VOIP IP Telephony: November 2007

Friday, November 30, 2007

Buzzphone is buzzing in China, Thailand and India.

HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Buzz Technologies Inc. has announced a series of developments in the company’s mobile unit. One of them is a WAP based VoIP that allows mobile phone users to make low cost calls directly from their mobile phone. “This service is free to all members of Buzz’s Social Networking Sites, BuzZMe In and the Chinese Xirxi. Services such as VoIP, video, music, radio, news and instant messaging coupled with mobile devices such as a WiFi enabled iPod, and the ubiquity of broadband will result in 100 million consumer mobile VoIP users in 2011,” says Sutida Suwunnavid, Chairwoman of Buzz Technologies. “WiFi enabled mobile entertainment devices will make up 36% of all mobile VoIP devices sold in 2011.”

Buzz needs no special equipment or software, just a WAP enabled phone. Sutida also predicts that by 2011 Skype will have 25% of the world's VoIP users and $1.2 billion in voice service revenues. Buzz is aiming at Market penetration of 12.5% and $600m in revenue by 2011.

Buzz has also released the Beta version of its Mobile Search Engine which operates in all major languages. With this engine Buzz joins a very small group of companies offering a full service Mobile Web Site. The development is around 6 months ahead of schedule and will require the company to move forward promotional programs.

Buzz is about to hit China promoting free VoIP, SMS and Mobile Services. Our Search is already operating in Chinese and a Chinese Section in our PPC ad server is being added today. Buzz Search Engine is fully operable in all major languages including Chinese. www.xirxi.com and www.xarso.com as well as www.7123000.com will be relaunched aimed specifically for the Chinese Market. China has 162 million people online. In addition, China is the largest cellular market in the world and has passed the 500 million connections mark.

Try the Mobile Site at www.mobi.12buzz.com or Visit www.12buzz.com

Eavesdropping Is Possible On Cisco IP Phones

Cisco confirms that an attacker with valid Extension Mobility authentication credentials could cause a Cisco Unified IP Phone configured to use the Extension Mobility feature to transmit or receive a Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP) audio stream. This ability can be exploited to perform a remote eavesdropping attack. All Cisco IP Phones that support the Extension Mobility feature are vulnerable.

For this attack to be possible, several conditions need to be satisfied:

The internal web server of the IP phone must be enabled. The web server is enabled by default.
The IP phone must be configured to use the Extension Mobility feature, which is not enabled by default.
The attacker must possess or obtain valid Extension Mobility authentication credentials.

Extension Mobility authentication credentials are not tied to individual IP phones. Any Extension Mobility account configured on an IP phone's Cisco Unified Communications Manager/CallManager (CUCM) server can be used to perform an eavesdropping attack.

To obtain Extension Mobility authentication credentials, an attacker needs physical access to the network to sniff credentials. This can be accomplished by inserting a sniffing device between an IP phone and switch port.

Before eavesdropping can occur, the user who is logged into the IP phone via Extension Mobility must first be logged off of the IP phone. This can be accomplished by sending an Extension Mobility logout message to the IP phone's Cisco Unified Communications Manager/CallManager (CUCM) server.

If exploitation is successful, any IP phone that is undergoing an eavesdropping attack will have its speaker phone status light enabled, and the phone will display an off-hook icon that indicates an active call is in progress. Internal testing by Cisco also revealed that the described attack produced static noise on the IP phone while it was under attack.

Workarounds

There are workarounds to combat this attack:

Disable the internal web server on IP phones.
Disable the Extension Mobility feature on IP phones.
Disable the speaker phone / headset functionality on IP phones.

This attack can also be mitigated by restricting access to the internal web server of IP phones (TCP port 80) using an access control list (ACL).

For more information about Cisco-recommended best practices for securely deploying Cisco Unified IP Phones, reference this link:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/voicesw/ps556/products_implementation_design_guide_chapter09186a008085f858.html#wp1045452

Cisco Response

This is the Cisco PSIRT response to a presentation given at the Hack.Lu 2007 security conference by Joffrey Czarny of Telindus regarding a technique to remotely eavesdrop using Cisco Unified IP Phones.

The original report is available at the following link:

http://www.hack.lu/pres/hacklu07_Remote_wiretapping.pdf

We greatly appreciate the opportunity to work with researchers on security vulnerabilities and welcome the opportunity to review and assist in product reports.

This Cisco Security Response is posted at the following link:

http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/707/cisco-sr-20071128-phone.shtml

Where Are You? Find Out With Google's My Location

I found this information on Google Map site. I think we are in to something here. Yes as usual privacy shouts are out there. Cool down folks, how do you think if you press 911 on your cell phone, the emergency services find you? Today when we travel, just say from San Francisco to New York, non stop flight, we get photographed, videoed a multiple times. My motto is and to which many others oppose, is why worry if I have nothing to hide. At the same token, I do not want Google or anyone else to misuse my personal data. Those are two different issues.
The My Location feature is available for most web-enabled mobile phones, including Java, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, and Nokia/Symbian devices.

Get more info on the My Location feature and supported devices, or discuss Google Maps and My Location with other users.
See your location on the map, with or without GPS. Save time and tedious keystrokes finding where you are, what's around you, and how to get there. Watch the video below to see how it works.

Verizon's New Song LTE, Long Term Evolution

After "opening" it's network to any device that "meets" the conditions, Verizon is coming out with a real solution. Verizon has said it would use a technology standard called LTE, for Long Term Evolution, for its next generation of devices. So what is this LTE? Bits Blog of NYTimes has an article. Also Techcrunch has bit about the closed openness of Verizon as well. Enjoy the openness of .........

Google Will Bid in FCC Spectrum Auction

According to the following news release and the blog post "Official Google Blog: Who's going to win the spectrum auction? Consumers." Google is on the way to make it's strides on the air waves of open spectrum.

Just as the weblog post says, consumers stand to win. The fact like ever so tightly closed entities like Verizon coming out with open networks for any device, just did not come about by chance or Verizon seeing the light. Verizon even tried to stop open spectrum all together by taking FCC to court over the issue. It is the pressure build up by all these open activities and somewhat to iPhone activity, made Verizon to make differences.

I think this is a very good move by Google, and the up coming Android base Google Phones will be changing the mobile telecom world in USA. As I spend part of my time in Japan, I see the validity of a good wireless service. Some of my friends in Japan does not have land lines, because the wireless is so good, phone, internet, and other telecom needs are covered by wireless service. I really wish they will win.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (November 30, 2007) – Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) announced today that it will apply to participate in the Federal Communications Commission's upcoming auction of wireless spectrum in the 700 megahertz (MHz) band.

As part of the nationally mandated transition to digital television, the 700 MHz spectrum auction -- which begins January 24, 2008 -- will free up spectrum airwaves for more efficient wireless Internet service for consumers. Advocacy by public interest groups and Google earlier this year helped ensure that regardless of which bidders win a key portion of the spectrum up for auction (the so-called "C Block"), they will be required to allow their users to download any software application they want on their mobile device, and to use any mobile devices they would like on that wireless network. The winner must ensure these rights for consumers if the reserve price of $4.6 billion for the C Block is met at auction.

"We believe it's important to put our money where our principles are," said Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO, Google. "Consumers deserve more competition and innovation than they have in today's wireless world. No matter which bidder ultimately prevails, the real winners of this auction are American consumers who likely will see more choices than ever before in how they access the Internet."

Schmidt also praised the leadership of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and his fellow commissioners for adopting the new rights for consumers earlier this year.

Google's formal application to participate in the 700 MHz auction will be filed with the FCC on Monday, December 3, 2007 -- the required first step in the auction process. Google's application does not include any partners.

About Google Inc.
Google's innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top Web property in all major global markets. Google's targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall Web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.

Media Contact:
Adam Kovacevich
Google
202-742-6598
akovacevich@google.com

Investor Contact:
Maria Shim
650-253-7663
marias@google.com

Motorola's Zander Steps Down, Razr Not Sharp Anymore!

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. – 30 November 2007 – Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) today announced that its Board of Directors has elected Greg Brown, 47, as Chief Executive Officer of Motorola, effective January 1, 2008. Mr. Brown currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Brown will succeed Edward J. Zander as CEO, and Mr. Zander, 60, will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors until the annual meeting of stockholders in May 2008.

On behalf of Motorola’s Board of Directors, Samuel C. Scott III, lead director, said, “I want to take this opportunity to thank Ed for his vision, expertise and tireless commitment to Motorola. We greatly appreciate his many contributions and wish him all the best in the years ahead. Today’s decision is the culmination of a thoughtful and disciplined process of succession planning.”

Scott added, “The Board is delighted that Greg will serve as CEO. We are confident that he will bring a combination of strategic insight, operational discipline, and inspirational leadership needed for accelerated and sustained growth.”

"We are exceedingly fortunate to have a leader of Greg’s caliber, vision and experience. He has been an invaluable partner and I am confident he is the right person to be the next CEO of Motorola and lead the Company through its multi-year transformation,” said Zander. “Next year marks my 40^th year in the technology industry. This is the right time for me to move on to the next phase in my life and spend more time with my family. I am grateful I had the opportunity to lead Motorola over the last four years. It’s been a wonderful experience.”

“I am privileged to become the CEO of Motorola,” said Greg Brown. “This is a unique Company with strong technology, people and customers. I welcome this opportunity to lead Motorola successfully into the future. We have a lot to do and I am intensely focused on building shareholder value. I look forward to working closely with Ed to ensure a smooth transition.”

3G iPhone On The Way

According to a news article on bloomberg, Apple Inc. will introduce a version of the iPhone next year that will use 3G network and can access the Internet at a faster rate, AT&T Inc. Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson said.

The device will operate on third-generation wireless networks, 3G networks, Stephenson said today at a dinner meeting the Churchill Club in Santa Clara, California, where you can buy the CD or the Video related to the event. San Antonio-based AT&T is the exclusive carrier for the iPhone in the U.S.

``You'll have it next year,'' Stephenson said in response to a question about when the 3G iPhone would debut. He said he didn't know how much more the new version will cost than the existing model, which sells for $399. Apple Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs ``will dictate what the price of the phone is,'' he said.

So if you did not stay in lines for two days and paid thousands of dollars for the hip factor, you can laugh again at early iPhone users. I got mine free!

Thursday, November 29, 2007

TMCNet Opens a Wholesale VoIP Channel With Dalcom Telecom

Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC) today announced that the Wholesale VoIP channel, sponsored by Dalcom Telecom, has been launched as the latest addition to the TMCnet channel program.

This channel promotes VoIP business and includes an overview of Dalcom Telecom’s solutions. In addition, visitors can find valuable resources such as product trials, feature articles and industry news.The TMCNet has been a valuble resource to VoIP IP Telephony. You will find many a references to TMCNet (Specially the ITEXPO)and some of the authors like Rich Tehrani, Tom Keating, among many others, here.

More information and The channel itself could be found at wholesale-voip.

TMCnet’s channels are micro-targeted information portals where readers can find topic-specific news, articles, feature stories and product reviews. TMCnet has created over 100 channels covering important topics in the IP Communications, VoIP, IP Telephony, CRM, Call Center and Information Technology industries.

Packet8 Mobile VoIP, MobileTalk , Now Supports about 450 Mobile Phone Models.

8x8,Inc. has announced that it's new Packet8 MobileTalk mobile VoIP service is now compatible with nearly 450 different mobile phones, that is 160 more models since the service was introduced last Monday.

The Packet8 MobileTalk mobile VoIP service can be used on a wide range of mobile devices running Windows Mobile Palm and Symbian operating systems. Popular makes and models supporting the service include BlackBerry, Nokia, Palm,Motorola and Samsung.
The Packet8 MobileTalk service seamlessly connects international calls from the mobile phone to the Packet8 digital VoIP network, enabling cell phone users to significantly reduce their international phone bills and maintain high digital voice quality while still enjoying the convenience and flexibility of mobile calling. Packet8 MobileTalk removes the barriers associated with existing carrier, calling card and call back services that often dissuade individuals from using their cell phones for overseas calling. These include obstacles such as costly per minute rates, poor call quality, cumbersome dialing procedures and unreliable service availability.

With Packet8 MobileTalk, users can dial calls directly and natively from their mobile handset, contact list or speed dial directory without the additional keystrokes required by calling card and other reduced rate international calling services. Once the destination number is dialed or selected, the Packet8 MobileTalk software application identifies the international prefix being called and redirects the call to a local Packet8 network access number. All Packet8 MobileTalk calls are carried to the Packet8 network over the subscriber's existing cellular voice phone service and do not require access to an expensive monthly data plan or WiFi access point. Packet8 MobileTalk service offers exceptional rates, $.02 to $.05 per minute for most locations in Europe and Asia, along with unparalleled voice quality as calls are routed over the award-winning, patent-protected Packet8 digital phone VoIP network.

Nearly 450 Windows, Palm, RIM and Symbian-based mobile phone models, including the entire family of Blackberry phones running version 4.0 of the operating system and above and 25 Nokia models running the Symbian OS, are now supported by the Packet8 MobileTalk service. A complete list of supported devices can be found at http://www.packet8.net/mobile_services/supported_phones.aspx.

Customers can sign up for a Packet8 MobileTalk account today at http://mobiletalk.packet8.net/ and download the application to their mobile device from a PC or, if the customer's existing mobile service plan includes data service, via a quick over-the-air software download.

Customers do not have to subscribe to other Packet8 VoIP or videophone services in order to sign up for Packet8 Mobiletalk, though discounted service fees are offered to existing Packet8 VoIP or MobileTalk subscribers. There is a one-time $9.99 activation fee for the service and a monthly fee of $9.99 for non-Packet 8 subscribers. Existing Packet8 VoIP subscribers, including subscribers with at least one Packet8 MobileTalk account, pay a monthly service fee of $4.99. Packet8 MobileTalk overseas calls are billed at Packet8's low international rates which can be found at http://www.packet8.net/international_services/. To view a demo of Packet8 MobileTalk go to http://mobiletalk.packet8.net/demo.html.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Pudding is getting ready to eat cake.

Pudding by Puddingmedia seem to make feel ashamed. I thought in this post that the pudding might fall on the face. But I might be wrong ;). The project is going along fine and it is already offering free calls in USA and Canada. At the end of October they partnered with Meebo.
But I am still wondering about someone, something (Program) listening to my conversations. But if Google can read my email, and AT&T let others listen to my phone calls, why not pudding!

French iPhone Arrives And Is Cheaper Than Unlocked German iPhone

Since the announcement of its arrival in France, iPhone has already won over more than 63,000 fans who have registered on www.iphone.orange.fr, confirming its status as a "must-have" device. iPhone combines three devices into one-a mobile phone, a widescreen iPod, and a breakthrough Internet device-all based on Apple's revolutionary multi-touch interface and pioneering software that allows users to control iPhone with just a tap, flick or pinch of their fingers.Its design and interface make it a "one of a kind" mobile, finally offering a genuine mobile Internet experience.
Bringing this to life for customers across France, Orange will be holding late-night openings at 12 of its stores, when iPhone is unveiled on Wednesday November 28, 2007. Bordeaux, Lille, Lyons, Marseilles, Montpellier, Nancy, Nice, Nantes, Rennes, Strasbourg and Toulouse will be welcoming iPhone fans from 6:30 pm onwards. In Paris, Orange will take this opportunity to inaugurate its brand new store at 125, avenue des Champs-Elysées.As exclusive carrier for iPhone in France, Orange has developed a range of four "Orange for iPhone" plans. These offers have designed to let customers make the most of this revolutionary device that will change the way customers communicate.
All four "Orange for iPhone" plans include:
Visual Voicemail, an industry first, which allows consumers to see a listing of their voicemails, decide which messages to listen to, then go directly to those messages without listening to previous messages. Just like email, Visual Voicemail on iPhone enables users to immediately access the messages that interest them most, in the order they want.Unlimited access to email and the Internet ³, which combined with the revolutionary features of iPhone, at last offers true Internet browsing
With this range of dedicated offers, Orange is meeting iPhone customer expectations in terms of voice, sms & wifi, with prices ranging from EUR49 to EUR119 euros per month, and the iPhone available for EUR399. Orange is also offering iPhone at EUR549 to customers who do not wish to benefit from one of the four "Orange for iPhone" plans and at EUR649, without a plan. The cost of unlocking the handset is 100 euros during the six months following the acquisition of the iPhone, regardless of the package chosen.

Why You Should Keep Your Cell Phone In Your Hip Pocket!

Korean man dies from exploding cellphone.
SEOUL, South Korea - An exploding cell phone battery is suspected by police in the death of a South Korean worker Wednesday, though the phone's manufacturer said it was highly unlikely, is reported by Yahoo News. The victim is a South Korean man identified only as Suh, was found dead with an exploded and melted phone in his shirt pocket - the burn in the shirt is clearly visible in this image. The Phone is said to be LG, Thank God, I just got another phone. Are there any exploding iPhones?

EU Telecom Council Will Convene In, Brussels, 29 November 2007

Telecom Council, Brussels, 29 November 2007
The EU Council of 27 Telecom Ministers will meet tomorrow in Brussels. For Telecoms issues, the Commission will be represented by Viviane Reding, EU Telecoms Commissioner.
The main subject to be discussed will be the Commission proposal of 13 November on reforming the EU Telecoms Rules.
The Council is also expected to adopt conclusions on Mobile TV, to make progress towards quickly repealing the GSM Directive and towards a better system for mobile satellite services.
Main agenda items at this Telecom Council:
EU Telecoms Reform: Outlining the proposals to reform the EU's current Telecoms Rules.(see IP/07/1677; IP/07/1678)
Mobile TV: Strengthening the single market for mobile TV and promoting DVB-H as European standard.(see IP/07/340)
GSM Directive: Making it easier to offer and develop innovative Europe-wide mobile communications.(see IP/07/1170)
Mobile Satellite Services: Towards a better process for European Mobile Satellite Services. (see IP/07/1243)
E-Inclusion: Ageing well in the Information Society and the Commission's initiative for an all-inclusive digital society.(see IP/07/831)

Also at this Telecoms Council:
The Commission will present information about:

the results of the recent World Radiocommunication Conference 2007 (see IP/07/987 for the EU's position prior to the Conference);
the status of the '116 numbers', the single European freephone numbers for harmonised services of social value: on the implementation progress of the first number, 116000 for hotlines for missing children (see IP/07/188), and on the two new numbers reserved: 116111 for child helplines and 116123 for emotional support line for adults

EU News

ipoque to present the results of its 2007 survey on the usage of P2P file sharing networks at the Emerging Technology Conference.

Press Release, Leipzig, August 30, 2007 - On invitation by MIT Technology Review, ipoque will present the results of its 2007 survey on the usage of P2P file sharing networks at the Emerging Technology Conference. The survey is due to be released in September. While the 2006 survey largely focused on file sharing networks, the 2007 edition will include statistics about novel applications such as Skype, Joost, media streaming and one-click hosting.

Preliminary results show P2P traffic still ranging between 50% up to 90% of all Internet traffic. The 2006 survey saw BitTorrent slowly surpassing eDonkey as the most popular P2P network. This trend has continued. BitTorrent has become the globally dominating P2P protocol with a share of 50-75% of all P2P traffic. eDonkey exhibits a regionally varying popularity with shares between 5-50% of all P2P. In certain regions, other protocols have gained a significant importance. In the Baltic States, for instance, DirectConnect has a proportion of about 30% of P2P.

As P2P continues to dominate, other applications have risen in popularity. While Joost does not yet cause the traffic volume many Internet providers fear, Skype, although being a low-bandwidth application, generates up to 2% of the overall traffic in certain networks. Media streaming services, such as YouTube, and one-click file hosting services, like Rapidshare and Megaupload, which provide direct download links as a means to distribute content using ad-financed Web server farms, have also seen a huge popularity surge. Details will be published with release of the 2007 survey.

ipoque´s 2006 P2P survey provided the globally first statistics about the exchanged content in file sharing networks. Detailed data acquisition and analysis was conducted by ipoque for the eDonkey and BitTorrent networks. The results showed, for instance, a 20% and 30% share of pornographic content for BitTorrent respectively eDonkey and confirmed that many current audio, ebook and movie titles are exchanged. For more information read http://www.ipoque.com/media/news/pressrelease_ipoque_241006.html.

Your VoIP , Video and even Email might get Taxed

In October, I wrote twice about the Internet Tax moratorium being extended by both house and the senate. VOIP IP Telephony: No Internet taxes but VoIP is excluded
The seven year extension now in effect seem to more complicated than the initial thought. Today I read an article on San Jose Mercury by GEORGE A. PIELER. It is a very informative article but the information, for no fault of the author, left me more confused. Sometimes even though confused, you need to know what your browsing calling could bring home. So I advise you to read the article that might make you say a word that would lead your mother to wash your mouth with soap, if she hears you.

States wrong to hobble Internet commerce with taxes on access

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Google Talk Gadget Multilingual Now Supports 20 New Languages

Now you can see all these languages in the pull down menu on the the Google Talk homepage,;
Chinese(Simplified), Chinese(Traditional), Danish, Dutch, English(UK), Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese(Brazil), Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese.
I think it is really important to be able to chat, talk in ones native language. My problem is that I am some what fluent in a few languages (no scholar though!) English (I still spell color, colour!!) , Dutch, Japanese and jabbering ability in few other languages. The picture above shows the gadget in Japanese which I will use to communicate with my girlfriends family (my girl friend and I speak in a language which is a combination of English, Dutch and Japanese.) and some of our friends in Japan.
Sometimes we feel that Google Talk is neglected child at Google but then something happens that put a smile on our and our friends faces. When people are looking for VoIP solutions, it is good to have something that we could use from any and every web browser. Will we be able to Google talk on Google phone?
Google Talkabout: Google Talk Gadget in 20 new languages

Nerd Vittles "PBX in a Flash" is ready for down load.

If you read the article pointed out by the following post and liked the Nerd Vittles idea, now you can play around with it.
The ISO has been released and ready for download at PBX in a Flash site.
The instruction manual also available from the above site.
VOIP IP Telephony: Nerd Vittles drops TrixBox for "PBX in a Flash"

Verizon opens up network for Other wireless Phones and Applications

After even taking FCC to court to stop open spectrum, Verizon is announcing, and being the first to do so, that it will open up their wireless network for phones and software not sold by Verizon.
I think all these people are challenged by yet to come Google Phone and the Android.
Only last week that Verizon's president and CEO, Lowell McAdam, said when asked about the Google Phone. "For example, what if malware infected an Android-equipped phone and started relaying your exact location to a stalker?"
So now it is good to be stalked? Mr. McAdam? Perhaps he will have better security! according the guidelines minimum requirements for joining network need to be met.
But I welcome this gesture by Verizon. The path all the networks should be following. They only need to look at Europe. I do not think that profits are any lower but happy users on your network.
Number three and four networks, Sprint and T-Mobile are already exploring Google Android phone platform and might be open soon. AT&T is still busy with iPhone and might join the flow when it decides it is good!
Looks like 2008 will be an interesting year for communications.
Verizon news release.

Peering in to the future

Ross O’Brien, of VON magazine has written a good, a very good article on peering. Why we peer, how we peer and at the end hopes that the industry will squash its collective competitive fears and realize that the future depends on a bigger, Metcalfe-ian worldview on network connectivity, and peering plays a central part in that.
Next Generation Peering: Into the Future

Monday, November 26, 2007

VoIP Phone and An Android (Not Google Phone but R2D2) For Star Wars Fans

TMCNet's Tom Keating goes gadget hunting and finds Star Wars themed R2D2 with Video Camera with impressive characteristics. There is a light saber to go with it which in turn turns out to be a VoIP Phone!, with an EASY (skype) button.
Go enjoy photos and more info at Mr. Keatings site. (Note to self, learn from him how to be a reviewer!)

Wireless Industry's take on Google Phone, Android

I was reading a post on Cisco SP360, "Google and the Open Mobile Phone", about Google phone (one of the most visited link on the site, got dugg twice!) initiative and the wireless industry's view of the matter. Larry Lang has been to the wireless conference known as Rutberg Wireless Influencers conference and of course the talk of the town has been Android. But what made me laugh out and shout "What" was Verizon's president and CEO, Lowell McAdam, said when asked about the Google Phone.
"For example, what if malware infected an Android-equipped phone and started relaying your exact location to a stalker?"
Malware could infect any phone and give such opportunities to bad people. If his argument is right, Microsoft OS based PC's should be secure from malware while Linux desktops filled with malware. We all know it is other way around. Google is not doing this for love of the world and they stand to gain a lot if the android is welcomed by masses. The fact as I have mentioned before, it is not the android that US wireless carriers like Verizon must look out for. It is the Open Spectrum that these Androids might roam. Verizon even filed a lawsuit against FCC, regarding this open Spectrum issue.
So all I have to say to Mr. McAdam is that to come up with a better ideas and strategies, rather than throwing malware mud at Open Source. There others who excels in that particular ability, with manufactured case studies and facts etc to create FUD [fear, uncertainty and doubt]. The above statement only made me laugh, no fear!

Nokia N810 released for sale

The much awaited Nokia N810 (by me) has been released to retail. I am just waiting for it to navigate holiday traffic and come to my hands!
VOIP IP Telephony: Nokia N810 with Gizmo,Skype and GPS coming in November

VoIP Security Education at ITEXPO East 2008

I have written about 100 posts related to VoIP Security. The latest (last week) being SIPtap (A Proof of Concept Tool), Taps into SIP Based VoIP Calls Records Them.
A lot of sites have written about this same issue that SIPtap has brought about. Of all the articles, the theme is that we need VoIP Security.
The good old PSTN days, we did not know about security, or did not care as Ma Bells, Pa Bells and all other bells took care of securing, wiretapping our phone calls.
But the VoIP is mich more than a phone call. Our VoIP accounts will be tied to most of our information. Leaving VoIP unsecured will be like leaving your house door open, in a bad neighborhood.
In a corporate environments, there will be much more information that need to be secured. It is not much different from the needs of securing your Data Networks. But just because the data networks are secured, your VoIP or UC, Unified Communications will not be secured. One need to take care of addressing the special needs that comes with taking all the communications to a IP platform. Be it self hosted or out sourced.
By reading Rich Tehrani's blog reminded me today that Internet Telephony Expo, ITEXPO East 2008 is coming soon. It will be held on January 23-25, 2008 at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami, Florida.
So what has this got to do with Security. A Lot!. The education is the key to success in any field and that is what you will be able to get at the ITEXPO East 2008.
Security Challenges in the Enterprise is a good starting point and will be presented by industry experts. There will be other interesting sessions that are typical at ITEXPO.
So register now and secure a seat so that you can learn how to secure your Unified or standalone communication networks.

Well Healed Asterisk Leads the Open Source VoIP Pack.

I had to write something after reading an article on Australian IT. It is not only that Open Source has traction in VoIP IP Telephony, most of the VoIP was Open Source until recently where big companies were /are still selling legacy telephony switches. Now that companies like Microsoft has entered the arena, there will be analysts who will try to pull wool over eyes of people. What pushed me to even mention this article is the mention of YG below. There are other open source initiatives on VoIP, like OpenH323, OpenGateKeeper, that were equally old or older. But that is not the point here.

"Even though industry researchers such as The Yankee Group say VoIP is too early in its development cycle to be properly open-sourced, vendors are launching products. (Remember the same Yankee Group said that SCO will Prevail Against IBM! And we will start seeing praising of Microsoft VoIP products from this same group, but that is the business they are in. Selling ignorance to ignorant!)

Already there are a number of open source VoIP applications, such as FreeSwitch, OpenSER and YATE, that turn a computer into an IP PABX. However, the most widely deployed is Asterisk, which was developed as far back as 1999. Just one month after its acquisition of Switchvox, a provider of IP PBX phone systems for small and medium businesses, Digium announced the availability of Switchvox Free Edition. The new product is based on Asterisk, open-source telephone software created and owned by Digium."

The Asterisk was just tested by Transnexus and perhaps YG should look at those results. (Transnexus did not get paid by Digium ;) to my knowledge)

Navitas 3.0,uniquely Eases Carriers' Migration to IP Telephony

Redwood City, Calif., – October 22, 2007 — Nominum, the leading provider of network naming and addressing solutions, announced today the release of Navitas 3.0, an IP-application Routing Directory (IPRD) that uniquely accelerates the deployment of IP telephony. Navitas 3.0 provides a platform that integrates legacy telephony numbering plans and IP routing identifiers, giving carriers an evolutionary path toward profitable business models using Voice over IP (VoIP). Additionally, the directory enables the consolidation and simplification of routing plan management processes, improves telecommunication margins, and optimizes usage of profitable and reliable routes.

Many carriers have made the decision to migrate to IP telephony. They are challenged by declining voice revenues and face increasing competition and industry pressures to adapt their existing business model to remain profitable. At the same time, they need to invest and execute very carefully as they move to IP. Cost, control and complexity are significant barriers. Navitas 3.0 enables carriers to easily transition to an IP telephony business model and extend telephony services to support a voice enabled Web, without having to duplicate network functionality between legacy signaling systems - such as Signaling System 7 (SS7) - and IP.

“As the convergence juggernaut continues, carriers will increasingly struggle to sustain their business model and profit margins,” said Brian Partridge, program manager in Yankee Group’s Enabling Technologies Service Provider group. “Rather than equating VoIP and VoIP peering for settlement free services, carriers are increasingly seeking networking functions such as IP-application Routing Directories to manage and bill telephony services on IP as they see fit.”

Navitas Answers Carriers Needs Today, Prepares Them for the Future
Navitas 3.0 serves as the foundation for next-generation networks like IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) by allowing carriers to reuse existing routing plans, and modernize the integration into next-generation networks through automation. Through its enhanced management and reporting functionality, Navitas 3.0 provides a higher Quality of Service (QoS) over IP by ensuring reliable call deliveries across interconnects. The solution also helps carriers avoid increased spending on Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) and SS7 technology, and facilitates the development of new IP-based applications.

"VoIP interconnects are growing around the globe and service providers require scalable address resolution as well as security and control at the interconnect borders," commented Seamus Hourihan, Vice President Marketing and Product Management, Acme Packet. "Both Acme Packet and Nominum are attentive to our customers' requirements for VoIP peering and we continue to innovate and deliver features designed to build reliable, scalable and trusted VoIP interconnects."

Navitas Delivers Advanced Features
Navitas 3.0 dynamically accesses, stores and manages telephone routes and number mapping, while serving both legacy and converged IP switching infrastructure with route resolution for call termination. The solution features functionality for advanced service routing capabilities such as voice, multi-media sessions and IP applications.

New to Navitas 3.0 are the Application Routing Module and Element Management System. The Application Routing Module (ARM) enables Navitas 3.0 to become a switch-agnostic signaling data repository that refines telephony and multimedia routes based on session parameters like cost, quality, capacity and content (end user context like persona, presence, location, etc.) The core technologies and features include:
• Cascading query engine federates multiple sources of routing data
• Support for parameter-based routing including Least Cost Routing applications improves telecom margins through profitable and reliable routes
• Framework for Service Oriented Routing (SOR) for resolution of multiple routing decisions

“As the industry transitions to an all-IP world, carriers require a robust IPRD that is switch and data source agnostic and can serve as a control point for advanced services,” said Tom Tovar, chief executive officer, Nominum. “Navitas 3.0 provides the pivotal first step toward a cost-effective migration from SS7 to IP. This product addresses the immediate needs of the VoIP and VoIP peering markets as well as future network requirements, without requiring carriers to wait for all-IP or IMS architectures.”

Navitas Element Management System (EMS) is a turn-key solution that gives carriers a single point for administration across a network of Navitas IPRD and ARM servers. It provides enhanced data collection and reporting and allows for accurate Quality of Service (QoS) measurements.

A podcast of this release is available at: http://www.nominum.com/content/spotlight/chunks/Navitas 3.0 launch.mp3 For more information, please visit www.nominum.com.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Asterisk V1.4.11 Performance! Tested, verified and documented.

Good Folks at Transnexus who did a performance test on OpenSER a while back, recently performed an in-depth performance test on Asterisk V1.4.11 configured as a SIP B2BUA. This test was conducted on a server with two Xeon 5140, dual core, 2.33 GHz CPUs and 4 GB of RAM.

The Good news is that they found an Asterisk B2BUA on this hardware can manage 1500 simultaneous calls with no transcoding and 400 simultaneous calls with G.711 to G.729 transcoding.
So why are we limiting Asterisk Appliances to 50 Users?

A summary of the test is available

The test details are available (PDF)

Nortel IP Telephony Equipment Handles Six Million Calls Per Year For NHS Direct

LONDON – NHS Direct, England's 24-hour telephone and e-health information service, has unified its 36 contact centres through IP telephony from Nortel* [NYSE/TSX: NT]. Implementing an IP contact centre has improved service and efficiency by uniting previously siloed NHS facilities to achieve cost savings and make better use of resources through centralization.

Handling up to six million calls per year, NHS Direct delivers telephone and e-health information services to the public, via the telephone and the Internet, providing valuable advice to patients, often with potentially life-threatening illnesses or injuries. The new IP telephony contact centre, purchased from Nortel partner BT, is one of a number of changes that has contributed significantly to NHS Direct's consistent achievement of all the U.K. Department of Health targets for response times, performance and the speed with which patient issues are addressed.

NHS Direct created a single, virtual contact centre based on Nortel's IP contact centre technology that brings together its 36 previously franchised and separate call centres. By migrating to IP telephony, the centres have been unified and standardized, eliminating queuing times through the ability to answer more calls in less time by immediately re-routing callers to available agents wherever they are in the country. Furthermore, inter-site calls are made via the Internet so there are no costs to the business. NHS Direct can also make use of the existing, dedicated NHS data network, known as N3, to unite all NHS operations across England.

Adrian Price, National ICT Infrastructure manager at NHS Direct, says, "We wanted to improve the service we were offering, while benefiting from the cost savings that centralization should bring. We recognized that the only way to create the desired consistency and efficiencies was through virtualization - joining up all call centres to create a united appearance - and the only way to do that was to deploy IP telephony across the country. Of all the IP telephony solutions on the market, Nortel provided the highest pedigree at the best price. Having worked with Nortel since NHS Direct formed ten years ago, we knew they could provide the solutions we needed as well as support the implementation with a focus on minimizing disruption and downtime."

Peter Kelly, president, Enterprise Networks, EMEA, continues: "NHS Direct has to be able to deal with the six million calls it receives each year so the network is not just business critical, it is life critical. Nortel's IP contact centre technology is simplifying business for NHS Direct as well as making it easier for patients to make use of the service through increased bandwidth and the resilience required to ensure the service is 'always on' 24/7.

"Calls to NHS Direct are often about potentially life-threatening illnesses or injuries," says Murray Bain, director of ICT for NHS Direct. "They need to be dealt with or passed on quickly. Nortel has given us the peace of mind that we are providing the best possible service to the public. Patients across the country can feel confident that, when they call us, their health concerns will be addressed rapidly."

NHS Direct has chosen to establish a virtual, IP call centre connecting 36 locations. Five communications hubs, in Newcastle, Nottingham, Beckenham, Milton Keynes and Dudley, use the Nortel Communication Server 1000 with Nortel Contact Center 6 to answer and route calls quickly around the country. Advanced telephony functionality is provided through Nortel IP Phone 2004s and Nortel CallPilot. The implementation was completed in May 2007.

Nominet Wins Contract to Run Tier 1 Registry For UK ENUM

22/11/2007

.uk registry chosen to manage the unified telephone numbering system

Nominet, the .uk domain name registry, has been awarded the contract to run the Tier 1 registry for UK ENUM, a standard that will unify the telephone numbering system with the Internet's Domain Name System.

ENUM is potentially an important part of the convergence of regular telephone services and Internet telephony and it may enable businesses to benefit from cheaper or even free telephone calls in the near future. It is a suite of protocols that makes it possible to relate a domain name to a telephone number, and then use that domain name to identify various communications devices such as fax, mobile phone, voice-mail, email, IP telephony addresses or web pages.

The Tier 1 registry contract for UK ENUM was awarded to Nominet by the UK ENUM Consortium (UKEC), a limited company set up with the recognition of the BERR (formerly the DTI) to administer the UK ENUM top level domain. Nominet won the contract based on its understanding of the issues and challenges relating to best practice management of a top level domain. As part of the process of establishing the registry Nominet will be joining the International Telecommunication Union, Telecommunication Standardization Sector, ITU-T.

ENUM - What is it and how does it work?

ENUM will make it possible to link different VoIP servers so that telephones within businesses that use VoIP technology can connect to other businesses who use other VoIP providers via the Internet. As a result, telephone calls between businesses using this technology will be much cheaper or possibly even free, because there will be no need to connect to the telephone network for the call.

Lesley Cowley, Nominet's CEO says: "We are delighted that we have been given the opportunity to run the UK ENUM Tier 1 registry. Now the real work begins and we hope that this exciting development will result in cost reduction benefits for businesses and consumers".

India In GSM Spectrum Challenge

(Press Trust Of India)Amid the ongoing telecom tangle, Reliance ADAG chairman Anil Ambani has accused GSM operators of "hoarding" surplus spectrum and sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention to ensure that service providers like Vodafone and Bharti Airtel surrender the excess airwaves.

In a scathing attack on GSM players, who are demanding auctioning of spectrum and have moved telecom tribunal TDSAT on new spectrum norms, Ambani said even sector regulator TRAI, fair trade practices watchdog MRTPC as also TDSAT have issued notices to Bharti and Vodafone for "anti-consumer practices".

It is essential that the future of telecom industry is "not undermined by a few vested interest for their narrow personal interests", Ambani said in a letter to Singh days before the Diwali festival.

The letter comes after GSM lobby Cellular Operators Association of India challenged the new policy of allowing dual technology for mobile telephony and new spectrum allocation norms as recommended by Telecom Engineering Centre. ADAG firm Reliance Communications is a key CDMA player and was the first one to apply for GSM spectrum under the new norms.

Ambani asked the government to "see through the motivated agenda of a few existing GSM operators and not succumb to their pressure tactics", and said there should be "a transparent framework for surrender of spectrum in a time-bound manner, wherever not utilised, as per guidelines".

As if supporting Communications Minister A Raja, who has clarified to Prime Minister the issues relating to spectrum, Ambani opposed the auction of spectrum. He said such a route would benefit a close club of few large existing GSM players who remain free to indulge in anti-consumer practices like cartelisation and price fixation.

Saturday, November 24, 2007

German Police's Complain About Skype Being Unbreakable Is Crap, They Want To Install Trojan Horses On Computers!

Despite every blog and News sites start talking about unbreakable Skype encryption, the truth is German police have not even attempted to crack skype nor have they spoken to skype. German Poilice just want to be able to put Trojan horses on users computers which is illegal in Germany. News like this makes me wonder if SS (Schutzstaffel) is back in Germany. Only those empty headed people could have come up with such idea.
According to this news article, Joerg Ziercke, president of Germany's Federal Police Office have said;
"they were not asking Skype to divulge its encryption keys or leave "back doors open" for German and other country's law enforcement authorities."There are no discussions with Skype. I don't think that would help," he said, adding that he did not want to harm the competitiveness of any company. "I don't think that any provider would go for that."Ziercke said there was a vital need for German law enforcement agencies to have the ability to conduct on-line searches of computer hard drives of suspected terrorists using "Trojan horse" spyware."

What if everyone is a suspect until proven? Put Trojan Horses on every computer? Just like Governments have always done wire tapping legally since telephone was invented, find a way to wiretap the necessary suspects' communications, instead of blanket carpet bombing of users computers with Trojan horses. I do not want German police spyware on my computers! What if the same Trojan horses were used by criminals? for things like ID theft? remember the rootkits?
Put that bull crap on your phone Ziercke, and find a better solution.

Skype Sells Out 0207 SkypeIN Users for Profit Margin

Skype is being poor at business decisions again! Remember the very sorry letters Skype sent out to 0207 number users in London, UK.
Now it turns out that Skype let all the 0207 users down, just for financial gain. The SkypeIN numbers in 0207 is paid for service and might be that Skype is making less money if the keep on using 207 numbers according to a post by Digital lifestyles;
"We had an interview with Don McQueen, CEO of GCI Com who provided the 0207 numbers to Skype when they started the service 2-3 years ago.
He told us that as 0207 number are running short, many carriers are starting to charge for the 0207 numbers.
They have been in discussions with Skype for about year over the numbers, but talks broken down about two weeks ago when they couldn’t come to an agreement.McQueen tells us that without really finishing negotiations, Skype’s reaction was just to return the numbers.
Shame On You Skype"

Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa, Selects Alcatel-Lucent IP Telephony Solution

Singapore, November 20, 2007 – Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) announced today that it has been awarded a contract for the delivery of an IP telephony infrastructure for the Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa, a hospitality property in Singapore. The Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa is a 121-room boutique resort to be built by the Amara Group on a 3.5 hectares parcel that includes four old colonial buildings. The resort will leverage leading-edge technology to offer hotel guests unprecedented convenience and communications capabilities at the touch of a button once the project is completed by end 2007.

Alcatel-Lucent is delivering the OmniPCX Enterprise IP telephony system which will be fully integrated with special XML software applications jointly developed for the resort with its application partner, Malaysia-based FCS Computer System Pte Ltd, a leader in communications solutions for the hospitality industry. Guests will be able to access hotel features and services on state-of-the-art IP phones in their own rooms, as well as enjoy wireless IP access throughout the hotel premises, transforming the visitor experience. These features include up-to-date weather reports, tourist and visitor information, and resort facility guides. These innovative and guest friendly applications will reside on both the advanced Alcatel-Lucent’s IP phones in-room, and the resort’s website, which offers a whole new level of convenience and ease of use from that offered by other hotels.

“The Sentosa project will transform the Amara Sanctuary Resort into a world-class island destination, and we will see the Amara Sanctuary Resort setting the benchmark not only in luxury accommodation and holiday making, but also in the way that the latest IP telephony technology from Alcatel-Lucent is used to enhance the guest experience,” said Corinne Teo, Group Systems and Quality Manager, Amara Sanctuary Resort. “The type of guest expected to stay at the hotel will demand the very best, and this is a key part of our strategy of satisfying their needs during their stay. “

Amid the lush surroundings and luxurious amenities, guests will be able to gain access to both hotel services and facilities via subtle deployment of technologies and applications throughout the vicinity.

“The hospitality industry is evolving rapidly and the major resort chains are finding it increasingly challenging to come up with new ways to instill customer loyalty and improve brand experience,” said Matthew Kuan, FCS. “This greatly revolutionizes the way information is being delivered to and obtained by hotel guests, and also opens a sea of new possibilities to meet the changing demands of the industry.”

“The Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa is a prime example of our capabilities of developing next generation communications solutions that satisfy critical real-life needs,” said Dave Miller, vice president of Alcatel-Lucent’s Enterprise Regional Support Centers. “Alcatel-Lucent is delighted to be able to share its expertise and help drive the growth of Singapore’s hospitality sector as it matures in sophistication.”

Verizon concluds the industry’s first successful field test of 100 Gbps optical transmission

NEW YORK – Verizon has successfully concluded the industry’s first field test of 100 gigabits per second (Gbps) optical transmission, on a live, in-service 312-mile (504 kilometer) network route between Tampa, Fla., and Miami.

The test, which utilized a live video feed from Verizon’s national FiOS TV network as the “payload,” was successfully completed Friday (Nov. 16). The 100 Gbps transmission was conducted on a Verizon Business ultra long-haul optical system carrying other live traffic at 10 Gbps. The test demonstrated that by deploying advanced electronics, an existing network system can easily and quickly be upgraded to 100Gbps.

“This is another critical milestone on our way to ensuring that we have the most advanced telecom network technology at the right time, in the right place, to serve our customers,” said Mark Wegleitner, Verizon senior vice president for technology. “Whether it’s a large-business customer or a consumer using our voice, data or video products, we are harnessing the best technology available to make sure our customers have access to the most advanced, reliable telecommunications services in the country.”

Fred Briggs, executive vice president of network operations and technology for Verizon Business, said, “Applications based on online video are clearly drivers for higher bandwidth, but there are many others from a large business customer perspective. For example, database applications and file delivery, as well as disaster recovery and business continuity solutions, are also driving our customers’ need for capacity.

“This trial proves what we’ve been saying: The move from 40 Gbps -- available from Verizon Business today -- to 100 Gbps will be exponentially quicker than the move from 10 Gbps to 40 Gbps. As the industry moves toward 100 Gbps, we’re leading the way.”

Verizon selected Alcatel-Lucent’s 1625 LambdaXtreme Transport system for the field trial. Using that equipment, the 100 Gbps transmission was successfully accomplished on existing fibers that were initially conditioned for 10 Gbps service. Unlike other trials that used 10 separate 10 Gbps wavelengths to carry 100 Gbps, the Verizon test utilized a 100 Gbps signal on a single wavelength, demonstrating Verizon’s drive to promote “true” 100 Gbps in a serial fashion on just one transmission wavelength.

“This achievement further demonstrates Alcatel-Lucent’s commitment to paving the way for new advanced services by taking optical networking to the next level in both distance and capacity,” said Michel Rahier, president of Alcatel-Lucent’s carrier activities. “The field trial also confirms optical networking’s role as a critical enabler for competitive transformation, as new services and applications reshape network requirements.”

Briggs added, “Transmission at 100 Gbps will enable low latency and significant improvement in real-time transaction. Trading institutions and other Verizon customers using real-time communications will find the associated performance very attractive.”

Like the equipment in the company’s 40 Gbps trial in June 2004, the 100 Gbps equipment used in the field trial was implemented with a “plug and play” approach. This is a key objective for future commercial implementation, and means the technology was used without any changes to the fiber, amplifiers and other embedded equipment.

For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

Verizon concluds the industry’s first successful field test of 100 Gbps optical transmission

T-Mobile Offers An Unlocked iPhone Due To A Court Rulling, But wants Withdraw, If Appeal Prevails

T-Mobile has agreed to sell an unlocked version of iPhone in Germany. This comes shortly after a court granted an injunction requested by Vodafone mandating that T-Mobile either sell an unlocked version of the iPhone or withdraw the product from the market. German Competition law is the sited cause, which prohibits an operator from selling a phone which is locked and with a two year contract.
The unlocked version of the iPhone is €999 (US$1481). T-Mobile sells a locked 8GB iPhone for €399 including 19 percent value-added tax. (Is that legal? Yes)
T-Mobile said users who opt for the unlocked version will miss out on some of the features that are exclusive to the company's network, such as the iPhone's Visual Voicemail.

T-Mobile is appealing the injunction and will withdraw the unlocked version if the company prevails, and T-Mobile is also considering filing for damages against Vodafone.

Friday, November 23, 2007

SIP in time and Asterisk 1.4.14 release

The Asterisk Development Team has released the latest Asterisk version 1.4.14. This is a regular maintenance release that contains numerous bug fixes across the entire code base. A ChangeLog that lists all changes that were made is available with the release.

The release is available on downloads.digium.com. It is also available as a patch against the previous release.

A special note from ChangeLog that I found to be very importent;

Those using SIP phones should be aware that Asterisk is sensitive to large jumps in time. Manually changing the system time using date(1) (or other similar commands) may cause SIP registrations and other internal processes to fail. If your system cannot keep accurate time by itself use NTP (http://www.ntp.org/) to keep the system clock synchronized to "real time". NTP is designed to keep the system clock synchronized by speeding up or slowing down the system clock until it is synchronized to "real time" rather than by jumping the time and causing discontinuities. Most Linux distributions include precompiled versions of NTP. Beware of some time synchronization methods that get the correct real time periodically and then manually set the system clock.

Apparent time changes due to daylight savings time are just that, apparent. The use of daylight savings time in a Linux system is purely a user interface issue and does not affect the operation of the Linux kernel or Asterisk. The system clock on Linux kernels operates on UTC. UTC does not use daylight savings time.

Also note that this issue is separate from the clocking of TDM channels, and is known to at least affect SIP registrations.

SIP, VoIP Market to Reach 1.2 Billion Users and $150 Billion in Revenue

In its recent report, The Worldwide SIP Services Market, ABI Research reviews the global landscape for SIP services. It includes forecasts for the market potential up to 2012, including users (consumer versus business), service revenue, and capital expenditure. It forms part of three subscription Research Services: Mobile Operators, Wireless Infrastructure, and Fixed Mobile Convergence.

ABI Research expects that by 2012, almost 1.2 billion VoIP users to be active, with most users also subscribing to several forms of messaging and video sharing driven by interest in user-generated content. Additional services supported by SIP will include presence, click to dial, buddy lists, e-mail, and Web access, which are assumed to be “core” services and included as standard in any service offering and bundled with broadband access. A portion of the VoIP users will also be connected to an FMC (Fixed Mobile Convergence) service.

SIP services will develop into the norm after 2010 and rapidly begin to dominate the world’s telecom markets. By 2012, almost half of all telecom users will be using at least one SIP service, but likely will have many services from multiple devices able to communicate with other users and services across the Web and between enterprise and public networks. This will generate over $150 billion in service revenue annually with cumulative infrastructure capital expenditure of over $10 billion by that date.

Socializing with Fring, -- fringME!

Mobile VoIP firm fring! has added fringME!, a widget for communicating and let your presence known in many ways. This widget could be embedded on blogs, social networking profiles, online auction sites and any other websites for that matter.
So, if you install the FringME! widget, by adding the new fringME! HTML code onto your own web pages, blogs and pretty much anywhere you have an internet presence of your own, it will enable community members or casual visitors to instantly see whether you’re online, offline, or busy in call and also chat with you.
In addition the visitors, whether they are fringers or not, view your location in real time via Google Maps, if you have a GPS enabled handset. Privacy settings inside fring on your handset allows you to switch on or switch off the fringME! location feature, if you want to have privacy some time.
The features included in the fringME! widget will be expanding, and fringe! promises more very cool stuff in near future.To get your hands on your very own fringME! widget, simply visit the fringME! web page.

Broadcom VS Qualcomm, Patent Suite, Broadcom Wins

U.S. District Court Judge James V. Selna upheld an earlier decision finding that Qualcomm Inc. infringed on three Broadcom patents,Broadcom also agreed to accept a $19.6 million award for patent infringement damages against Qualcomm.
The judge cut the original $39.2 million award in half and gave Broadcom the option to seek a new trial or accept the award. Broadcom now will seek to prevent Qualcomm, from making, using, selling, and developing third-generation WCDMA and EV-DO cellular chips that infringe any of the three patents that were in question.
The three patents in dispute were related to video compression, a push-to-talk function similar to a walkie talkie, and technology that enables a handset to simultaneously access data and voice networks.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Skype is Really Sorry About Your London SkypeIN Number starting with 0207!

Straight from Skype Forum. Do not click on links as they pertain to reporting persons account.

Change to your London SkypeIn number

Hello

We're very sorry to tell you that we have to change your SkypeIn
number. As some of you may know, we get SkypeIn numbers from a variety
of telecoms suppliers. Unfortunately, we have to return some of the
0207 SkypeIn numbers to one of our suppliers of London numbers.

This means your number will stop working from December 20th 2007. We
realise the inconvenience this will cause you, and sincerely
apologise.

That's why we're going to give you a new SkypeIn number and voicemail
- free for 12 months on us - to thank you for your patience and to
help make the changeover as painless as possible for you.

Please make sure you redeem your voucher before December 20th 2007

SkypeIn Number Skype User Name 12 Month Voucher Code
0207870xxxx Mine xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Your next step: activate your new number.

Before December 20th 2007 activate your new SkypeIn number. We suggest
you do this as soon as you can.

1. Visit http://welcome.skype.com/cgi-bin15/DM/y/xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
2. Log in and enter the SkypeIn voucher code above.

Due to changes in the capital's number plan there is a limited
availability of 0207 numbers and we cannot guarantee that you will
find a 0207 number to replace your existing one. However, we have
plenty of 0208 numbers and 0203 numbers which OFCOM has introduced to
cover the whole of Greater London.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact our customer advisors
directly at sichange@skype.net. We've also created a step-by-step
guide to help you redeem your voucher and choose your new
SkypeIn number.
http://welcome.skype.com/cgi-bin15/DM/y/xx...xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The (really, really sorry)
people at Skype
Skype Forum

Skype and facebook Helps to nab Murder Suspect

A DRUG dealer suspected of involvement in the murder of Meredith Kercher was arrested after an undercover policeman reportedly befriended him on Facebook and then tracked the use of his internet accounts to the German city of Mainz.

Rudy Hermann Guede, 20, who has joint Italian-Ivory Coast nationality, was arrested late on Tuesday by German police and handed to Interpol after boarding a train without a ticket. He left Perugia after Ms Kercher's murder nearly three weeks ago.
Detectives reportedly found Mr Guede's fingerprints on Ms Kercher's blood-soaked pillow and on toilet paper at the cottage where the murder took place. His DNA was allegedly also on the British student's body.

source

SIPtap (A Proof of Concept Tool), Taps into SIP Based VoIP Calls Records Them.

I have mentioned security issues involving VoIP IP Telephony as close as few weeks ago as well as two years ago!
Today I hear and see another side of it. Proof of concept of wire tapping and recording of VoIP conversations. The Proof of concept tool called SIPtap is able to monitor multiple Voice-over-IP calls in SIP, listen and record them. for remote inspection as .wav files. The tool could be deployed on client side or in the middle man domain, ISP.
The creator of Proof of concept tool is Peter Cox, who co-founded firewall vendor BorderWare. He since left BoderWare to start his own VoIP company, so far only known as VoIPCode.org. (The last time I checked, the domain is still registered under Borderware.
The site offers a few stepping stones into the security world of VoIP,
VoIP Security Threats (Video Podcast) which is playable below.
A VoIP Threat Taxonomy (White Papaer) (Which is different from what I reported here from VOIPSA, two years ago.)
Asterisk SIP Registration Vulnetabilities and Limitations(White Papaer)
But I am most interest in " Asterisk SIP Registration Vulnetabilities and Limitations" which I am yet to digest.
All could be accessed from the link below.

Peter also has a seminar analyses the threats facing VoIP networks and includes practical demonstartions of many of the threats described in the above white paper collection. It is a 3 day course.
Get more information at VoIPCode.ORG.

iPhone's European Troubles, iToldyouso!!

iPhone's European Troubles
As I mentioned in the previous post, iPhone 1.1.2 iHacked, (Apple just Unlock the bloody Phone, you have to in France anyway!)
Looks like Apple is having trouble over in Europe. Unlike the system that is here setup mostly to save corporations, in Europe it is a little better, it is mostly people that matter. So the practices that are alright in the USA may not hold ground in European countries. So did Apple do it's due leg work before going to Europe with iPhone?
Looks like it is unlike they did. On Wednesday, T-Mobile, Germany's exclusive iPhone dealer, announced that it would offer the device without a contract to comply with an injunction issued by a Hamburg court last week. A result of a lawsuit by mobile-phone giant Vodaphone. Similarly, in France, where the iPhone goes on sale next week, Apple has been barred from requiring customers to sign up with the service provider Orange. There might be more places that locked iPhones are not welcome. The Orange and Apple deal in France, will also have to offer an unlocked iPhone for the French market to comply with France's telecom laws.
So unlocked iPhone or jailbroken iPhone might not be an issue anymore. Apple will have to allow other providers to provide services over it's iPhone and basically they need to unlock the phone. Once it happen over there, users here in USA and UK, where no law prohibits companies from selling locked phone, might use the OS or iPhones from Europe. Apple will have to settle with only the profit from hardware, loosing the cut it expected to get from exclusive providers!
But my question is, where would the support come from?

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Are You SIPconnect Compliant ?

This is something I wanted to post two months ago but some how skipped my mind. Following the tradition, better late than never, I will post it now. The SIP Forum, it's primary target of promoting SIP in the industry has members from 3COM to Wipro with names like Avaya, Cisco, Digium and Oracle (Just a few) in between. Anyone who is interested in SIP technology, industry recommendations for development of a SIP Phone, SIPit interoperability events and general promotion of SIP in the industry, may join and help to promote SIP. You will find the links at the end of the news release.
SECAUCUS, N.J., Channel Partners Conference & Expo, September 26, 2007 – The SIP Forum today announced the introduction of the SIPconnect Compliant program, a unique certification mark created to ensure interoperability among equipment manufacturers, software providers and service providers, as well as to promote further adoption of Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) as the standard for VoIP communications.

The SIPconnect Compliant logo serves as the “seal of compatibility” for companies that have agreed to abide by the terms of the licensing agreement, and is permitted only on compliant equipment that has been rigorously reviewed and tested. Purchasers relying on the certification mark will enjoy increased interoperability levels. Several industry leaders and SIP Forum members have recently been awarded the SIPconnect Compliant mark, including Acme Packet®, BroadSoft®, Cbeyond®, Digium®, Ingate® Systems and McLeodUSA.

“SIP is the protocol of choice for IP communications going forward, and the pace at which companies are introducing SIP-based products and services is accelerating,” said Joe McGarvey, senior analyst with Heavy Reading. “SIPconnect provides a common framework to ensure products and services that claim to be based on SIP actually are—a key safety check for an industry that is experiencing tremendous growth.”

SIPconnect, an initiative of the SIP Forum, streamlines how service providers and their enterprise customers leverage interactive IP communications services and solutions. A standards-based approach to direct IP peering between SIP-enabled IP PBXs and VoIP service providers, SIPconnect was designed to directly tie enterprise customers to VoIP service providers using an end-to-end IP connection. SIPconnect eliminates the need for VoIP gateway on the premise, improves voice quality and creates the right foundation for personalized applications and rich media services.

“The key to full adoption of the SIP standard is the drive towards total interoperability within the industry,” said Jay Batson, managing director and chairman of the SIP Forum. “Having so many telecommunications innovators embrace this certification mark furthers our belief in the importance of standardizing requirements necessary to elevate VoIP to traditional phone line levels in terms of reliability and predictability.”

“Acme Packet continues to support the mission and goals of the SIP Forum,” said Seamus Hourihan, vice president of marketing and product management at Acme Packet. “This program’s interoperability certification ensures our service provider and enterprise customers can rapidly leverage the benefits that Acme Packet session border controllers bring to the market.”

Scott Hoffpauir, chief technology officer at BroadSoft, said, “SIP has evolved to become the protocol of choice for deploying enhanced data and voice services. BroadSoft’s affiliation with SIPconnect has enabled us to continuously improve our VoIP applications to ensure service providers can offer the most advanced calling features to their enterprise and residential customers.”
“Cbeyond has been utilizing SIPconnect’s standard-based approach to SIP trunking in our BeyondVoice® with SIPconnect service, which has allowed us to provide an integrated package of voice, mobile and broadband services,” said Chris Gatch, chief technology officer for Cbeyond. “Using the SIPconnect Compliant certification mark will help us partner with like-minded companies to provide better and more complete services to our customers.”Digium founder and chief technology officer Mark Spencer remarked, “The presence of a certification mark from the SIPconnect Compliant program assures our partners and customers of our products’ interoperability with SIP devices. SIP offers a standardized way to bridge open source Digium Asterisk products and proprietary solutions.” Ingate Systems chief executive officer Olle Westerberg stated, “With the rapid increase in enterprise adoption of SIP-based technologies, especially SIP trunking, having an identifiable standard will further Ingate’s mission to enable businesses of all sizes to utilize the benefits of SIP-based communications.”

“McLeodUSA is informing customers that SIP trunking is an excellent and cost-effective replacement for primary rate interfaces (PRIs), and ensuring interoperability of networks and equipment is essential for delivering immediate benefits to customers,” said Chris MacFarland, chief technology officer at McLeodUSA. “We’re proud to be among the first SIPconnect Compliant members, and we look forward to collaborating with other industry leaders to enhance SIP-based services and expand SIP adoption in the market.”

About The SIP Forum
The SIP Forum is leading numerous industry activities that promote SIP technology, such as industry recommendations for development of a SIP Phone, SIPit interoperability events and general promotion of SIP in the industry. For more information, please visit: www.sipforum.org and www.sipconnect.info.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

VerizonVoyager.org Gives All The Answers About LG/Verizon Voyager

VerizonVoyager.org, a website with its own rap song, lets LG Voyager enthusiasts ask questions and provide answers about the new cell phone in real-time.

Baltimore, MD (PRWEB) November 20, 2007 -- When the Verizon Voyager (http://www.verizonvoyager.org) became available for Pre-Order on November 8th, Verizon Wireless was not the first to notify consumers. VerizonVoyager.org - an independent fan site created by a 25-year old Verizon customer - notified nearly 3,000 e-mail subscribers 24-hours before the company itself. This focused responsiveness was the website's source of inspiration:

"I was excited about the phone, but all my web searches led me to one page blog posts and short articles that regurgitated the same information. I knew there were other people in my shoes, so I tried to create a comprehensive collection of everything Voyager," explained Rob Jackson, the site's founder.

The site received immediate traffic, and when a community forum was added, over 430 registered members began to ask questions, provide answers, give insight and offer feedback on the Verizon Voyager Forum (http://www.verizonvoyager.org/forum). How excited can someone be about a phone? One member made an LG Voyager Rap Song (http://www.verizonvoyager.org/news/lg-voyager-rap-song) in tribute to the website. Membership is free and consumers can access all the information at absolutely no cost.

But it isn't all fun and games - when Verizon's support team gave conflicting information about the shipping date of Voyager Pre-Orders, the community was outraged: "People were upset," explained Jackson, "Customer support was telling our members that the Voyager wouldn't be shipped until after Thanksgiving yet available in stores the day before. These folks pre-ordered so they could be first to get it. They wanted to share it with friends and family over Thanksgiving weekend." If the phones shipped on Thanksgiving, they wouldn't have arrived until the weekend was over.

After making contact with Verizon Wireless' Northeastern Area Manager, Howard Waterman, Jackson was able to set the record straight: "He assured me that the Voyager would begin shipping on November 19th with intentions to arrive on November 21st, the same day it debuts in stores." This information was relayed to readers, numbering over 100,000 since the website's debut in October, reassuring their order status.

While the Voyager comes with an owner's manual and an online operating guide, Jackson notes that people have very specific questions in regards to their personal situation: "Nothing compares to having hundreds of passionate Voyager fans online, ready to provide instant feedback to whatever questions you have." Voyager enthusiasts have described the site as addictive, helpful and "the reason they pre-ordered the phone." Once consumers have the phone in-hand, Jackson hopes it will quickly become the top destination for Voyager owners.

In addition to the community forum, VerizonVoyager.org provides an overview of the phone, a collection of LG Voyager Reviews from the most trusted technology sources and a number of additional features are in the works: "In the next few days we'll have an area where users can freely download and upload Voyager Wallpaper (http://www.verizonvoyager.org/wallpaper/) for use on their phone and we're going to have some fun with contests where members can win gift certificates to Verizon Wireless."

About the Verizon Voyager by LG

The Verizon Voyager is a phone manufactured by LG exclusively for Verizon Wireless customers. It features a touch screen that unclamps to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard and large interior screen. A full HTML web browser provides a rich web experience. Subscribers can watch primetime television shows with stereo sound using the Mobile TV package and the phone also comes equipped with a turn-by-turn GPS Navigation system.

Bigfoot Networks Partners with DiamondWare To Put Online Gaming VoIP into Killer™ NIC

Bigfoot Networks, Inc., with the Killer NIC gaming network card, and DiamondWare, the leading provider of 3D spatial VoIP technology, have agreed to jointly develop VoIP for MMORPG and FPS games that fully offloads all client-side processing to the Killer NIC. This will enable online gamers to experience higher-quality multiplayer voice chat while gaming, without impacting their MMO and FPS game's performance.

Austin, Texas (PRWEB) November 20, 2007 -- Bigfoot Networks, Inc., makers of the award winning Killer™ NIC (http://www.killernic.com/default.aspx) gaming network card, today announced a joint development agreement with DiamondWare, the leading provider of 3D spatial Voice over IP technology. The companies are developing a hardware-accelerated voice solution for MMORPG and FPS games that fully offloads all client-side processing to the Killer NIC. DiamondWare's 3D positional voice technology accelerated with Killer hardware will enable online gamers to experience higher-quality multiplayer voice while gaming, without impacting game performance.

Powered by Bigfoot Network's proprietary LLR™ Technology (http://www.killernic.com/technology/llr.aspx) and a dedicated onboard NPU (network processing unit), the Killer gaming network card is optimized to reduce the lag and network latency associated with high action MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online Role Play) and FPS (First Person Shooter) games. In addition, the card supports a variety of popular gamer applications that run directly on the card's NPU instead of the CPU all without affecting game play or performance through its Flexible Network Architecture (FNA). Currently supported FNA clients include Firewall, Game Patcher, BitTorrent, FTP, Telnet and now 3D voice from DiamondWare.

"Voice chat while gaming adds a whole new level of realism that gamers crave," said Harlan Beverly, co-founder and CEO of Bigfoot Networks, Inc. "Our users have told us emphatically that voice chat is the #1 capability that they would use more if it had no impact on frame rate and Lag. By partnering with DiamondWare we will be able to offer Killer owners the best 3D voice technology at zero impact to gameplay."

The DiamondWare Platform (http://www.dw.com/products_dwp.php) enables integrated high-definition, proximity-based positional voice in games. DiamondWare's patent-pending technology provides custom spatial positioning of each voice for each listener in the game. Spatial voice in multiplayer gaming creates a more natural audio experience that significantly enhances immersion and gamers' perception of the playing field.

"DiamondWare upgrades the plain old voice experience into the digital age, offering an experience like being in the room with people," said Keith Weiner, CEO of DiamondWare. "By partnering with Bigfoot we will be able to offer game players an even more immersive 3D multi-player voice experience without the worry of any PC performance impacts."

The companies plan to initially release a Beta version open to Killer NIC owners before the end of this year.

About Bigfoot Networks:

Bigfoot Networks (http://www.bigfootnetworks.com/) develops technologies designed to fight Lag in online games. The company's mission is to enhance Internet-based online game experiences in multiplayer action games. The company's hardware and software solutions are targeted at gamer PCs and game hosting servers. Powered by its highly acclaimed (patent-pending) LLR™ Technology, the flagship Killer™ NIC is the industry's first network interface card (NIC) designed specifically to improve PC game network performance for a smoother, more responsive online game experience. Bigfoot Networks is headquartered in Austin, TX. To learn more visit www.killernic.com.

About DiamondWare:

DiamondWare (http://www.dw.com/about.php) provides best-of-breed real time voice technology with ground-breaking 3D positioning and high-definition quality. Applications include games, simulators, conferencing, VoIP, and radio over IP. Customers include DARPA, the US Special Forces, Navy, Air Force, as well as game developers, carriers, and equipment manufacturers. DiamondWare has received acclaim and recognition from numerous organizations, including TMC Labs Innovation Award, Best of Show at Internet Telephony, Product of the Year from Communications Convergence magazine, and has been on the Pulver 100 list since 2004. The company holds many patents. Founded in 1994, DiamondWare is headquartered in Mesa, Arizona. More information is available at www.dw.com.

Recreational Traffic Control On Your Network With Packeteer

Cupertino, Calif. - November 12, 2007 - Packeteer® (NASDAQ: PKTR), the global leader in WAN application delivery, today announced the release of new application classification plug-ins that enable customers to automatically identity and control online games such as Halo 3, which access Microsoft's Xbox Live network, as well as MSN Instant Messaging (IM), Video and BitTorrent Peer-to-Peer (P2P) traffic that can consume enormous amounts of network bandwidth and negatively impact the performance of critical applications for end users. With these new plug-ins, Packeteer PacketShaper® and iShaper™ appliances can now measure and contain the impact of three extremely prevalent recreational applications that run the risk of crippling enterprise and university networks.

"As organizations seek to ensure high-performance application delivery with network optimization and acceleration tools, the increased traffic of new and tremendously popular recreational applications is running counter to that effort," says Peter Sevcik, president of NetForecast, an internationally recognized engineering consulting company that benchmarks, analyzes, and improves the performance of networked data, voice, and video applications. "While businesses may actually want to enable some video or P2P traffic, unchecked gaming, P2P and video downloads are among the biggest drains on corporate and college networks. This can lead to poor productivity, wasted network bandwidth and sluggish performance of critical applications. A complete application delivery strategy must first provide granular visibility so organizations can decide which applications are mission critical and which are not."

Gaming applications such as Halo 3, file sharing programs such as BitTorrent and instant messaging applications using IP-based video are now widely downloaded and accessed by users that work across all types of organizations, from colleges to corporations to government agencies. Whether or not an organization can control and limit the impact of these applications is first determined by their ability to discover them. At the same time, accurate discovery of these applications is also key to ensuring that acceleration technology is not mistakenly applied. Data transfer techniques that do not first identify all network traffic can actually accelerate recreational applications to the detriment of business transactions.

Packeteer's unique network optimization and acceleration platform can discover, monitor and prioritize the performance of over 600 applications and protocols. By continually expanding its market-leading base of application classification plug-ins, Packeteer automatically detects, monitors and optimizes a wide range of application and protocol categories that include client/server, content delivery, database and ERP, directory services, e-mail and collaboration, peer-to-peer, and voice over IP. Through this application intelligence and market-leading acceleration and optimization technology, Packeteer provides its customers with a set of tools that truly delivers a "network that thinks."

The new plug-ins are downloadable software modules that seamlessly integrate with Packeteer's application classification architecture and include application visibility, monitoring and control for:

Xbox Live network downloads such as Halo 3, one of the world's most popular video games with 5.2 million copies currently in use;
MSN IM Video, which offers high quality, synchronized video as part of MSN's instant messaging services, currently used by 100 million people worldwide;
BitTorrent, a global standard for delivering P2P file downloads for 150 million users worldwide.

New Plug-In Availability

All new plug-ins are available immediately to licensed/subscribing customers at www.packeteer.com/support/down_main.cfm.

Monday, November 19, 2007

iPhone 1.1.2 Jailbroken, iHacked,

Conceited Software, who says that their software is better than others, (I think so too, after seeing other iPhone 1.1.2 hacks) have released their jailbreak solution for all of you to load on to your beloved iPhones. Instructions state that you need to be running version 1.1.1 in order to start the process. Rather than giving you instruction (Duplicating Conceited,) I am directing you to the site to download what you need, Spend some time reading instructions so that you do not brick your iPhone.
jailbreak solution from Conceited Software

Tags: iPhone, iPhone 1.1.2, iPhone 1.1.2 hacked, French iPhone, Open iPhone, jailbreak

Jajah Direct, No Computer Needed!

Following the demand for computerless calling, Jajah has the Jajah Direct up and Running. Jajah Direct allows one to call globally. It is simple if you remember old way of doing call back services. But this comes with a new twist, after initial call, you have a number for the person you called!;
Here is how it works;

Dial the local JAJAH number to get started
Then simply dial the desired number
JAJAH connects you
After your call you will receive a unique local number for your contact
Store their local number in your phone for direct dialing

Learn more at Jajah Direct whose motto is "Dial Local, Call Global"

Fiji Get It's first licensed VOIP service provider, VoiceNetIP (Fiji)

Fiji Times is reporting that Fiji has got it's first licensed VoIP Provider VoiceNetIP (Fiji). The License to VoIP has been in the work for some time and as usual there are some people that did not get the license first.

Fiji Times;

Fiji's first licensed VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) service provider, VoiceNetIP (Fiji) Limited, yesterday announced it would start operations in a fortnight's time.

Company director Joeli Kalou said after three years of waiting, the company given the VOIP license intend to bring maximum benefits and savings to business and the people of Fiji.

Unwired Fiji chief executive John Pollock said based on the consultations with regulators, the licence awarded to VoiceNetIP was not fair.

"Unwired Fiji has been advised that no licenses have been issued and no will be until the compensation mediation between Government and ATH (Amalgamated Telecom Holdings) resolved.

Unwired Fiji has been advised by Government we will be among the first licenses issued, said Mr Pollock

Interim Commerce Minister Taito Waradi could not be contacted last night. However, last August Mr Waradi said the State would go ahead with issuing VoIP licences to entities whose applications made the mark.

Mr Kalou said the company was issued a license last week.

COX VoiceManager Covers Your Telephony Needs.

Cox Business has released VoiceManager, a telephony platform that integrates a desktop phone, PC and wireless devices.

The IP telephony platform scales to deliver mobility, business continuity and unified messaging solutions to small businesses and large enterprises, according to Cox. Its features include find-me/follow-me, auto attendant and a personal status manager to route calls to the most convenient location and designate priority callers. For mobility, the platform’s remote office, sequential ring and call notification functions allow users to direct calls to desk, home and mobile phones, as well as set up simultaneous ring and voice mail alerts.

VoiceManager

OM Malik Writes About What Jajah, Raketu and Mig33 Are Upto.

As usual Om Malik lays it out as it should be about call back services. He is also wondering why calling card business has not taken a nose dive. I think it will not take a nose dive, immigrants or not, just plain sail to the ground, Just like large telephone companies did for last ten years.
(I left the same comment of his blog, Don't knw if it gets approved)

VoIP Security Vulnerabilities to rise in 2008: McAfee

In McAfee's predictions for 2008, McAfee Avert Labs Top 10 Threat Predictions for 2008
has valuable information regarding over all security. Two of them relate to our industry and I have listed them here. We have written about security many a times, like things discovered at Blackhat 2007 and have published information about security webinars. Keeping up with the tradition here are the information provided by McAfee, something to call yourselves about.
9. VoIP Attacks Speak Up
VoIP attacks should increase by 50 percent in 2008. More than twice the number of VoIP-related vulnerabilities were reported in 2007 versus the previous year—several high-profile “vishing” attacks, and a criminal phreaking (or fraud) conviction—so it’s clear that VoIP threats have arrived and there’s no sign of a slowdown. Although ABI Research estimates 1.2 billion VoIP users by 2012 (with $150 billion annual service revenues), the technology is still new to many and implementing defense strategies is lagging.
4.Instant Malware: A Different Kind of IM For several years, researchers have warned of the risk of a self-executing instant-messaging (IM) worm. This threat could spawn millions of users and circle the globe in a matter of seconds. Although IM malware has existed for years, we have yet to see such a self-executing threat. While it’s anyone’s guess exactly when this threat will emerge, the stars may be starting to align. The National Vulnerability Database reports more than twice the number of AIM, YIM, and MSN Messenger vulnerabilities for 2007 over the prior year. More important, there were 10 high-severity risks in 2007, compared with zero in 2006. Additionally, the top IM virus families of 2005 and 2006 were replaced with new active threats, signifying an “out with the old and in with the new” milestone. With nearly a quarter-billion users, Skype suffered its first batch of worms in 2007. Many more are expected to follow.

McAfee

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Conaito VoIP SIP SDK v1.3 Released!

Conaito's brand-new SIP SDK provides a powerful and highly versatile solution to add quickly SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) based dial and receive phone calls features in your software applications and websites. It accelerates the development of SIP/ RTP compliant soft phone with a fully-customizable user interface and brand name.

The conaito VoIP SIP SDK contains a high performance VoIP conferencing client capable of delivering crystal clear sound even for both low and high-bandwidth users and SIP compatible devices (hardware and software). It enables a worldwide communication over the internet or intern networks either by speaking and/or by text messages and delivers superior voice quality by integrating advanced configurable digital voice processing features including auto gain controller, acoustic echo cancellation, noise cancellation, reverb cancellation and Voice activity detection.

Here is a list of the main features of the conaito VoIP SIP client:
* Easily make and receive SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) based phone calls through any SIP gateway or SIP compliant IP-Telephony service provider
* VoIP conferencing with crystal clear sound even for both low and high-bandwidth users (G711 A-Law, G711 U-Law, GSM6.10, g723 and iLBC Codec).
* NEW in v1.3! Multi-line support.
* NEW in v1.3! DTMF tones support (SIP INFO and RTP)
* NEW in v1.3! Recording voice conversation into PCM WAVE (.wav) file
* NEW in v1.3! Playing PCM WAVE (.wav) files to a voice conversation
* NEW in v1.3! Dynamically loadable codec´s support (GSM6.10, g723 codec's plug-in samples included)
* NEW in v1.3! Comes as ActiveX control (Webdemo included)
* NEW in v1.3! Additional samples included. Comes now with C#, C++, VB.NET, VB6.0, Delphi and Webdemo (JavaScript)
* Registration on SIP Server (SIP Registrar).
* Support UDP, TCP and TLS (currently experimental) as transport type.
* Plain text messaging.
* Microphone and Speaker Visualization support.
* Microphone and Speaker Volume with Mute support.
* Audio device selection.
* Fully-customizable user interface.
* Packetloss resistant (by using iLBC codec).
* Supports OLE Automation (scripting) by providing IDispatch interface and custom interfaces for C/C++ developers.
* Works with all kind of Internet connections.
* Royalty free licensing
* No Yearly/Monthly fee
* Very easy to incorporate

Advanced configurable digital voice processing features:
* AGC (auto gain controller).
* Acoustic echo cancellation or suppression.
* Noise cancellation or suppression.
* Reverb cancellation or suppression.
* VAD (Voice activity detection).

Having the above features available makes it simple to develop any type of VoIP-enabled application, like e.g. a SIP softphone, teaching tool, live support, chat, meeting tool or any other type of application which requires users being able to talk and type messages to each other.

Support and Trial Download;

conaito Technologies
http://www.conaito.com

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Glenbriar Technologies Inc Unplugs a VoIP Competitor

Waterloo, Ontario CANADA, November 16, 2007 /FSC/ - Glenbriar Technologies Inc. (GBRT - CNQ, G1Q - FWB), today announced another significant replacement of a competitor's recently installed VoIP equipment solution with the Glenbriar Business VoIP solution.

Glenbriar's Business VoIP Solution combines ShoreTel phones, switches and software with integration software for Goldmine CRM solutions and Cisco routers to produce a truly superior deployment. The Glenbriar VoIP Solution was rolled out at the Calgary and Lethbridge locations for Precon Precast Products of Lethbridge, Alberta, replacing a Panasonic VoIP solution that was returned to the manufacturer under warranty.

"One of the focuses of Precon is to automate our processes to do more with our existing people," noted Art Lubin, Sales and IT Manager at Precon. "We pride ourselves on having leading edge technology. The ShoreTel phone system has provided a leading edge complete phone system that integrated nicely with our existing system. We find the ShoreTel system easy to learn and use, stable and easy to support. Combine that with the Goldmine integration and Glenbriar's great support team, and you have a winner."
FSC

Friday, November 16, 2007

Will Google Phone Android find a Home in Open Wireless Spectrum?

According WSJ, insiders have informed the Journal that Google is planing to go at the auction alone which would attract offers estimated to be higher than 4.5 Billion Dollars. So the Google Phone, or Android as it is operating system is known now might find it's own home, unlike iPhone.
To cement the facts the Journal also tells us that Google is doing a test run of an advanced wireless network at its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters, gaining operating experience that could come in handy if it wins the spectrum and decides to run a full-scale national mobile carrier.
I did not feel such micro waves when drove past Google today.
The authors of the article also wonders if Google is making a mistake by bidding and entering wireless world. Such things as unfamiliar grounds, making enemies out of telecom carriers etc. Perhaps WSJ is forgetting that Google entered a saturated search engine world. But the main thin I remember was the IPO!, Google did not follow the IPO path that WSJ familiar with and also allowed people like me to add Google shares to our portfolios, which otherwise would have gone in the way of big boys only!
Well Naysayers were wrong then and they could be wrong now. I think Google has the capability, the brain share and the capability to attract more, and certainly money even if they have to borrow some. But I hope they would and we might be able to get away from, even a bit, of this Ma Bell mentality when it comes to communication.
A Google spokesman said in a statement that the company would reveal any plans to participate in the auction by then. "In the meantime, we are making all the necessary preparations to become an applicant to bid," he said. "Our goal is to make sure that American consumers have more choices in an open and competitive wireless world," the spokesman added. Well said and we will know on Dec. 3, FCC deadline for declaring an intent to bid.
But the article is enlightening and I thank KEVIN J. DELANEY and AMOL SHARMA for letting me relive the excitement od Google IPO.

Vonage owes $120 Million to Verizon, Appeal Denied

Bloomberg reports that Vonage lost the appeal against courts decision against it regarding the Patent case by Verizon. Well I hope Vonage does not end up like a burned rocket.

Nov. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Vonage Holdings Corp., the unprofitable Internet phone service provider, must pay $120 million to end a patent lawsuit won by Verizon Communications Inc. after a U.S. appeals court refused to reconsider the case.

Vonage settled the infringement suit on Oct. 25 after Verizon won both a jury verdict and an appeal in the case. The accord left open the amount to be paid until the appeals court decided whether to grant Vonage's request for reconsideration.

Legal costs have eaten into Vonage's cash flow and may increase its risk of bankruptcy. The Holmdel, New Jersey-based company said yesterday that it may not have enough money to pay $253.5 million in debt due as early as December 2008. Vonage, which generated cash of $22.5 million in the third quarter, will try to restructure the debt.

The Best of Voice 2.0 From JAJAH and Jangl

JAJAH, the global telephony 2.0 company and platform, and Jangl, the company connecting millions of online profiles and mobile phones, safely and privately, today announced a strategic partnership designed to expand and improve communications options worldwide.

The partnership combines the respective strengths of the two companies and promises consumers the most innovative, relevant and reliable products, at the lowest possible costs, both now and for years to come. The agreement also delivers significant advantages to both companies as they expand voice and text messaging services for consumers, further bridge the web and the phone, and monetize a variety of services in the media channel.

"The goal of this partnership is to create several natural synergies for both JAJAH and Jangl, and has the potential to strengthen both companies’ positions going forward,” said Rebecca Swensen, Research Analyst, VoIP Services for IDC, Inc. “Anytime two companies collaborate at an integral level – on product development, marketing and more – additional opportunities invariably arise. This is one of the first major collaborations we’ve seen in the ‘Voice 2.0’ market and, to the extent that both companies execute well, this could have some very interesting ramifications for others in this space, as well.”

Today’s news comes as both companies work on significant new initiatives. As JAJAH increasingly becomes the industry’s platform of choice worldwide, Jangl is developing services for several new partners, as well as Google's OpenSocial. Both companies expect to make more detailed statements soon.

Under the terms of the agreement, Jangl and JAJAH will collaborate on strategic development and emerging products, which will be announced as they become available. More immediately:

Jangl will leverage JAJAH’s telephony infrastructure to deliver phone services in 122 countries, further speeding Jangl’s growth as it continues to forge partnerships with top online personals and social networking communities, where it already powers in-context calling capabilities in more than 40 million online profiles.

Jangl and JAJAH will collaborate in serving voice advertising for mobile and landline calls. Jangl will become a publisher and begin to further monetize its traffic with audio advertising. JAJAH will supply its in-call advertising appliance to overlay audio advertising on Jangl calls.

“More and more, JAJAH is becoming the platform of choice, and we are delighted to work with Jangl,” said Trevor Healy, JAJAH CEO. “It shows the great leaps we have made since opening our platform. Thanks to Jangl's position within the online community and JAJAH’s new advertising services, both companies significantly expand our advertising capabilities and monetization potential.”

“Jangl has always been about bridging the phone and the web," said Cerda. "By giving people the same level of control with their phones, as they have with IM and email, we're proving out our strategy. By contrast, JAJAH has excelled at providing low-priced, high-quality international phone calling, and they've established a stellar back end operation along the way. Our partnership is about leveraging our complements and strengths, which will manifest in new initiatives and products in the very near future."

The partnership between Jangl and JAJAH underscores the complementary strengths of both companies, as well as their product and market differences.

Jangl's voice services bridge the web and phone, and it distributes those services in social networks and online personals communities as it leverages the immense penetration and overlap of mobile devices, social networking and personal computers. Jangl now powers calling capability in more than 40 million online profiles, and has been generating revenue via partnerships and licensing for nearly a year. Jangl expects to announce significant news distribution partnerships in coming weeks.

JAJAH has built a global telephony platform that lets consumers, enterprises and telephony companies use and deploy new services whether on mobile, landline or IP based networks. First developed for the consumer and now deployed as an open platform, JAJAH’s open telephony 2.0 platform combines the best of the Internet with the best of the existing telephony infrastructure, while embracing a partnership approach with the telecommunications industry.

JAJAH Contact:
Frederik Hermann
frederik@jajah.com
http://www.jajah.com/frederikhermann
1.650.963.4847

Jangl Contact:
Timothy Johnson
tim@jangl.com
http://callme.jangl.com/tim@jangl.com
1.925.271.5042

Securing VoIP One More Way

From the article "Are VoIP systems prepared for attacks?" on SC magazine, I snipped the last of it, the advise. Although seems to be repeating the process of securing a any data network, VoIP IP Telephony services needed to be secured in addition to the security in place for the VoIP. In addition meaning, VoIP Phones are more like a computers and acts and behaves like computers. So once you have provided the regular data security, following may provide a peace of mind to IP Professionals that are in charge.
The top five ways for Securing VoIP
1. End-users must demand that VoIP protocols are both inherently secure and open.
2. Companies must pledge support for moving to open, royalty-free and documented security standards, and away from proprietary VoIP protocols.
3. Corporations should audit their products, and replace insecure or proprietary usage.
4. A secure VoIP protocol should be released under an open source or general public license agreement.
5. A secure protocol should contain end-to-end encryption, control and configuration of end-devices and mutual authentication.

The article "Are VoIP systems prepared for attacks?" (although focusing on general security and Skype, it never hurts, if you have little time to read)

Hosted VoIP for UK Market From Coms Plc

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Coms Plc, provider of VoIP business telephony solutions, has today launched Coms.Net, a fully hosted VoIP service for business. Coms.Net provides its customers with a fully featured, scalable, configurable and low cost state of the art VoIP business phone system.

Terry Martin, CEO of Coms Plc, commented: “For many years now small businesses have been plagued with problems of telephony systems; specifically scalability and cost. Using Coms.Net Hosted PBX services you don't need a traditional PBX installed in your office - immediately lowering costs for the business. Incoming and outgoing calls are answered and routed by our servers to any phone, wherever it is. Adding new users is simply achieved with the click of a mouse and most importantly without the capital expenditure incurred on a traditional PBX since scalability is already built into our solution. Typically, we have found that the system is about 1/3^rd the cost of running a traditional PBX system yet offers far more functionality, flexibility and scalability. ”

Jon Berman, Systems Director, Media Corporation Plc, comments on the Coms.Net service: “When Media Core decided to review its telephony we needed to find a system which suited all our needs as a fast changing and growing business. Having tried a host of other options, including traditional PBX and IP PBX, we selected the Coms.Net service. Its speed and competitive pricing couldn’t be challenged and the quality of service was superior to other offerings. During our tests we found that the reliability and call quality of the Coms.Net service was comparable to a traditional PBX, but the service was delivered at a fraction of the cost.”

Benefits of the Coms.Net VoIP system for SME’s

Moving voice communications to VoIP isn't just about saving money on calls. Smart companies will make the transition because of a whole host of other reasons that include improved business communication, customer service, and increased employee productivity and mobility.

The benefits of a Hosted VoIP communications model are numerous and go beyond simple costs savings as customers have access to this technology without the associated problems of system acquisition, finance, deployment and support.
Coms.Net

Worldwide VoIP IP Telephony Revenues Gains a Fourfold Increase

Source: Point Topic.

Global IP telephony revenues increase almost fourfold
The Broadband Money Makers report IP Telephony, from Point Topic, points out that VoIP IP Telephony, worldwide revenue reached 6.9 Billion for 2006. It is almost four fold increase from the previous year.
Western Europe alone, which has the largest number of IP subscribers, produced $2639 million in revenue. The Asia-Pacific region with almost the same number of subscribers (about 14.5 million) generated $1750 million, and North America, third in terms of IP user subscribers (8.6 million) produced $2411.7 million in revenue.

Monthly average revenue per user (ARPU) for VoIP subscribers was highest in North America at $20. Western Europe and South and East Asia were comparable at $15while in both the Asia-Pacific and Latin America it was estimated at $10 USD.
"The more VoIP is offered as a part of a bundle of services, the higher the average monthly VoIP revenue is,” says John Bosnell, Senior Analyst at Point Topic.

The main targets for IP telephony are heavy telephone users and consumers from markets where the service can offer a significant price advantage. The single bill convenience of having one supplier for broadband telephony and digital TV is another selling point.
Residential customers may also start to enjoy some of the benefits of corporate VoIP services. Their IP telephony service will be integrated with their home network, offering them the equivalent of the Private Branch exchange (PABX), access to computer databases for setting up and logging calls and the benefits of Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) technology for applications such as handling multimedia calls.

More information on The Broadband Money Makers

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Microsoft Communication Services from Comcast And Response Point is ready for Purchase

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 14, 2007 – Microsoft and Comcast today announced a new service that brings the benefits of corporate-class productivity applications to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The offering, called Microsoft Communication Services from Comcast, delivers powerful productivity applications such as Microsoft Office Outlook and SharePoint Services that can help SMBs reduce costs and improve operational efficiency while extending the boundaries of the “office” to anywhere there’s Internet access.

PressPass discussed today’s announcement with Michael O’Hara, general manager for Communications Sector at Microsoft.

PressPass: What did you announce today?

O’Hara: The small business market is the single most underserved market in the United States from a technology perspective. We’re announcing the availability today of a new service from Comcast that provides many of the same productivity tools such as Microsoft Outlook and document sharing that are found within the walls of Microsoft and thousands of other large companies worldwide. The service, called Microsoft Communication Services from Comcast, will package productivity applications including Office Outlook and SharePoint Services, along with other services from Comcast such as voice, broadband and cable. Microsoft Connected Services Framework is being used as the service delivery platform for the new service.

PressPass: Some in the corporate world might be surprised to hear that a number of business community members don’t have tools such as Outlook and document sharing. What have been the roadblocks to adoption?

O’Hara: From a cost perspective, most small businesses don’t have the expertise or resources to buy and manage a server on an ongoing basis. For a company with 10 or 20 employees, the numbers just don’t work in most cases. With this service, Comcast will host and manage the infrastructure and will bill a monthly fee that’s included along with other Comcast services. There are no upfront costs, no need for IT staff and no need for a technical consultant.

Apart from cost, usability is also a huge barrier. As a small business owner, the term “productivity” is an oxymoron if none of your employees know how to use the applications. As part of the market research process in developing this service, Comcast found that an overwhelming majority of small business employees had a high degree of familiarity with Microsoft Office applications. Small businesses that sign up for the service can anticipate almost immediate productivity gains.

PressPass: You mentioned Connected Services Framework. How is it being used?

O’Hara: Connected Services Framework will help Comcast deploy Microsoft Communication Services into its existing infrastructure and provision new and existing Comcast users quickly and cost-effectively. It also lays a foundation to integrate future services more easily into Comcast’s core billing, provisioning and support infrastructure.

PressPass: How significant is this partnership for Microsoft?

O’Hara: This deal is important to Microsoft for in a number of ways. Comcast is the second-largest broadband provider in the United States and is aggressively pushing itself as a provider of business services for SMBs. That they selected Microsoft as the basis for their offering is a strong endorsement of the strides we’ve made over the past several years in working with service providers.

It’s also a great real-world example of the software plus services vision coming to fruition. While having Exchange Server and SharePoint Server on-premise works great for many businesses, it’s clearly not an ideal model for small businesses. Working with valuable partners such as Comcast to extend Microsoft applications to a wider audience and meet the needs of small businesses is a win-win-win. Both Microsoft and Comcast reach new customers, while small business owners get access to tools that can help improve their businesses.

Perhaps those same customers should also add the Response Point, VoIP system for Small Business which was released for sale today.

Microsoft has released the Response Point System with its partners, D-Link, Quantas and Astra. The system was released for manufacturing last month and disclosed pricing for the same. Quanta's Syspine (Shown Above) package includes four phones and a base unit with a built-in analog telephone adapter (ATA) and secure gateway for approximately $2,500. Additional phones are priced at $159 each.
D-Link's VoiceCenter system includes a base unit, an ATA and five phones for approximately $2,500. Additional phones cost approximately $139. (Image shown in this post)

Both vendors are offering a 20-phone system for less than $5,500

Coke Bubbles, First Commercial Widget for Joost, the IPTV service

The IPTV service that I am using, Joost had many widgets added during the course of testing. Last we reported that our Joosting has taken us the way of Mebo. Joosting have been a way of catching many of catching old full length TV Episodes. But now it is different, it is just like turning on youe satellite TV, many a channels, many a programs and of course Ads come up in the place. I have found the service to be a fine product. Here is the news release about the coke bubbles. Happy Joosting.

Nov. 15, 2007 – The Coca-Cola Company’s European team announced that it has released the first commercial widget for Joost™ , the world’s first broadcast-quality Internet television service.

The widget, called Coke Bubbles, allows people to personalize and share specific moments from Joost with their friends. When the Coke Bubbles widget is installed in Joost, people can comment about specific scenes in a show by sending a Coke Bubble to anyone in their email address book. Coke Bubble recipients receive an email alerting them to the scene, and when they visit Joost to watch the scene, their friend’s comment will appear in a transparent bubble on the screen.

“In creating Coke Bubbles, we wanted to give people a widget that would recreate the experience of chatting together with friends while watching TV– free from the constraints of time and space,” said Stafford Green, head of interactive marketing for the Coca-Cola European Union Group. “We are always striving to become enthusiastic investors in interactive community innovations, and creating the first commercial widget has been a fun, collaborative project for both The Coca-Cola Company and our friends at Joost.”

In addition to the launch of Coke Bubbles, the Coca-Cola European Union Group and Joost have announced a partnership to help widget developers create and launch more widgets and interactive innovations. Details of the initiative, including contest rules, guidelines and prizes will be disclosed at the first Joost Developer Days, which take place in London on Nov. 16, Amsterdam on Dec. 1 and New York on Dec. 7.

Thomas Barker, co-developer of the Coke Bubbles widget, said, "We're delighted to be able to work with The Coca-Cola Company to bring something so simple yet useful to the Joost community. The technical depth of the Joost platform has given us real scope to create a rich user experience."

Mike Volpi, chief executive officer of Joost, said, “Introducing our first commercial widget marks an important milestone for Joost. We already have hours of great programming on Joost, and now, with Coke Bubbles, people are able to ‘curate’ and share their viewing experience. We look forward to working with The Coca-Cola Company, the developer community and all of our partners to make Joost even more customizable.”

Coke Bubbles beta version is publicly available for download now at http://www.cokebubbles.com. Developers interested in attending one of the Joost Developer Days should email dev-workshop@joost.com.

Skype and Joost Founders Honored by Endeavor

Endeavor, www.endeavor.org, the leading supporter of high-impact entrepreneurs in emerging markets, honored the founders of Skype and Joost, Niklas Zennström & Janus Friis at Endeavor’s 10 Year Anniversary Gala in New York City.

Endeavor’s gala is an annual event that hails the achievements of high-impact entrepreneurs world-wide. On the occasion of its 10 Year Anniversary, Endeavor honored Messrs. Zennstrom & Friis as Entrepreneurs of the Year.

“What Niklas and Janus started Skype as a matter of necessity and as a result have radically transformed the way we communicate. More importantly their initiative has invigorated the entrepreneurial drive to invent and develop breakthroughs that will improve our lives. It is the example we want our Endeavor Entrepreneurs to follow,” Rottenberg said.

Skype Outage? Only for Stand Alone Skype Phones

Tom Keating says That Weekend Skype Outage was only related to Stand alone Skype Phones. Software clients were not affected.
Don't forget to read "Does your Phone work During a power outage?"

Growing Unified Communications and IP Telephony Market Will Revolutionize CHina.

China’s enterprise IP telephony equipment market reached US$160 million in 2006, according to IDC's China IP Telephony 2007-2011 Forecast and Analysis: The Road to Unified Communication (Doc #CN206105P). IDC forecasts that the market will grow to US$680 million by 2011 with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 33.3% from 2007-2011.

"The emergence and promotion of Unified Communications (UC) will propel the development of enterprise IP telephony equipment and the overall market. The deployment of IP telephony and UC will result in lower cost, higher work efficiency, and improvement of service process to users", says Milly Xiang, Research Manager for IDC’s China Telecom Research.

"Presence" is the most attractive feature of an UC solution. "Presence" refers to an individual’s state of communication at any point in time, i.e. whether the user is currently available and his/her preferred mode of communication. In this way, users can decide how to communicate at any time and anywhere, according to the situation, and achieve seamless communication.

Since 2006, UC has received extensive media publicity and coverage. In 2007, major vendors launched UC solutions in China, accompanied by strategies on market development, product positioning and partnership. Although a consensus has been reached in the ICT industries that UC represents the future of IP telephony, vendors continue to debate its value and offer their unique market positioning of UC.

From IDC’s perspective, UC provides a common platform to integrate the directory and routing of applications and other functions. It delivers, manages, and supports more communication applications including advanced IP telephone calls and management, Web, audio and video conference and instant messaging. These applications can be realized via desktop and mobile terminals for a seamless user experience.

Avaya Is the #1 IP Telephony vendor for a third consecutive quarter

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Avaya Inc. extended its lead in worldwide enterprise Internet Protocol (IP) Telephony revenues, according to Synergy Research Group's 3Q 2007 Enterprise Voice Market Shares Report. The report shows that Avaya led with 28 percent of the IP Telephony market, the largest quarterly share the company has achieved in this segment. This places Avaya as the #1 vendor in IP Telephony for a third consecutive quarter, marking another period of accelerating growth for the company.

According to Synergy's latest report, Avaya's leading market share placed it nearly 2 points ahead of its nearest competitor. Avaya also outpaced industry revenue growth both sequentially and when compared with the year-ago quarter. This comes at a time when the enterprise IP Telephony industry is experiencing strong growth. The top four vendors for worldwide enterprise IP Telephony revenues, according to Synergy, are: Avaya, Cisco, Nortel and Alcatel-Lucent.

"This industry is now running on all cylinders," said Jeremy Duke, president and CEO of Synergy Research Group. "When measuring against the same time last year, our latest figures show an increase of 23 percent in overall industry IP revenues. Avaya grew its IP revenues by 27 percent, demonstrating that in a highly competitive market, Avaya has been successful in bringing leading IP telephony products to market."

Avaya is a leader in business communications applications, software and services. It helps organizations around the globe evolve their infrastructures with IP Telephony, a communications technology that delivers rich communications applications (using voice, video, data, etc.) over converged networks. Applications running on today’s IP Telephony networks include unified communications, customer contact solutions, and communications enabled business processes.

"More businesses are experiencing the benefits gained through a strong IP Telephony foundation from Avaya," said Stuart Wells, senior vice president and president, Avaya Global Communications Solutions. "Through open, interoperable IP solutions, Avaya will continue to lead the evolution to next generation unified communications and customer service applications that bring real value to businesses."

At the core of Avaya's portfolio of converged solutions is the industry's leading IP Telephony software – Avaya Communication Manager. This open standards, multi-vendor software provides a communications foundation for IP-based applications, contact center solutions, and a host of Avaya one-X™ end points and mobility solutions.

NexTone Customers Throughout Europe, Asia, andSpringboard Americas Can Now Enjoy Innovative Billing Capabilities With Springboard

BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NexTone®, a leader in session border controllers and scalable session management solutions for VoIP, multimedia, and IMS network interconnects, and Springboard-ASA Limited, a provider of customized billing and analysis solutions, today announced that Springboard’s leading-edge VoIP billing services are now ServiceReady™ certified for VoIP billing with NexTone’s IntelliConnect® System.

Springboard, a UK-based company, develops and deploys highly scalable, customized billing and analysis solutions for VoIP providers of all sizes. These solutions are offered on a highly competitive usage-based model. ServiceReady certification validates that Springboard’s services are interoperable end-to-end with NexTone’s IntelliConnect System.

“Certifying Springboard as ServiceReady benefits NexTone customers by providing them with a reliable and robust billing and analysis tool that improves their profitability, revenue assurance, and maximizes their LCR,” said Andrew Whitelaw, managing director for Springboard. “The simplicity of implementing the Springboard system allows customers to take full advantage of uninterrupted service, enabling them to maintain a competitive advantage and reach peak efficiency and performance.”

This collaboration supports NexTone’s commitment to help its customers profitably grow their VoIP and multimedia revenues through the combination of NexTone’s best-in-class technology and a range of ServiceReady partners. The Springboard suite of solutions is currently used by several NexTone customers, including iCard Telecom, Liquid Telecommunications Ltd, Europtel Ltd, and Livewire Ltd because it provides significantly improved billing functionality and flexibility, yet is easy and economical to implement.

“Service providers are continually challenged to introduce new services. With Springboard participation in NexTone’s ecosystem service providers have additional options to introduce new service capabilities based on Springboard billing and analysis tools,” said John Longo, vice president of marketing for NexTone. “ServiceReady certification with Springboard provides both NexTone and Springboard customers with new tools to quickly offer high-quality, secure VoIP services with easy access to critical session information.”

Springboard provides the following carrier billing and analysis services:

Carrier Bill Verification – users have access to a summary or detailed-level bill to easily verify if the supplier’s invoice is correct.
Invoicing – users can generate variable billing cycles, including hot billing, third-party billing, threshold billing, pre and post payment, multiple currency, and smart re-pricing/re-rating.
Un-billed Traffic – users can easily view unaccounted revenue.
Gross Profit – allows users to view the health of a product or service to ensure they are getting an optimum price/performance ratio.
Minutes Reporting – users can view real-time minutes, ASRs, and ACDs at a destination level for customers or carriers, daily or hourly.
Graphics – a suite of graphics tools assist with trend analysis and provide ‘at a glance’ information.

For more information, visit http://www.nextone.com.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

VoIP Failover at Enterprise Edge with EdgeMarc from Edgewater Networks.

Santa Clara, California – November 14, 2007 – Edgewater Networks, Inc. announced today an extension of the EdgeMarc VoIP survivability feature set to include Wide Area Network (WAN) link redundancy. WAN link redundancy allows enterprise and service provider customers to take advantage of diverse routing and dual access link connections to enterprise locations.

EdgeMarc VoIP Survivability
The high availability of VoIP services is a fundamental requirement for enterprises deploying their own IP telephony equipment or subscribing to hosted VoIP services. Edgewater’s EdgeMarc VoIP survivability enhances the reliability of VoIP services to branch offices in a cost effective manner by providing local call switching in the event of complete WAN link failures or a loss of connectivity to network based call processing servers.

The comprehensive list of EdgeMarc VoIP survivability features includes:

• Application layer based monitoring of call processing servers to determine connectivity
• Automatic detection of loss of connectivity to call processing servers caused by WAN link failures, network congestion or call processing server software failure
• Automatic return of call control to network based call processing servers once connectivity has been restored
• Configurable timers to determine call processing server connectivity
• Call processing server connectivity status indicators
• Support for multiple call processing servers using DNS
• Reporting of the currently active call processing server in environments using multiple call processing servers
• Local call switching between VoIP endpoints, premises based PSTN gateways or integrated EdgeMarc FXO ports during WAN link failures or other failures that prevent connectivity to network based call processing servers
• Calling features such as transfer, hold and conference are provided by EdgeMarc Series routers
• Simplified setup that creates a local dial plan in the EdgeMarc appliance by monitoring traffic to network based call processing servers

WAN Link Redundancy

WAN link redundancy allows customers to use dual access link connections to the wide area network for added reliability. Typical deployments use a primary T1 link terminated by the EdgeMarc router with a broadband DSL or cable modem Ethernet connected to the EdgeMarc as a backup link. Additionally, the EdgeMarc can use a single Ethernet uplink to a routed network and dual default gateways to deliver primary/backup path routing for VoIP. In the event of a primary link failure the EdgeMarc will route VoIP traffic using the secondary path and continue to provide bandwidth management such as traffic shaping and prioritization needed ensure high quality voice communications. Once the primary path has recovered the EdgeMarc will automatically return voice traffic to the preferred path.

"WAN link redundancy is a natural extension to our existing VoIP survivability features. With this feature we add another level of resilience to enterprises using VoIP services and VoIP PBXs insuring this mission critical application is always available.” said Dave G. Norman, Chief Executive Officer of Edgewater Networks, Inc.

The EdgeMarc WAN link redundancy feature is currently available in beta form with a general availability scheduled for December 2007.

To learn more about EdgeMarc VoIP Survivability or the WAN link redundancy beta program go to www.edgewaternetworks.com

Dilithium's 3G-324M Technology Licensed by UT Starcom

Petaluma, CA and Beijing, China — November 12, 2007 — Dilithium, the leading supplier of converged video solutions, announced that UT Starcom Telecom Co. Ltd. has licensed Dilithium’s market leading 3G-324M video telephony stack software and has also entered into an OEM agreement with Dilithium. UT Starcom’s Terminal Business Unit designs and develops mobile handset solutions and will incorporate Dilithium’s stack into their TD-SCDMA video handsets.

“We are pleased to partner with UT Starcom. Their selection of our solutions adds to our market leading position for TD-SCDMA handsets and chipsets, “said Mr. Paul Zuber, CEO of Dilithium. “The incorporation of Dilithium’s technologies will result in superior quality video, an excellent customer experience, and enable access to new multimedia services like real time streaming and video blogging.”

The Dilithium 3G Video Stack is the most established stack on the market. The first shipment of the stack started in 1999, and it is now in more 3G handsets brands and models than any other stack. The video stack supports all industry leading audio and video codecs, including H.264, MPEG4-part 2, H.263 as well as AMR (narrow and wide band).

Dilithium

The 911 Modernization and Public Safety Bill Passed in the House.

Nov 13, 2007: The 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act passed in the House of Representatives by roll call vote. The bill will promote and enhance public safety by facilitating the rapid deployment of IP-enabled 911 and E-911 services, encourage the Nation's transition to a national IP-enabled emergency network, and improve 911 and E-911 access to those with disabilities. The vote was held under a suspension of the rules to cut debate short and pass the bill, needing a two-thirds majority. The totals were 406 Ayes, 1 Nays, 25 Present/Not Voting. The Bill is an effort to bring Internet telephony companies in compliance with new Federal Communications Commission rules, will now allow VoIP providers, such as Skype, Vonage the direct access to the backbone of the E911 system which is in the hands of large telecom carriers.
The Bill H.R.3403

iPhone Might Have a two Pronged March to China

According to various news sources on the net says that China Unicom may be open to selling Apple's iPhone in China, giving Apple a second option for bringing its device to the world's most populous market. If Apple decides to chose both of the carriers, they might give geographic regions or boundaries for sale of iPhone. If they do not, that might lead to competition and eroded the profits for both Apple and the Carrier(s).Apple might not chose to have a second carrier in my thinking, bearing the profit in mind.
But it might not be able to get hefty cuts it is getting from AT&T from iPhone revenue, said to be $18 and account a month. So negotiations must be counting the potential customers, which is much hight than the AT&T has in USA.

Another aspect of the game is that China Mobile is a member of Google's Open Handset Alliance
and this might give a little advantage to China Unicom, the second largest mobile telecom network operator in China, who says that it has no plans currently to offer the iPhone, but it is considering talking to Apple about a deal. These comments come just after the CEO of larger rival China Mobile said his company is in talks with Apple to sell the iPhone, which stirred up the stock price of both Apple and China Mobile.
What ever the case, Chinese customers will be able to use an iPhone by the time Olympics, at least in some cities where 3G service is available.
I gathered my information from PC World

Discover how VoIP works and learn what is needed to transition successfully and cost-effectively to a converged network.

Essentials of Successful VoIP Migration
December 6, 2007, 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Targeted at Technology decision makers in small and medium-sized organizations, Cisco is presenting another of it's Seminar and webcast series programs.

Agenda
VoIP Fundamentals
# Clearing Up the Terminology
# QoS, codecs, VLANs
# Myth Hackers - Will a Worm Trash My System?

VoIP Call Control
# Vision for Cisco Unified Communications
# Private Branch Exchange (PBX) vs. VoIP - Mapping the Functional Differences
# Protocol Choices
# Third-party Value: SolarWinds and the Orion Framework

Security Concerns
# Control File Protection
# Voice Encryption
# Myth Hackers: Eavesdropping
# Best Practices

Beyond the Dial Tone
# LiteScape's OnCast for WebEx Integration
# Five Keys to a Successful VoIP Deployment

If you are interested, please visit Video Broadcasts site at Cisco and select Essentials of Successful VoIP Migration.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

SUN Looking to Shine on Telecommunications

SANTA CLARA, Calif. November 13, 2007 Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA) today introduced the Sun Netra multi-core and multithreaded 10G ATCA portfolio, a new product suite that includes the Sun Netra CP3260 ATCA blade server, powered by UltraSPARC T2 processors; the Sun Netra CP3220 ATCA blade server, powered by AMD Opteron processors; and the Sun Netra CP3240 10 GbE ATCA switch. The new ATCA portfolio, powered by the Solaris 10 Operating System (OS), gives telecommunications customers the ability to connect high-performance multi-core/multithreaded processors directly into flexible 10G networks, providing the foundation for cost-effective next-generation networks.

In addition, the Sun Unified Network Platform (SUN-P), a new OEM solution set delivered by Sun, gives Network Equipment Providers (NEPs) a blueprint for radical consolidation of their network elements, which significantly lowers the cost of deployment.

News release

Avaya Goes Green

According to a post on Solarion, Avaya is working with Extreme Networks to reduce carbon foot print of offices using Avaya Deskphones.
Solarion: Telephony Companies Go Green

TruPhone Director Interviewed at Smith on VoIP

Garret Smith of Smith on VoIP, has interviewed Truphone’s Director of International Operations, Keith Wallington.
If you are still wondering What Truphone is it routes your mobile calls via the Internet. That means free mobile calls to other Truphone users & very cheap calls to anyone else.

Cisco Offers Innovative Products, Services, Financing and Partner Programs Tailored for Small Businesses

SAN JOSE, California, November 5, 2007 - Continuing its commitment to the small and medium-sized business (SMB) marketplace, Cisco® today announced a suite of new additions and updates to the Cisco Smart Business Communications System (SBCS). Extensions to the portfolio include technical services, the tripling of unified communications capabilities up to 48 users, and the addition of four new Ethernet switches. Cisco also announced that its SMB channel initiative, Select Certification, has grown to nearly 1,000 channel partners worldwide over the last two months.

"As a small professional services firm our reputation for superior customer service is our biggest asset. As a result, our ability to communicate is absolutely critical to our business," said Chris Chase, managing partner at Everything Tradeshows, a nine-employee professional services company in Davie, Florida. Working with Cisco Premier Certified channel partner CPT of South Florida, the company deployed the Cisco SBCS to help improve its communications capabilities and boost the productivity of its telemarketing efforts. "By using Cisco's one-click dialing, our telemarketer has been able to increase the number of calls in a four-hour period from 20 to 100, a 400 percent improvement. The ability to reach more potential clients has already helped us secure a large order for retractable banner stands and popup displays," Chase said.

Today, Cisco is expanding the SBCS solution set as follows:

Cisco Unified Communications 500 Series adds 32- and 48-user systems. The initial release of the Unified Communications 500 Series addressed the unified communications needs of small businesses with eight to16 users. These two new platforms allow small businesses to support up to 48 phones per location.
Cisco SMARTnet Service for SBCS is Cisco's award-winning technical support service program, offering multilevel service options and access to an extensive range of technical resources. Sold by a Cisco channel partner, customers get direct, anytime access to Cisco engineers for configuration assistance, problem diagnosis and recommendations through 24-hour telephone or Web-based support. The offering also includes software assurance with application and Operating System software updates and upgrades.
Cisco Catalyst® Express Ethernet Switches provide flexibility of configuration to meet different networking requirements. The four new switches offer 24 10/100 access ports with Power over Ethernet (PoE); 4 10/100 access ports with PoE and 20 access ports10/100; 24 ports of Gigabit Ethernet; or 24 10/100 access ports.
Cisco Mobility Express: Cisco has added ease-of-deployment features for the Cisco 521 Wireless Express Access Point and Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller. They include an easy-to-set-up guest access portal; automatic policy configuration for voice, data and guest access; simplified security set-up with preset low-, medium-, and high-security options; and integration with Cisco Configuration Assistant.

The Cisco Smart Business Communications System provides voice, data, video, security and wireless capabilities, while integrating with existing desktop applications such as calendar, email, and customer relationship management programs. Designed for the unique needs of small businesses, the system is comprised of hardware products, integrated unified communications applications and system-management tools designed to complement each other and provide communications building blocks. With the assistance of a Cisco Certified Channel Partner, the all-in-one communications solution is easy to install, use and upgrade. For more information on SBCS, visit www.cisco.com/go/sbcs.

INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO East 2008 Will Offer TMC University's SIP Certification Course for Service Providers

NORWALK, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC), in conjunction with Dialogic (www.dialogic.com), announced today that their TMC University division will offer SIP Certification Courses at INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO East 2008 in Miami, Florida. The daylong course, which includes a 30-minute certification exam, will be held Wednesday, January 23rd, day one of the three-day conference.

Titled, ‘SIP: The Foundation for Building Enhanced Services’, this TMC University course offers six individual training sessions teaching service providers how to use SIP to create profitable enhanced services they can roll out to new and existing subscribers.

TMC has partnered with Dialogic, a leading provider of open systems platforms to both enterprise and service provider markets, to build the comprehensive curriculum for TMC University.

According to TMC President and conference chairman, Rich Tehrani, TMC University is the only independent program of its kind. And this new SIP certification course is an overdue addition to the series.

“We are especially excited to offer a course which will allow graduates to create better SIP applications which will in-turn help drive service provider growth,” said TMC president Rich Tehrani. He continued, “We believe the opportunity exists for service providers to increase stickiness and ARPU by delivering applications which empower their customers.”

“Since its inception, TMC U has focused on bridging the gap as technologies emerge from their “early adopter” phase and enter the mainstream,” added Jeff Dworkin, Dialogic’s Marketing Manager and Advisory Chairman for TMC University. “With hundreds of graduates for IP PBX 101 and 201 courses, we have demonstrated that there is real need to help Integrators and End Customers understand how to leverage technology to solve real world business problems and generate bottom-line profit. We are sure that the course content presented here will fill that need for this market and the Developers, Integrators and ISVs that serve it.”

The TMC University SIP Certification Course consists of sessions covering the following topics:

Introduction: SIP as the Foundation

Overview of a SIP call set up
SIP Elements in a Network to Deliver Enhanced Services

Signaling: SIP, SS7 & Integrating your Network with the Legacy Infrastructure

Understand how a class 4/5 circuit architecture migrates toward a SIP Network
Review of available standards for SS7 – SIP interworking
How SIP can be used for IP Backhaul-Class 4 Replacement
Example: Pre and Post Paid Services Using SIP

Media: Voice and Video in your SIP Environment

Common Audio and Video Codecs
Media/Codec Negotiations
Tuning Your Network for Voice and Video
QoS issues, metrics and user quality expectations

Transitioning to IMS via your SIP Based Network

Understand the high-level IMS architecture and its benefits
Learn the important factors in considering interop testing
Describe the main goals and objectives in setting up an interop lab

SIP Trunking

What is SIP Trunking
Pitfalls and Shortcomings in Ad Hoc SIP Trunking
The Basics of SIP Connect

Case Study

Review and discuss a carrier’s plans to expand their SIP-based service offerings.

The migration from stove-piped apps to centralized media resources and the benefits
Factors to keep in mind when deploying services with centralized resources
The types of services that lend themselves to centralized resources.

Registration for the course and the entire conference is now open. Anyone interested may register by visiting http://www.itexpo.com. Limited booth space is still available as well. Vendors interested in exhibiting at the show should contact Dave Rodriguez at 1-203-852-6800, ext. 146.

About TMC^®

Technology Marketing Corporation (TMC) publishes Customer Interaction Solutions, INTERNET TELEPHONY, Unified Communications, and IMS Magazine. TMCnet, TMC's Web site, is the leading source of news and articles for the communications and technology industries. Ranked in the top 6,000 most visited Web sites in the world by alexa.com¹, TMCnet serves as many as three million unique visitors each month. TMC is also the first publisher to test new products in its own on-site laboratories, TMC Labs. TMC produces INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO, and Call Center 2.0 Conference. For more information about TMC, visit www.tmcnet.com. (¹alexa.com is an amazon.com company that ranks Web sites by their traffic levels. Neither alexa.com nor amazon.com is affiliated with TMCnet.)

VoIP Logic Carries One-Billionth Phone Call

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--VoIP Logic, (www.VoIPLogic.com), a leading VoIP Managed Services and software provider, today announced that its solutions have carried more than 1 billion phone calls on behalf of communication service providers worldwide. Since its inception in 2003, VoIP Logic has provided communications infrastructure and an expanding array of innovative go to market solutions to over 140 different service providers.

VoIP Logic is a globally recognized provider of VoIP Managed Services to Voice 2.0, communications service providers and VoIP providers. Through its Cortex® System Management Portal, the company customizes deployment of best-of-breed components into integrated solutions.

A combination of the success of VoIP Logic’s VoIP Managed Services and Cortex coupled with overall rapid growth in the use of VoIP technology by Voice 2.0 providers and telephone companies has led to impressive results. VoIP Logic has seen a CAGR of 48% since 2003.

“Recognizing this milestone helps us quantify the value of marrying best-of-breed systems with an innovative middleware system that allows service providers to make great technology even greater,” said Micah Singer, VoIP Logic’s CEO and Founder.

www.VoIPLogic.com

Andy Rubin, gPhone brain, interviewed

Andy Rubin, director of mobile platforms at Google, (gPhone, Google Phone, Android saga) talked to CNET News about Android phones, How will it look like, whether it will compete with Apple's iPhone, and why the software took so long to build. Here are some of QA's that I liked, for the rest follow the link.

"Q: What other types of devices that aren't exactly cell phones could Android enable or run on?
Rubin: The sky is the limit. This platform has been contemplated in different devices, from car navigation systems to set-top boxes to laptop computers and, of course, cell phones. One of our alliance partners, Intel, has a category device called MID, or Mobile Internet Device, which is somewhere between a cell phone and a PC. It's a large-display device meant to be primarily an Internet access device."

Q: So, will there be a Google phone?
Rubin: I'm going to say "no comment" on that.

Q: Why did you pick Linux as the foundation for Android?
Rubin: One of the advantages of Linux is, it's a pretty prevalent operating system. The portion of Linux that we use for Android is just the kernel portion, and the benefit of kernel, of course, is that it's been already ported to all the varieties of semiconductors that run in cell phones.

Q: What do you think of the iPhone?
Rubin: I love it. I use it every day. That's my phone, and I think it's a great product. It's probably the best version 1.0 piece of consumer electronics that I've ever used.

CNET News article

I Joost so I Meebo (My Joosting has taken me to Meebo)

If you remember Joost, a project by the founders of Skype, that I am enjoying very much, has added Meebo for it's Channel Chat, IM platform. I wrongly thought it would be Skype but anything! May be due to restrictions on Skype IM platform! But this widget seems to be great and Meebo is what Joost widgets developers chose. There are many other widgets there and if you want to add develop widgets for Joost, they are arranging some developer days in a few cities.
There are three coming up pretty soon:

London, November 16
Amsterdam, December 1
New York, December 7

If you want to sign up for one of these sessions, email dev-workshop@joost.com. You can also Check out http://blogs.joost.com/dev to find out what the other developers are thinking and doing.

And the term Joosting was coined here!

Monday, November 12, 2007

VoIP and Open Source, a Glimpse

Voip Planet write about VoIP being a fertile ground for Open Source Applications and goes on to describe what is current state of open source projects like Asterisk from Digium, (and of course other distributions based on Asterisk like TrixBox.) sipX from Pingtel that was started as a closed source project.
But the article misses other major open source efforts like SER and OpenSER.
VoIP: Fertile Ground for Open-Source Solutions

China Voice Holding Corp. Completes a Carrier Grade VoIP Switch for SKY O/A

BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--China Voice Holding Corporation (CHVC) (OTC:CHVC), announced today that its China subsidiary, Beijing CandidSoft Technology Co. Ltd. (CandidSoft), had successfully completed the development of their Carrier Grade, fully featured VoIP switching platform and integration into the Company’s patented SKY O/A Office Automation System. To assist with the development project, the Company contracted Beihang University (BUAA), one of China's leading research universities.

The SKY O/A Softswitch platform supports converged communications services by integrating SS7 telephone signaling with packet networks and replaces a third party hardware-based switch. The technology features Class 5 functions and was designed with emphasis on a high degree of scalability to support the large number of voice and data “seats” called for in contracts previously announced. Candidsoft has successfully deployed the integrated solution during the initial phase of their contract with the Chinese Navigation Affair Administration Bureau.

CHVC’s President and CEO, Bill Burbank said, “By developing our own softswitch, CHVC is not only in a much better position to keep the competition out but has also eliminated a very substantial licensing and hardware cost in deploying our Government Contracts. As previously announced, CHVC is currently installing 103,000 initial contracted telephony seats. The third party licensing cost savings will amount to $55 per seat, or over $5,000,000 additional to the bottom line on just those contracts.”

CandidSoft CEO and CHVC President of Asian Operations, Xing Chunlin commented, "The Sky O/A voice and data solution now uses technology that we own in every aspect of its services. With over one million Office Automation users currently on our SKY O/A platform, and contracts for hundreds of thousands of seats that include telephone services, it's essential that we have full control and ownership of the technology. This enables us to properly support our customers and guarantee the highest standards. In addition, by contracting BUAA, the most prestigious engineering university in China, we feel that we have jointly developed one of the most advanced switching platforms available in the World.”

CandidSoft is an international software company based in the Zhong-Guan-Cun Science and Technology Park in Beijing, China. CandidSoft has used local expertise to research, develop, and establish information and communication platforms for business and government applications. CandidSoft uses “SKY O/A” as the product trademark and separates products into three general categories: O/A Cooperative Office Solutions, O/A Integrated Office Solutions, and O/A Unified Processing Solutions. The Company provides office automation and integration services to government, academic and commercial customers and has developed China’s first patented Office Automation application, in large part guided by the needs of Chinese Government Agencies. This platform was designed for flexibility and may be easily modified or extended to meet the specific needs of each Chinese Government Agency or Large Enterprise Company. SKY O/A™ uses a web-based technology and allows multiple workers to collaborate on a single project. The SKY O/A™ Office Automation platform currently supports over one million users within China.

China Voice Holding Corp. ("CHVC") is a U.S. public holding company headquartered in South Florida with a portfolio of next-generation communications products and services doing business in the People's Republic of China and the U.S. Through its subsidiaries, the Company provides Voice over Internet Protocol ("VoIP") telephone services, office automation, wireless broadband, unified messaging, video conferencing, mobility services and other advanced voice and data services in China where the Company has obtained full legal status as a licensed telecommunications company. The Chinese telecommunications market is the largest and fastest growing in the world. CHVC's focus is on providing its innovative and patented voice and data solutions to government agencies and large enterprises in China. China Voice Holding Corp. trades Over-the-Counter and is listed in the Pink Sheets under the symbol "CHVC". Upon obtaining audits of prior fiscal years, the Company plans to file with the Securities & Exchange Commission ("SEC") to become a full-reporting company in 2008 at which time it will apply for a listing on the NASDAQ or the AMEX. Prior to the filing of periodic reports to the SEC, the Company is providing publicly-available financial statements and other current information at the pinksheets.com website. Additional information may be found at www.chvc.com.

Raketu makes a Spalsh with SMS based VoIP Call Setup

A competitor for ground breaking VoIP Service provider, Jajah that I have written here on iPhone and there in Japan. But from the outlook of it, this seems a fine way for mobile VoIP with an attractive cost per minute.
For an Example: a mobile phone user in the UK wants to call a friend in New York also on a mobile phone. The user in the UK sends a text message from their mobile phone to Raketu's UK local number with the appropriate calling information in the message and Raketu connects the two phones. The Raketu rate for the call will be the regular RakWeb calling rate, or $.115 per minute. This is a savings of greater than 35% over competitor Jajah's rate for a similar call, and Jajah calls MUST be initiated from a computer connected to the Internet.

The News release;

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Raketu Communications Inc., the global Internet communications, information and entertainment company, today introduced its SMS-Text Driven VoIP Service, which enables mobile device users to make phone-to-phone voice over IP (VoIP) Internet calls with no computer or Internet connection required. Now anyone with a mobile device capable of sending SMS-Text messages can make free or extremely low cost national and international calls from their mobile phone without an Internet connection. This new service is in addition to Raketu’s already available computer-to-phone, and web-based phone-to-phone calling.

“Our new SMS-Text Driven Service represents a paradigm shift in the ability for users with just about any mobile phone to initiate free or low-cost calls right from their handsets,” said Greg Parker, President of Raketu. “Now if you can send a text message from your mobile phone, through Raketu you can call over forty countries absolutely free and the rest of the world at extremely low cost VoIP rates.”

Details Of Raketu’s SMS-Text Driven VoIP Service

For mobile device users interested in using Raketu’s new SMS-Text Driven VoIP Service, the user simply needs a mobile phone capable of sending SMS-Text messages and a Raketu account. No computer, software, or Internet connection is required. The user sends a text message to one of the local SMS-Text numbers available and embeds the call instructions into the message. Raketu calls the originating number first and connects it directly with the destination number.

Example: a mobile phone user in the UK wants to call a friend in New York also on a mobile phone. The user in the UK sends a text message from their mobile phone to Raketu's UK local number with the appropriate calling information in the message and Raketu connects the two phones. The Raketu rate for the call will be the regular RakWeb calling rate, or $.115 per minute. This is a savings of greater than 35% over competitor Jajah's rate for a similar call, and Jajah calls MUST be initiated from a computer connected to the Internet.

Raketu’s low RakWeb VoIP calling rates apply for all Raketu SMS-Text Driven VoIP calls. Raketu users who make a payment of $9.95, $24.95 or $49.95 towards Raketu’s ultra-low calling rates globally are eligible for 1200 free calling minutes per month towards SMS-Text or web initiated phone-to-phone calls. See www.Raketu.com for details.

How to Build an Android Application (on MAC OS X)

Dan Morrill builds a simple application on the Android platform to demonstrate how you could start something with it!.

Google (The Open Handset Alliance,) has let the Android (SDK) lose.

Google (The Open Handset Alliance,) has let the Android lose. At least the tools for beginning to create stuff for the gPhone. I am writing this before down loading so I have no idea what I could do.
The SDK site states that;

The Android platform is a software stack for mobile devices including an operating system, middleware and key applications. Developers can create applications for the platform using the Android SDK. Applications are written using the Java programming language and run on Dalvik, a custom virtual machine designed for embedded use which runs on top of a Linux kernel.

If you want to know how to develop applications for Android, you're in the right place. This site provides a variety of documentation that will help you learn about Android and develop mobile applications for the platform.

An early look at the the Android SDK is also available. It includes sample projects with source code, development tools, an emulator, and of course all the libraries you'll need to build an Android application.

Also you can find

To start learning about the Android platform, please read the documentation in the following order:

What is Android?: An overview of the Android platform
Getting Started: All the basics, including Hello World
Developing Applications: The nuts and bolts of Android applications
Developer Toolbox: In-depth information on specific topics
Reference Information: A myriad of reference material
Sample Code: Several sample Android applications for your viewing pleasure
Frequently Asked Questions: Common issues and questions
And of course there is the customery blog with the article

Android Developers Blog: This is the droid you're looking for
Where I left a comment for Microsoft developer

VOXALOT ADDS MORE ADVANCED CALLING FEATURES TO ANY SIP PLAN With PREMIUM SERVICE

Noted Companies at VON FALL
SYDNEY, Australia—Voxalot, the global voice applications provider, has announced the commercial launch of VoxPremiumTM, a service plan that adds a wealth of sophisticated calling features, as well as inbound calling from PSTN phones, to its basic offer of value-added services, expanded free calling range and management tools.

At the same time, the company has redesigned its Web site with a completely new interface to enable easier access to both basic (free) and premium (paid) services.

“We’re excited about the upgrades and new features we’re now able to offer Voxalot members,” said Tony Mascarenhas, Voxalot CEO. “They were developed based largely on community feedback and input—so we know they’re features our users want.”

Voxalot is designed for users who subscribe to one or more SIP-based Internet voice service (or VoIP) plans, enabling them to switch plans without changing their published contact information. Users also have the ability to route outgoing calls through any one of multiple providers, choosing the best-quality or least-cost provider for different destinations. Members make these choices by setting up “Smart Call Rules” on Voxalot’s Web site. The service’s free features include advanced telephony tools and free calling not only to Voxalot members, but to subscribers of 2,000 other SIP-based voice services.

Included in VoxPremium (US$15 to US$40 per year) are the following features and services:

Web Call Back: Accepts phone numbers entered on a Web site, calls out to both parties and bridges the call together.
Access to DID (Direct Inward Dial) PSTN phone numbers: Members can assign one or more of these to their Internet telephone numbers, enabling them to receive incoming calls from any PSTN phone as well as VoIP phones.
Voxalot Call Connection Rules: subscriber can create Call Connection Rules to route incoming calls to any PSTN, mobile or VoIP number based on time of day and caller.
Web-accessible voicemail: Messages can be played in any order, saved or deleted direct from the Voxalot Web site. Calls can be returned right from the Web Call Back page with one click.

iiNet Offers multi line VoIP service to SMB, Business Customers

12 November 2007 – Showing strong signs that iiNet Limited (ASX: IIN) is serious about developing its place in the business market, the company today announced a new business grade multi-line phone service using VoIP technology (Voice over Internet Protocol). The introduction of the business grade service is exciting news for small businesses who will benefit from a drastic drop in the cost of their communication services. VoIP allows customers to make calls over their broadband service and results in cheaper call rates for customers. VoIP usage has grown strongly over the last 5 years, the result of significant improvements in technology and the addition of new features including voicemail, call waiting, caller ID, and music-on-hold.

General Manager iiNet Business, Andy McIntyre said Multi-line VoIP offered our customers lower call costs, more efficient networking and access to a range of new applications which, until now, have only been available to large business.
“This product is a great initiative which will allow small and medium businesses to benefit from the use of VoIP via reduced call costs, ease of set-up and free calls between iiNet VoIP users,” McIntyre said.
iiNet recently announced the formation of a dedicated business team focused on providing small businesses across Australia with reliable and innovative products and services specifically developed with them in mind.
“The launch of multi-line VoIP will be followed by additional services aimed at the SME market including an easy way for businesses to share information between users via a secure online environment using Virtual Private Networking, plus SIP Trunking which will save time and money by combining traditional PABX services and new IP technology ” added McIntyre.
For more information regarding multiline VoIP, please visit
http://www.iinet.net.au/products/business/multiline_voip.html
Contacts:
Andy McIntyre, General Manager, Business, iiNet
Ph: (08) 9213 1389, (m) 0409 699 567, amcintyre@staff.iinet.net.au
Matthew Dunstan, Sales & Marketing Manager, Business, iinet
Ph: (08) 6252 4419 (m) 0403 300 416, mdunstan@staff.iinet.net.au

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Applications for The VON Magazine Innovator Awards is Open

For 2008, VON Magazine has been entrusted with the legacy and evolution of the pulver100. The VON Magazine Innovators (Innovators) Awards will continue to recognize companies that represent the future of IP communications, singling out innovative ideas, products, and businesses with substantial real-world deployments and significant growth, but there are some changes in how we will select and recognize accomplishments.

Innovators will be judged on new IP communications products and services introduced in the 2007 calendar year. You must have a shipping product, and you must have customers. It has to be a justifiably new product–not version 2.6 as compared to last year’s 2.51.

Companies will have to apply online at the VON Magazine Web site to be considered for an award. The application is available online now. The deadline for submissions is December 15, 2007. The award form can be found at www.vonmag.com/innovators.

Von Magazine announcement

Bangladesh Fines VoIP Providers, including Grameenphone

The country's telecom watchdog fined Aktel Tk 145 crore for its involvement in the illegal use of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) or call termination business.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) in a press release said during recent raids by the law enforces, Aktel's involvement in illegal call termination business was ascertained.
Talking to The Daily Star, BTRC Chairman Maj Gen (retd) Manzurul Alam said, "Aktel has already paid Tk 72.50 crore to the national exchequer." Telekom Malaysia International Bangladesh (TMIB) is the 70 percent stakeholder of Aktel.

Aktel is not alone in paying the government compensation. Earlier, country's largest mobile phone service operator Grameenphone announced it would pay the government Tk 168.4 crore while another major operator Banglalink said they would pay Tk 125 crore.
The BTRC chairman said, "We hope that no telecommunication operator will facilitate any illegal VoIP ventures... No one will be spared if found involved in any capacity in the illegal call termination business."
The BTRC in a press statement yesterday said international call termination to Bangladesh is a licensed service and is currently reserved only for the state-owned telephone operator Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board (BTTB).
Law enforcement agencies and the BTRC started joint operations on illegal VoIP operators after this interim government took office in January.
Aktel, the second largest mobile phone service operator in Bangladesh, already made a loss in the third quarter, due mainly to the compensation it will pay the government.
However, Aktel's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) fell sharply due to the government compensation. It also increased customer acquisition costs. In the 2007 third quarter it made an EBITDA loss of Tk 343 crore.
In the 2007 third quarter, Aktel's total revenue rose to Tk 355.7 crore. The number of subscribers reached 70 lakh this year, up 63 percent from last year, according to figures published by Telekom Malaysia (TM).

TMIB VERSION
The TMIB in a statement said, "The company has recently agreed to compensate Bangladesh government for the 'lost revenue' attributed by the misuse of some of TMIB subscribers [Aktel]. The TMIB already paid Tk 72.50 crore out of its total commitment of Tk 145 crore." Before the current caretaker government took control, unauthorised use of VoIP and international call termination was highly prevalent in the country. It said TMIB, as a responsible corporate entity, is compliant with laws of the land and is very much appreciative of the stand and initiative of BTRC in becoming an effective regulatory regime. TMIB's acting managing director Kamshul Kasim said, "We respect where we do business. We would be 100 percent compliant with the laws of Bangladesh."
crore is equal to 100 lakh or 10 million
News Source

Saturday, November 10, 2007

VoIP Spam, Who should Control It, You or Your VoIP Provider?

First the Mail system came and then the telephone. In both these cases some people found out that they were very good advertising mediums. So our mail boxes started to get filled up with unwanted mail, catalog's, phony checks, Lottery offers, etc. Our phones stared ringing evenings and weekends with people trying to sell you all sort of things, surveys, and anything else anyone could think of!
I just have a Dustbin, thrash can next to my Mail Box, to control my Mail SPAM. I do it not the Post office.
Telephone was a bit different, I used to rudely hang up those calls, ask for money from surveyors to answer their questions and then came the Caller ID and I put that to immediate use. Now I get almost zero spam calls on my pots line. I declare my phone number when ever I call some one and therefor only numbers that are identifiable could call me. So I can see who is calling before I answer. If do not know the number I do not answer and they can leave a message. All my close connections have a code that they punch in if they do not have Caller ID enabled to call me, specially to the people from other countries need it.
I also have two VoIP lines from Providers as well two IP PBXs which are my own. I am yet to get a spam call on either!, yet.

Then came Email, the ability to send email to anyone with email anyone started the largest ever spaming we have ever seen. But we learned to control it, (somewhat), with spam filtering at servers and clients. But it has always been the case that the client has the final say in spam control. Exception are the black listed senders that are blocked by ISPs. Spam is a problem but so far we have managed to overcome that problem in various manner.

So why am I writing this? because I read an article about VoIP Spam today. I think the person who talked about the problem may have spoken more than what the writer wrote. But the article left a incomplete feeling inside me.
The expert is Tan Aksoy, managing director of Telappliant, and I do not have access to his speech. But the little I saw made no sense. He said "Good security and a VoIP provider that does not allow random in-bound calling, there are lots of ways of doing it,"
The first part is given for anything connected to Internet. Security must be paid attention, for Data and Voice as they are both different. But VoIP Provider stopping random inbound calls? No, VoIP provider connect user to the world. Yes exceptions like Black lists for VoIP spam could be used when we have come up with them. Provide users with abilities to control calls, start with caller ID!. Give them Unified Communication abilities but let the user decide what is best for them.
Because, if Post Office and AT&T did what Tan Aksoy say, I would not be able to keep in touch with my family, as most of the time I am away from home, where ever there is a scientific symposium,a research talk or just an invitation from another University. My call would be counted a random by VoIP provider.
And my Xmas cards would have never reached my family because post office would have deemed it random!, and those birthday cards I would send, sometimes from different place, every year!
I could not leave a comment at the site with post, but I hope I can get a better explanation from Telappliant, I will give you a connection to the post, perhaps they will notice my post.

VoIP spam 'can be countered'

iPhone 1.1.2 iHacked, (Apple just Unlock the bloody Phone, you have to in France anyway!)

Big Update 1.1.2 has been Jailbroken. Go here fore for information.

Update;
Apparently Iphone-Elite team has indeed made the unlock work for the new modem firmware.
Downloads and information is here. (The team has basically figured out a way to downgrade 1.1.2 to 1.0.2 or 1.1.1 and unlock it. They haven't actually unlocked the 1.1.2 iPhone,)
Read Carefully:
"

If your iPhone came with 4.02.13_G (aka 1.1.2) OUT OF THE BOX then do NOT use this unlock yet.

It hasn't been tested with bootloaders other than BOOT03.09_M3S2
Very new iPhones (and all U.K. iPhones) come out of the box with BOOT04.06_M3S2.
If you're in doubt, check the output of bbupdater -v or go into minicom and issue at+xgendata"

As soon as I posted our Thousandth Post I have to write again about iPhone 1.1.2 iHacked version.
TAUW, has the complete shebang on iPhone 1.1.2 hack. The above photo shows that you can easily change Keyboard setting and the icons.
Apple what is next, a forced update to connected iPhones, it is not too late to learn from Google, make iPhone open, (Not Open Source).

IPhone Hacked Again in Europe (This is our 1000th Post as well)

Apple is hacked and the hack appeared by Friday evening according to a news post. By the way this is our 1000th post and I beat Solarion to it as he is traveling today. So I think we will stick this somewhere and say 1000th post is about iPhone, not specifically about VoIP, We promise to make 2000th so!
here is the iPhone Europe hacked news!;
SAN FRANCISCO -(Dow Jones)- The arrival of new unlocking software for iPhones on Friday highlights a major challenge for Apple Inc. (AAPL) as it starts selling iPhones in Europe. Just hours after Apple's iPhone went on sale Friday in the U.K. and Germany, hackers were distributing new "unlocking" software so iPhones could use a variety of cellphone networks, according to various reports on Apple-focused Web sites.

Cellphone operators in Germany, the U.K. and the U.S. sell their iPhones locked to their networks, the result of the exclusive arrangements they have with Apple. European operators on Friday warned that unlocking iPhones isn't a good idea for a variety of reasons.
In the case of O2, the U.K. operator, it means no access to O2's unlimited data packages or its visual voice-mail feature. O2 has the exclusive rights to sell the iPhone in the U.K.
"In short, it makes no sense to buy an iPhone in France for use in the U.K.," said 02 spokesman Lloyd Simon.
Rumors Friday of unlocked iPhones for sale in Germany, however, attests to how European Apple fans are clamoring for such a development.
Consumers in the U.S. also are unlocking their iPhones. According to AT&T Inc. (T), a sizable percentage of the iPhones it has sold hasn't been activated on AT&T's network. The assumption is they were unlocked and used on other networks.
There's reason to believe the number of unlocked iPhones worldwide will increase after Nov. 29, when the iPhone debuts in France. French law requires cellphone operators to make available phones that are unlocked.

Apple and its French operator partner, Orange, are expected to comply with the French law, thus providing the first opportunity to buy an unlocked iPhone. Apple didn't return calls and emails Friday seeking comment.
Further muddying the situation is that Apple and Orange have yet to confirm whether they will, and how they will, comply with the French law.

VoIP Webinar, "Ready set VoIP" Part III is on the way.

Ken Camp informs us that his third installment of the Webinar series "Ready.Set.Voip" is on it's way. If you have not seen the first two, (Which is online here at webex)I would recommend that you do. I did watch them and found to be interesting, awaiting the third.
Kens Post;
Ready.Set.VoIP! Webinar Series - Part 3 coming soon

Friday, November 09, 2007

Microsoft Patents "Good Bye"

How Moronic is this, Prior art search could start some where here;
""Mr. Watson--come here--I want to see you."" I am sure Mr. Watson said good bye after informing that it will tale one week for him to get to New York from San Francisco!
Geemodo: Microsft Seeks Patent on "Good Bye"

Cisco, Microsoft Rivalry Becomes Prominent

Now that Microsoft's unified communications portfolio has launched, and Microsoft "proving" that some parts of that portfolio is better than Cisco's, Cisco partners report that their sales cycles are getting longer as customers stop to consider the impact.

Microsoft's entrance into the space "is putting some fear and doubt into customers. CIOs are asking their staffs to at least think about it," said an executive at one large Cisco partner, who asked not to be identified. "It is lengthening the sales cycle a bit in some cases."

Joe Burton, Cisco's CTO of unified communications, said the vendor is giving channel partners the materials they need to answer questions about Mi

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