訊息，卻未定案，3Com則以由大陸代工，台灣研發為發展方向，阿爾卡特只在歐洲及墨西哥生產。
在IP Phone走向整合之路後，由於台灣為全球第一大網通設備代工點，因此增加未來代工IP Phone的商機，惟目前國際大廠欲整合產品的功能多不願曝光，加上台灣傳統電信設備廠亦欲爭食代工商機，讓IP Phone代工成為同業廠商只談技術不談接單的禁忌。
IP Phone代工商機湧現 台廠積極卡位
代工接單戰況激烈 電信設備廠與網通設備廠紛爭食大餅
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
（記者楊曉芳／台北） 2005/06/07
VoIP市場已在2005年迅速崛起，尤其是美國於2005年3月完成VoIP法令訂定，讓使用環境漸趨完備，同時亦造就美國企業用戶市場迅速成長，由於美國企業用戶主流設備多以IP Phone為主，因此亦推動IP Phone需求大增，惟國際大廠所釋出的IP Phone要求規格愈來愈高，並以整合型IP Phone為主，因此讓不少傳統電信設備廠與網通設備廠因皆只具備其中部分技術，讓代工接單戰況激烈，加上同業廠商儘量避而不談，讓代工接單更見神秘色彩。
智邦（2345）行銷副總陳嘉修表示，這場戰役應是網通廠較有機會，因為整合型產品功能，除了語音及視訊是傳統電信設備廠已具備的技術之外，路由器、Wireless及數據機皆是網通廠的專項，尤其是美國企業市場更重視安全品質，這是目前網通廠整合能力略高於傳統電信設備廠的重要關鍵。
陳嘉修指出，就過去單純的視訊IP Phone來看，或許在價格上，網通廠難以跟傳統電信設備廠相較，但在強調整合性功能之後，網通廠現在的機會已擴大許多。在市場需求驅動下，智邦已具備結合Wi-Fi、Video功能的IP Phone，並預計最快在第四季可開始接單出貨。然是否已接獲國際大廠代工訂單，陳嘉修則是絕口不提。
國際大廠思科（Cisco）、3Com、阿爾卡特（Alcatel）、Avaya及北電（Nortel）皆是台灣IP Phone代工廠極欲爭取的訂單，但目前為止，僅確定思科及北電的IP Phone交由台灣代工，而Avaya僅提出有意釋單給台灣的訊息，卻未定案，3Com則以由大陸代工，台灣研發為發展方向，阿爾卡特只在歐洲及墨西哥生產。
在IP Phone走向整合之路後，由於台灣為全球第一大網通設備代工點，因此增加未來代工IP Phone的商機，惟目前國際大廠欲整合產品的功能多不願曝光，加上台灣傳統電信設備廠亦欲爭食代工商機，讓IP Phone代工成為同業廠商只談技術不談接單的禁忌。
Sunday, June 05, 2005
SBC Communications' move to slash prices on its DSL service could spur a pricing war between phone companies and their rivals in the cable industry
XoIP Video/Audio over IP
SBC ups the ante in broadband war
By Marguerite Reardon
http://news.com.com/SBC+ups+the+ante+in+broadband+war/2100-1034_3-5728629.html
Story last modified Thu Jun 02 04:00:00 PDT 2005
SBC Communications' move to slash prices on its DSL service could spur a pricing war between phone companies and their rivals in the cable industry, say analysts. But cable companies say they're competing on value rather than price.
SBC, the second-largest phone company in the United States, announced Wednesday that it will reduce the price of its DSL service for new subscribers to $14.95. This is the deepest discount that a phone company has given for broadband services, well below the $23.90 that America Online charges for unlimited dial-up Internet access.
Analysts predict that the sharp price cut will put pressure on cable operators such as Comcast, Time Warner and Cox Communications to slash prices on their services as well.
"SBC has taken things to the point where the price differential is really stark between DSL and cable modem service."
--Jim Penhune, analyst, Strategies Analytics"SBC has taken things to the point where the price differential is really stark between DSL and cable modem service," said Jim Penhune, an analyst with Strategies Analytics. "At this point, with DSL almost half the price of cable services, I think the cable companies don't have much left in their argument for speed over price."
The cable companies say they have no plans to drop prices to compete with SBC. "Our take on competition for broadband is to offer more value to our customers," said Jeanne Russo, a spokeswoman for Comcast, which competes with SBC in several states, including parts of Texas and California.
But analysts caution that the writing is already on the wall, and that cable operators will have to do something.
"I'm sure they will wait to see what the subscriber numbers look like for the next quarter or two before they react," said Penhune. "It will likely start at the local level, where cable operators may reduce prices or offer promotions to compete."
The power of price
SBC and other phone companies have always used price cuts as a way to compete against the cable companies, which got a head start in the market in the mid-1990s. Since that time, the phone companies have been playing catch-up to their cable rivals, which still dominate the broadband market with roughly 59 percent of all subscribers.
Competition between the two sets of companies is heating up even more now as cable companies including Cox and Time Warner also start offering telephone service along with television and high-speed Internet service.
Making matters worse for the phone companies is the fact that their traditional telephone businesses have been in steep decline for the past several years as more and more customers cancel local phone service and instead use cell phones or new Internet-based phone services such as Vonage.
SBC's strategy is simple: The company wants to sign up as many new subscribers as possible. In order to fight back, the phone companies have been steadily lowering prices and offering customers different tiers of service at reduced prices. Verizon recently increased speeds and kept its price of $29.95.
So far, the pricing strategy has helped phone companies gain some market share. In 2004, DSL had about 41 percent of the market, up from 39 percent the year before. Experts attribute most of the recent jump in DSL subscriptions to the phone companies' more aggressive pricing strategies. This trend is expected to continue with cable and DSL splitting the market evenly in the next three to four years.
SBC's strategy is simple: The company wants to sign up as many new subscribers as possible. The idea is that the more DSL subscribers it has, the easier it will be to sell them other services such as telephony and, eventually, television. SBC is already in the process of upgrading its network to carry television service over its existing DSL lines.
While Project Lightspeed, which will extend fiber deeper into the network to support higher bandwidth for Internet-routed TV, is SBC's answer to the cable company's "triple play" service offering, the reality is that SBC's service won't be ready for more than a year. What's more, rollout of the television service could take even longer since SBC could be required to go city to city to negotiate franchise agreements.
"It's not in our plan right now to lower our rates, but we allow each market to do whatever it needs to do to react to changing market conditions."
--Bobby Amirshahi, spokesman, Cox CommunicationsSBC and Verizon Communications, which also has plans to offer television services over a new network it's building, suffered a serious blow over the weekend in Texas, when the legislature failed to act on a bill that would have allowed new entrants to the television market to get a statewide franchise. Similar laws are being considered in other states.
As SBC stares this reality in the face, signing up subscribers no matter what seems to be a top priority.
"It's all about driving DSL growth," said Wes Warnock, a spokesman for SBC. "Broadband is a sticky product, and it helps us compete against the cable companies. It also offsets the access line loss, so it's strategically significant."
Reading the fine print
While the list price for SBC's new service is far below that of competitors' offerings, it is not without conditions. First, the $14.95 price is a promotion, and it's good for only one year. After that, subscribers pay whatever regular rate SBC is charging at the time.
Customers must also agree to a one-year contract for the service. If they decide to terminate the service before the contract expires, there's a $200 cancellation fee. And finally, the $14.95 rate is only available for customers who also subscribe to SBC telephone service, which most can get for about $20 a month.
Some cable competitors argue that customers get a better value from their services. For example, Time Warner is offering a promotional rate for its high-speed service--$29.99 a month for the first six months. Once the promotion period ends, the price jumps to $39.95.
Unlike SBC, which requires subscribers to also get a phone line, Time Warner customers can sign up for high-speed access without subscribing to any other cable service. What's more, the Time Warner service offers connection rates of 5mbps, whereas the $14.95 offer from SBC provides only up to 1.5mbps.
Cox offers a 256kbps broadband connection for $24.95 a month. The service is not a promotion and is offered throughout its service region. It also doesn't require subscribers to sign up for any other Cox services and it doesn't require a contract.
But if push comes to shove in a particular market, the company could respond on a local level, said Bobby Amirshahi, a spokesman for Cox.
"It's not in our plan right now to lower our rates," he said. "But we allow each market to do whatever it needs to do to react to changing market conditions."
As for the other Baby Bells, which do not compete head-to-head against SBC for DSL customers, Verizon and BellSouth both say they have no immediate plans to lower pricing on their DSL service.
Copyright ©1995-2005 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
SBC ups the ante in broadband war
By Marguerite Reardon
http://news.com.com/SBC+ups+the+ante+in+broadband+war/2100-1034_3-5728629.html
Story last modified Thu Jun 02 04:00:00 PDT 2005
SBC Communications' move to slash prices on its DSL service could spur a pricing war between phone companies and their rivals in the cable industry, say analysts. But cable companies say they're competing on value rather than price.
SBC, the second-largest phone company in the United States, announced Wednesday that it will reduce the price of its DSL service for new subscribers to $14.95. This is the deepest discount that a phone company has given for broadband services, well below the $23.90 that America Online charges for unlimited dial-up Internet access.
Analysts predict that the sharp price cut will put pressure on cable operators such as Comcast, Time Warner and Cox Communications to slash prices on their services as well.
"SBC has taken things to the point where the price differential is really stark between DSL and cable modem service."
--Jim Penhune, analyst, Strategies Analytics"SBC has taken things to the point where the price differential is really stark between DSL and cable modem service," said Jim Penhune, an analyst with Strategies Analytics. "At this point, with DSL almost half the price of cable services, I think the cable companies don't have much left in their argument for speed over price."
The cable companies say they have no plans to drop prices to compete with SBC. "Our take on competition for broadband is to offer more value to our customers," said Jeanne Russo, a spokeswoman for Comcast, which competes with SBC in several states, including parts of Texas and California.
But analysts caution that the writing is already on the wall, and that cable operators will have to do something.
"I'm sure they will wait to see what the subscriber numbers look like for the next quarter or two before they react," said Penhune. "It will likely start at the local level, where cable operators may reduce prices or offer promotions to compete."
The power of price
SBC and other phone companies have always used price cuts as a way to compete against the cable companies, which got a head start in the market in the mid-1990s. Since that time, the phone companies have been playing catch-up to their cable rivals, which still dominate the broadband market with roughly 59 percent of all subscribers.
Competition between the two sets of companies is heating up even more now as cable companies including Cox and Time Warner also start offering telephone service along with television and high-speed Internet service.
Making matters worse for the phone companies is the fact that their traditional telephone businesses have been in steep decline for the past several years as more and more customers cancel local phone service and instead use cell phones or new Internet-based phone services such as Vonage.
SBC's strategy is simple: The company wants to sign up as many new subscribers as possible. In order to fight back, the phone companies have been steadily lowering prices and offering customers different tiers of service at reduced prices. Verizon recently increased speeds and kept its price of $29.95.
So far, the pricing strategy has helped phone companies gain some market share. In 2004, DSL had about 41 percent of the market, up from 39 percent the year before. Experts attribute most of the recent jump in DSL subscriptions to the phone companies' more aggressive pricing strategies. This trend is expected to continue with cable and DSL splitting the market evenly in the next three to four years.
SBC's strategy is simple: The company wants to sign up as many new subscribers as possible. The idea is that the more DSL subscribers it has, the easier it will be to sell them other services such as telephony and, eventually, television. SBC is already in the process of upgrading its network to carry television service over its existing DSL lines.
While Project Lightspeed, which will extend fiber deeper into the network to support higher bandwidth for Internet-routed TV, is SBC's answer to the cable company's "triple play" service offering, the reality is that SBC's service won't be ready for more than a year. What's more, rollout of the television service could take even longer since SBC could be required to go city to city to negotiate franchise agreements.
"It's not in our plan right now to lower our rates, but we allow each market to do whatever it needs to do to react to changing market conditions."
--Bobby Amirshahi, spokesman, Cox CommunicationsSBC and Verizon Communications, which also has plans to offer television services over a new network it's building, suffered a serious blow over the weekend in Texas, when the legislature failed to act on a bill that would have allowed new entrants to the television market to get a statewide franchise. Similar laws are being considered in other states.
As SBC stares this reality in the face, signing up subscribers no matter what seems to be a top priority.
"It's all about driving DSL growth," said Wes Warnock, a spokesman for SBC. "Broadband is a sticky product, and it helps us compete against the cable companies. It also offsets the access line loss, so it's strategically significant."
Reading the fine print
While the list price for SBC's new service is far below that of competitors' offerings, it is not without conditions. First, the $14.95 price is a promotion, and it's good for only one year. After that, subscribers pay whatever regular rate SBC is charging at the time.
Customers must also agree to a one-year contract for the service. If they decide to terminate the service before the contract expires, there's a $200 cancellation fee. And finally, the $14.95 rate is only available for customers who also subscribe to SBC telephone service, which most can get for about $20 a month.
Some cable competitors argue that customers get a better value from their services. For example, Time Warner is offering a promotional rate for its high-speed service--$29.99 a month for the first six months. Once the promotion period ends, the price jumps to $39.95.
Unlike SBC, which requires subscribers to also get a phone line, Time Warner customers can sign up for high-speed access without subscribing to any other cable service. What's more, the Time Warner service offers connection rates of 5mbps, whereas the $14.95 offer from SBC provides only up to 1.5mbps.
Cox offers a 256kbps broadband connection for $24.95 a month. The service is not a promotion and is offered throughout its service region. It also doesn't require subscribers to sign up for any other Cox services and it doesn't require a contract.
But if push comes to shove in a particular market, the company could respond on a local level, said Bobby Amirshahi, a spokesman for Cox.
"It's not in our plan right now to lower our rates," he said. "But we allow each market to do whatever it needs to do to react to changing market conditions."
As for the other Baby Bells, which do not compete head-to-head against SBC for DSL customers, Verizon and BellSouth both say they have no immediate plans to lower pricing on their DSL service.
Copyright ©1995-2005 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved.
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