Verizon

Verizon Business exports key VoIP services around the globe

Pete Wylie — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:27:40 -0500

Verizon Business announced today the international availability of its VoIP Interoperability Lab and its automatic call rerouting for VoIP customers. Previously, the Interoperability Lab was only available in Europe and the automatic call rerouting feature was only available in the U.S.

Karen Gergelyi, Verizon Business global VoIP trunking services product manager, said the increased availability of the features was part of a push to refine its value proposition for VoIP trunking.

"The interoperability functions give a huge amount of flexibility, because we can sell to any customer because of the ability for them to self-test their existing systems," Gergelyi said. "And the inbound failover feature now available in Europe is a critical capability for the package to have."

Gergelyi said she had seen particularly strong demand and positive feedback about inbound failover from retail, financial and insurance companies, or any business with many distributed locations. She also noted that the interoperability lab would be an added feature for customers to test their existing systems with Verizon's solution. As part of the announcement, Verizon Business also certified an additional Nortel IP PBX for its IP Trunking offering.

For more:
- see the Verizon Business release here

SPOTLIGHT: 3Q cable beating telco in subs 2-to-1

Doug Mohney — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:34:21 -0500

With most public phone and cable companies reporting 3Q results, cable companies have signed up 64 percent of new broadband subscribers last quarter, while telcos only snapped up 36 percent, reports Silicon Valley Insider.

Cable gets props for having faster broadband offerings than existing DSL services and attracting millions of digital phone subscribers for triple-play deals. If you're going to go for the TV and Internet service, digital phone is an easy win.

However, things are slowly looking up for telcos. FiOS and U-Verse enable Verizon and AT&T to keep existing subscribers and grab existing cable customers. There's also some interesting triangulation going on with AT&T offering free WiFi service and Cablevision engaging in its own WiFi build.

For more:
- Silicon Alley Insider provides handicapping for cable vs. telco. Post.

Verizon Business adds managed Cisco UC solution

Doug Mohney — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 14:22:10 -0400

Verizon Business has unveiled a managed (i.e. hosted) UC & collaboration solution around Cisco's Unified Communications Manager 6.1 platform.

Verizon is the first major U.S.-based service provider to offer Cisco's UCM 6.1 platform to customers around the world. U.S. and many European customers get immediate availability for the offering and an Asia-Pacific launch is scheduled for early next year.

The new platform includes the standard functionality to integrate voice mail, email and IM, as well as unified message (voice and email via one source access), single number access and unified presence to deliver visibility into a user's availability for a phone or IM chat.

Del Monte Foods is the launch/showcase customer for Verizon's UC announcement and has deployed the service across the enterprise with plans to leverage the platform to support the company's internal contact center needs.

For more:
- Read Verizon's release discussing its Cisco hosted UC offering

Microsoft Live Messenger VoIP arrives (again)

Pete Wylie — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:30:43 -0400

Microsoft has re-introduced VoIP functionality to Windows Live Messenger, after removing the feature earlier this year.

Outbound calls can now be made through the messenger with Telefonica's Voype service. Microsoft had previous agreements with Verizon and Net2Phone for VoIP service on the Live Messenger. Telefonica is offering the dial-out service for $0.014 cents a minute, compared with $0.021 cents a minute for SkypeOut. However, Telefonica does not have a comparable offering to SkypeIn, so that could be one barrier to widespread use of the voice feature.

For more:
- see the tmc.com blog post

CROSSTALK - MS Mediaroom reaches 2M, CWA, IBEW countdown to VerizonStrike

Doug Mohney — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 13:47:54 -0400

v Microsoft Mediaroom adds partners, reaches 2 million - FierceIPTV
v Eagle Broadband IPTV, broadband assets set for sale - FierceIPTV

v    CWA, IBEW countdown to Verizon strike - FierceTelecom
v    CWA locals voting on Verizon strike authorization - FierceTelecom
v    Verizon, CWA & IBEW prepare for strike, FiOS roll out threatened - FierceTelecom

v    The Olympics, Car Porn, and Online Syndication - FierceOnlineVideo
v    NO, you can't make popcorn with a cell phone - FierceOnlineVideo
v    Truveo Challenge Yields Exciting Video Apps - FierceOnlineVideo

Verizon Announces VoIP Public Safety Solution

Pete Wylie — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 16:21:40 -0400

Verizon Business announced it is launching an IP-based platform that links radio, voice, data and wireless networks, enabling them to operate on a single network. The Verizon Communications Interoperability Solution, is designed to resolve the deep-seeded impasse in emergency communications between public safety organizations operating on incompatible networks.

The service will employ Cisco devices and applications to complete the interoperable networks.

While other companies--such as Raytheon--already offer interoperable devices that similarly link diverse communications, Verizon is the first major carrier to implement service and support for such systems. Public safety management is rarely trained to initiate and maintain interoperable networks, so Verizon's considerable national presence will be an attractive element of its pitch to interested public safety organizations.

Verizon will demonstrate the solution this week at the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials' annual conference in Kansas City.

For more:
- Verizon Business announces IP-based public safety interoperabilty solution

Related articles:
Public safety operators test interoperability concerns
Verizon began planning ventures into the public safety market in September 2006

Who doesn't like the iPhone?

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 14:37:29 -0400

By Carl Ford

As I walked the mall this weekend and saw the line at the Apple store to be the next iPhone convert, I began to wonder who is making money--other than Apple--on the iPhone?

The AT&T store was quiet, with a piece of paper saying that, despite the four-foot iPhone display in the window, they had no phones. The iPhone 3G has actually gained prominence within the store with a display and accessories kiosk, but nothing left to sell but the peripherals.

The rest of the displays featured the usual suspects: different Blackberrys, a Treo, a Samsung Blackjack. AT&T's Tilt and an LG Glide were the closest to the horizontal feel of the iPhone, but nothing in the presentations was designed to excite, just to compare.

At Sprint, its Samsung Instinct is trying to stand toe-to-toe with the iPhone and if you went on the web, you would think that it was competing with "Batman: Dark Knight " as well.

Speaking of "Dark Knight," Verizon has a Nokia "Dark Knight edition" camera phone. For its iPhone competitive strategy, Verizon has the LG Dare. While Verizon is putting all its cards in this basket, it's a good phone as Noah from phonedog.com would tell you. But Verizon's marketing for the LG Dare is off to the side.

Over at Alltel, Chad does not care about smart phones; the story is the magic of circles. Chad and the Verizon guy will be duking it out soon. If I were Chad, I would keep the wizard nearby.

Given all this, I would say there is a chasm that has yet to be crossed in mobility. As Fierce prepares for its 4G virtual event, I have to believe we need more.

As a recovering Bell Head, I like the Sprint/Samsung integration to the network operator, particularly to visual voice mail. While some say voice mail is dead, I think voice mail just needs to be annotated. Social networks are teaching us that the phone no longer has to be a real time experience and voice mail could be the binding between these worlds.

While many are happy to join the iStore for Apple's iPhone, I think it was telling that the AT&T salesman had downloaded a VoIP dual mode app but did not use it. I expect we are going to have that familiar problem of apps not being seen enough to be used. Competing for prominence on a phone suggests to me also that Google's Android may be brilliant indeed.

Who should love the iPhone at the end of the day? I would say ad agencies. The fact that iPhone added 2 million more users to AT&T's network is going to drive a lot of commercials. And it may be the prominence of apps on the phone is part of the advertising.

Carl Ford is Strategic Advisor and Community Developer for FierceMarkets. His words of wisdom can be found at www.carlford.net.

SPOTLIGHT: VoIP Beats up U.S. Wireline; Wireless Data Drives Growth in U.S.

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 06:59:53 -0400

London-based Report Buyer says total revenue for the U.S. telecommunication industry has reached over $1 trillion. The "2008 USA - Telecoms, Wireless and Broadband" report says traditional fixed-line customers continue to drop--no surprise there--with Verizon and AT&T both reporting declines of around 10 percent in residential wireless accounts. It's all VoIP's fault, with cable subscriber growth rates around 75 percent.

Out of the $458 billion of telecom service revenues noted, wireless accounted for approximately 31 percent. Wireless data revenues in late 2007 accounted for approximately 18 percent of total wireless service revenues, up from a meager 4 percent in 2004. The majority of wireless data revenues were being generated by non-messaging applications such as music downloads, mobile TV, video blogs, and Internet-accessed entertainment services.

Read the full release here.

FCC Chairman says no to Skype, forced open access

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 07:59:55 -0400

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin told CTIA conventioneers this week he'll oppose a Skype petition to open up existing wireless carrier networks to outside devices because the industry already is working toward that goal. "In light of the industry's embrace of this more open approach, I think it's premature for the commission to place any other requirements on these networks," Martin told the audience.

Skype was looking for a "Carterphone" regulation to force mobile operators to connect any device that doesn't harm the network. Martin said he was working to balance the needs of device makers and operators. Skype is currently banned on most networks.

Granted, recent statements from Verizon Wireless that it would open its network to outside devices may sound like movement forward, but the company's caveat "as long as" (device and apps meet their certification process) puts a bit of a damper on any outward exuberance among VoIP providers.

For more on Skype's stumble:
- read FierceWireless' story on the Chairman's remarks Article
- Read the InformationWeek story
- Skype responds to FCC Chairman Martin's keynote remarks
- check out CTIA Live's photos from Martin's keynote

Related articles:
Verizon details open network agenda
Is 'open network' just marketing hype?

Mobile VoIP changes the game

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:59 -0400

Apple's announcement that it will allow WiFi VoIP on its iPhone is one of those big tech moments. With the imminent arrival of Google's Android platform and even industry conservatives like Verizon Wireless opening its platform for third party apps, no one wants to be left as the only platform/device not offering mobile VoIP. Just mix Skype's massive user base and tens of millions of open smart phones together and you quickly see the future.

And while the limitations of the 3G platform means VoIP will only be a WiFi game for the time being, the arrival of 4G is going to change that once and for all. In any case various bridging widgets such as those offered by Packet8 and Truphone will give users a viable and much cheaper "VoIP like" service. T-Mobile's new @home WiFi service and Vodafone's not dissimilar German play, suggests the carriers know the game is up for pure cellular and are already accepting that if you can't beat them, it's better to join them. Tom

T-Mobile $10 a month service gets endorsement

Tom Burton — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:59:56 -0500

The Wall Street Journal's personal technology guru Walt Mossberg has given his verdict on T-Mobile's new $10-a-month talk to any one (in the U.S.) plan. T-Mobile is trialling an unlimited home calling plan for its mobile customers for $10 a month in Dallas and Seattle using a VoIP router that takes the calls across the Internet into T-Mobile's network. As we noted the success of this very attractive plan for all your home phone needs would depend on just how straight forward the service is. Mossberg's verdict: it works as well as a traditional telephone, is simple to install but because it doesn't support faxing and home security devices Mossberg does not think it marks the end of the landline. Mossberg thought the fact you have to tell T-Mobile your address so they can activate 911 services might also be an issue.

If you are wedded to a fax this may be true, but in a world of email and $120 all in one printer/scanners who needs to fax? And if you are that desperate to hang onto the 1980's why not efax? On the 911 front, again I am not convinced that having to register your address is a show stopper. It might make my mother in law baulk, but somehow I don't think she is the demographic. This is definitely targeted at you mobile-only generation. If it takes off, then be prepared for similar offers from AT&T and Verizon.

For more:
- Mossberg's video verdict
- Mossberg's Column (sub. req.)

Related article:
T-Mobile offers $10-a-month calling Article

T-Mobile offers $10 a month VoIP

Tom Burton — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:59:55 -0500

T-Mobile has dramatically challenged the market structure of the residential VoIP market offering a bundled cellular and at-home VoIP service for an extra $10 a month with a cellular plan. The deeply discounted VoIP offering is almost certainly to be matched by Verizon Wireless and AT&T, which already have access to stand-alone VoIP offerings.

The T-Mobile announcement most obviously threatens Vonage, which has a stand-alone VoIP offering starting at $25 a month. But it also challenges the cable companies, currently without wireless offerings to support their VoIP products.

Deutsche Telecom-owned T-Mobile is trialling its "Talk Forever" VoIP service in Seattle and Dallas; its success is likely to depend on its quality and its ease of transition. Users of the VoIP offering will pay a one-off fee of $50 for the VoIP converter, which connects to a line between the phone jack and the telephone. New VoIP providers have typically had to endure high churn rates from customers dissatisfied with the quality of both the actual service and customer support. Vonage is still losing a third of its customers each year.

The VoIP PR was overshadowed by the flat price announcement by Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile itself, each offering unlimited mobile calling for $100 a month.

For More:
T-Mobile Advertisement

Related articles:
T-Mobile USA offers landline over Hotspot@Home Report
Flat-rate revolution Report

VoIP Inc. defaults on Verizon $8 million

Tom Burton — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 06:59:54 -0500

VoIP Inc. has issued an 8-k SEC advisory admitting it failed to make a Feb. 1 payment to Verizon and that Verizon has declared VoIP Inc. to be in default of an $8 million settlement agreement. VoIP Inc. also admitted Verizon has rights over all the companies assets if it choses to enforce and collect its remaining $7.4 million owed. "Such actions if pursued by MCI and permitted by the agreement would have a material and negative impact on the Company's financial condition, and would impair the Company's ability to continue its business," the company said.

The statement about impairing the company's ability to continue business must be a candidate for bad joke of the year. No customers, no network, no web site, no staff to answer the telephone, no chief accountant or technical officer. VoIP Inc. is now but a shell. But amazingly the company still trades on and for less than a penny you can still buy shares in VoIP Inc. The company literally self-destructed over the last month. Despite a last minute PR blitz claiming its click-to-call technology was worth a cool $1.25 billion, VoIP Inc. is just awaiting burial.

Whether Verizon ever sees any of its money is another thing. A poster purporting to be former chief accountant Robert Staats told investors on a forum that the private equity investors who threw money at the company when it was in its final death roll have superior rights to everyone.

For more:
- VoIP Inc.'s latest 8-k statement
- Investorhub has been a forum for investor, vendor and ex-employee discontent

Related articles:
VoIP Inc. goes down owing Verizon $8 million Report
VoIP Inc. claims $1.25 billion patent Report

VoIP booms while telecoms struggle

Tom Burton — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 06:59:58 -0500

The telecom sector may be downgrading but sales of enterprise VoIP and IP equipment continue to surge. All the IP phone vendors are reporting bullish activity and industry analysts say they are seeing 200-seat deals coming across their desk regularly. Garrett Smith reviews many IP systems and says if resellers are not gearing up they are missing a major opportunity. "The phone-system deals are getting larger, easier to close and the margins are the best they have been in years," says Smith in his blog. "The market is hot and I can't wait to see just how hot it will get!"

The reports of strong activity coincide with figures showing a 31 percent increase in VoIP enterprise sales in 2007. At the same time, traditional telephony gear witnessed a 20 percent fall. Global Sources reported a combined revenue of $4.26 billion from IP PBX sales and converged PBX sales. This was the first time IP spend exceeded traditional PBX revenue of $4.12 billion.

The boom in IP spending contrasts with the struggle major vendors, and to a lesser extent the big carriers, are having as convergence and the inexorable shift to software-based systems dramatically changes industry structures. Both Verizon and AT&T this week suffered downgrades as analysts factored in tempered broadband and cellular revenue growth as well as the impact of a slowing economy. The downgrades came despite strong Q4 performances and "more of the same" market guidance.

For more:
- VoIP phone system sales are booming Blog
- Enterprise IP is also booming Article

Related articles:
U.S. telecom giants downgraded Report
Ericsson cuts 4000 jobs Report

Verizon's VoIP inducement letter

Tom Burton — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:59:56 -0500

Verizon has offered a subscriber a $50 bonus plus a discounted, 12-month deal for unlimited domestic calls for $14.99 a month not to switch to a VoIP provider. The subscriber received the letter from Verizon via UPS within a week of authorizing their new VoIP provider, www.iconnecthere.com to make the change over. He told fiercevoip he also received a phone call from Verizon.

Evidence of Verizon offering inducements for subscribers not to switch comes as Comcast, TimeWarner and Bright House Networks, have filed a complaint with the FCC. They allege Verizon has been trying to stop customers who ask to have their number ported to a cable digital voice service. This, they say, breaches FCC rules that bans incumbents persuading customers not to swap carriers.

"We would like to talk to you about your pending order to disconnect your Verizon service," the form letter says. "We want to keep you with Verizon. What can we do to change your mind?" The letter then says they are constantly reviewing bundles and "we have a great new offer for you." The letter then offers for a limited time only the $50 retention bonus and the unlimited domestic calling offer of $14.99 a month for 12 months. The letter says this would reduce to $11 if the subscriber took up the American Express branded reward card.

For more
- Verizon's inducement letter

Related articles:
Big Cable vs. Big Telco Report
Verizon sues Charter for VoIP patent Report

Skype: Stand-by for violence

Tom Burton — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:59:54 -0500

The emergence of the open telephony platform built on Internet for telephony will be violent, chaotic and messy according to Skype GM for Audio and Video Jonathan Christensen. He forecasts that anyone who seeks to stand in the way of open platforms will be doomed and says the only innovation from the telecom sector in the last 20 years has been the advent of mobility.

"I think that anybody who has not figured out that the Internet is the platform and that there isn't any such thing as walled gardens that will survive, or sub-networks [such as AOL tried] that are going to survive, those people are doomed," Christensen says in a long interview with ecommmedia.com. "The intersection of these worlds is going to be chaotic. It's going to be violent. It's going to be messy for a while but it is going to happen, and the Internet will survive as the one open platform. I think that you are only going to see further disruption of the telecom industry and the emergence of totally new businesses that we can't imagine today."

Christensen says the result will be very rich, open, cheap and accessible communications. "This is going to be not just a game changer for the telecom industry, but will be a change agent for all of humanity."

Maybe Skype could get with the open spirit and make its service interoperable with other VoIP offerings?

For more:
- Lee Dryburgh interviewed Christensen for ecommmedia.com Article

Related articles:
Skype struggles to find real revenues Report
Skype resists inter-operability Report

Big cable V big telco

Tom Burton — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 06:59:58 -0500

The big cable companies have taken the gloves off and have filed a FCC complaint against Verizon for alleged "retention marketing" breaches. Comcast, TimeWarner and a smaller cable company, Bright House Networks, allege Verizon has been trying to stop customers who ask to have their number ported to a cable digital voice service. In contravention of FCC rules that bans incumbents from trying to persuade customers not to swap carriers, Verizon allegedly offered inducements--"price incentives and gift cards"--to keep customers.

"While some customers rebuffed Verizon's inducements to stay while the port requests were pending, thousands of customers accepted Verizon's offers, after which Verizon canceled their orders for [cable digital voice]," the cable complaint states. The complaint follows two patent actions Verizon has launched against cable MSOs Cox and Charter alleging breach of VoIP patents.

Comcast has more than four million digital voice customers and is now the fourth-largest telco in the U.S. but, along with all cable companies, is battling Verizon's aggressive roll-out of its FiOS TV/Internet/telephone service and AT&T's U-verse triple play. Chicago's northwestern suburbs is the current front line for U-verse where AT&T is undertaking its largest-ever deployment.

A Verizon spokesperson is reported admitting Verizon does undertake retention marketing but that it is lawful. "This filing should be seen for what it is--another cable company effort to block consumer choice as competition heats up," Verizon spokesman David Fish told Multi-Channel News. "It's hard to believe that cable would attempt to block consumers from receiving information about additional services and lower prices."

Neither big cable nor big telco could ever be accused of being at the vanguard of competition.

For more:
- Operators File FCC Complaint Against Verizon Over VoIP Article

Related articles:
Verizon sues Charter for VoIP patent Report
FCC opens up MSUs to Telcos Report

Verizon sues Charter over VoIP patents

Tom Burton — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 06:59:58 -0500

Verizon has fired off its second patent action at a cable VoIP provider, this time against Charter Communications in Texas. Verizon is claiming eight patent breaches, a copycat of its action against Cox Communications in Virginia. Two of the patents are the same Verizon successfully sued VoIP pure play Vonage for. Vonage late last year paid $120 million to Verizon after a court found it had breached Verizon's patents.

Both actions claim damages and demand the cable companies cease using the VoIP technology. Four of the patents are about the method Cox and Charter use to connect VoIP calls. All the cable companies use PacketCable architecture--developed by the industry R&D house Cable Labs--to deliver their IP communications. If the actions are successful, it could affect all the cable companies, says Fred Grasso, a VoIP patent expert with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. He told Light Reading: "An overarching theme is that it seems Verizon is picking patents that are essential to providing VoIP service."

Verizon has been losing access lines as customers switch to tripleplay offerings from the cable companies. Comcast claims over four million customers, making it the fourth biggest telephony provider in the U.S. Any action by Verizon would almost certainly be strongly defended by the deep pocketed cable company and may also see the whole vexed issue of VoIP patents taken to superior courts. Sprint has been criticized for suing a number of smaller VoIP providers for patent breaches for technology which existed well before Sprint claimed rights over it.

Four years in the making, patent reform legislation--including provisions to try and stop wide ranging patent legal actions--is stalled in Congress. The Bush administration opposes the new law.

For more:
- Verizon sues Charter for VoIP patents Article
- If you cant beat 'em, sue 'em Article
- New patent law in long line Article

Related articles:
Sprint goes to court for patent breaches Report
VoIP patent landscape explained Report

Verizon buys bendy fiber

Tom Burton — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 06:59:55 -0500

Verizon is to start using a highly flexible fiber optic cable as it gears up for its roll out of FiOS broadband and TV services in New York. The cable is supplied by Corning and can be bent in whatever way, making it ideal for deployment in the 25 million apartment blocks in the U.S. It employs a nano technology to allow the fiber to be bent hundreds of times more than traditional fiber without any signal loss.

"This is the year that Verizon moves into high gear in deploying FiOS TV and FiOS Internet to apartment buildings, condos and similar multiple dwelling units," said Claire Beth Nogay, senior vice president and chief network officer for Verizon Telecom. "Corning's bendable optical fiber cable is particularly valuable in the tight spaces typical of these sorts of buildings. ClearCurve rugged drop cable is an initial product in what promises to be a family of specialized bendable fiber products we expect to use across our network going forward."

Mitsubishi has a similar product that has been used in aircraft and cars, but is now being used for home networks. Motorola is supporting its deployment in the U.S.

For more:
- Verizon buys Corning ClearCurve Cable Solution Release

Related articles:
The next big thing: plastic fiber to the home Report
Will FiOS be a victim of recession? Report

AT&T dives into VoIP

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 06:59:57 -0500

It is a week for the big boys with AT&T finally unveiling its VoIP product to be deployed as part of a tripleplay bundle with its U-Verse service. Detroit gets first dibs on the residential VoIP offering, and AT&T says it will expand the service to other U-Verse regions this year.

Neither Verizon nor U-Verse could be accused of jumping into the end-user IP-voice marketplace and, like every telco in the world, there are many carrier executives who see themselves as losers in the IP evolution as call margins are slashed and slashed again. While the business services groups for both carriers are busily ramping up their IP product suite and know how, the residential departments have been lagging, hoping it might just all go away.

Pure plays like Vonage might not survive, but the greatest rivals for the telcos are the big cable companies that all are rapidly transforming themselves into full-suite, digitally-based carriers. Ironically cable digital voice is not bargain basement, and the U-Verse Voice service will come bundled at the not-cheap rate of $114 a month, with the actual voice service beginning at $30.

For More:
- AT&T press release
- AT&T moves into Detroit with VoIP Article

Related articles:
Go to our sister site FierceTelecom for detailed coverage of AT&T's Q4 earnings
AT&T's VoIP, U-Verse plans Report