Fmc

Sprint goes FMC with Cisco

Doug Mohney — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 16:56:09 -0500

Sprint has launched a new business FMC offering that taps into Cisco Unified Communications Manager.

Sprint Wireless Integration extends Cisco UC Manager functionality to Sprint mobile phones, so customers now get calls within the enterprise to be "on net." The service is delivered via Sprint's IMS architecture within the company's MPLS network, and it utilizes a customer's Cisco Unified Communications Manager, Cisco's Unified IP phones - Sprint provides a Cisco Unified Border Element. A Sprint MPLS connection provides connectivity into Sprint's IMS core so Sprint CDMA phones can be fully integrated into the Cisco Unified Communications Manager.

Sprint's Wireless Integration service targets business enterprises with a minimum of 100 users and is set up as a "pay-as-you-use" service. Calls from mobile phones get abbreviated dialing functionality, and calls can be transferred seamlessly and transparently between devices, such as a Cisco desktop IP phone and a Sprint mobile phone.

The system's benefits include extension of classes of service restriction to mobile devices, the ability to track mobile calls through Cisco UC manager, single number access for employees, unified voice mail, call transfer between mobile and desk phones, and a reduction of trunks, because calls get moved to an enterprise's IP network and avoid trunk usage .

For more:
- MarketWatch carries Sprint Cisco FMC press release.

Cincinnati Bell

Dan O'Shea — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:12:19 -0400

Location: Cincinnati, Ohio

Why it's so cutting-edge: The company has not been afraid to make bets on new technologies or new business moves. It was among the first service providers in the U.S. to roll out a fixed-mobile converged service, and just days ago announced a unique smartphone family plan from its wireless unit. CEO Jack Cassidy was lauded as "The Most Honest Man in Telecom" by Forbes magazine, and has made several small, but strategic, acquisitions in the last year. The telco had a strong second quarter, and Cassidy is now helped by a COO and a new CFO to back him up.

But can it keep its edge? FMC is in a critical period as it moves out of its infancy stage as a commercial service. The acquisitions helped Cincinnati Bell achieve bigger numbers in Q2, but what will future financials hold? The regional play also will sometime soon face the prospect of a consolidating independent telco sector, and decide what role it wants to play.

All bets on wireless – for now

Doug Mohney — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 16:51:55 -0400

If you are have some spare change to invest, or you're building a name in Washington D.C. for future career options, wireless is the place to be at this moment.

Since the dot.bomb bubble, venture capitalists have been acting more like they should when it comes to investing in telecommunications firms. VC now look for a longer term play of five to seven years once they invest, steady growth with revenues and profits, solid management and an understandable business model - no more of this crap of raising $20 million with a PowerPoint presentation and a smile.

In tight times, VCs circle the wagons, figure out which children can stay in the lifeboat, cut off funding to those who can't, and invest in those companies that have a good to excellent shot at profitability once the storm clears. Better still if they can find profitability during the storm.

FMC/femtocell play Kineto Wireless took in $15.5 million in funding last week, including a "strategic investment" from Motorola. You know Moto has to have serious belief in Kineto to give them money after all their tribulations this past year. Expect FMC/mobile UC players to continue to build business; everyone has their own personal cell phone, everyone uses it for work, everyone wants to keep personal and business calls seperate.

WiMAX is another area attracting funding. Sure, everyone has heard about the in-progress $3.5 billion capitalization of Clearwire once the Sprint/Clearwire merger passes through the FCC, but Altair Semiconductor closed $22 million in Series C round funding in late September. Fabless Altair is using the money to expand its global operations, as well as to continue development on WiMAX and LTE chipsets. There are a couple of other VC announcements in the pipeline, regardless of where Wall Street goes in the next two weeks.

And I suppose a number of people will owe thanks to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin if two different proposals to free up spectrum for public use go forward. This week, Martin came out bullish on using "white spaces" - the open spectrum between TV channels - in an open and unlicensed fashion. The FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology (Uber-radio-geeks) put five prototype/proof-of-concept "white spaces" devices through their paces to see if gizmos could be built to conduct spectrum sensing (i.e. what TV channels are in use, which aren't, use the ones that aren't being used), and the results have been satisfactory.

Round two comes with last week's FCC report on AWS-3 spectrum; basically, it's a band that sits next to T-Mobile's network. The FCC would like to auction AWS-3 with the stipulation that the winner would dedicate resources for free national wireless broadband access. It's an interesting idea and main cheerleader M2Z Networks says it would provide the national treasury with a dedicated yearly revenue stream in exchange for use of the spectrum to sell a higher-end (faster speed, no porn filters) for-pay service.

Of course, neither white spaces nor AWS-3 usage are sure things. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is determined to crush any perceived threat to the use of "its" spectrum, while T-Mobile is likely to fight AWS-3 for the potential for it to interfere with its services.

- Doug

"Wannabe" mobile worker flood predicted

Doug Mohney — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 23:07:28 -0400

A new class of mobile workers is emerging, says Forrester Research. Employees will insist upon mobile support from employers, and already nearly a third of smart phone users expense all or some of their monthly wireless bills.

Currently, the mobile "wannabes" represent 6 percent of the present work force, but Forrester estimates they will grow to 25 percent of workers within the next four years, with a whopping 73 percent of the work force considered some sort of mobile worker by 2012.

It's a wave being attributed to a bottom-up demand from all types of workers who want to user their personal mobile devices (iPhone) to access corporate apps. IT managers more narrowly define mobile workers as on-the-road execs or managers, telecommuters and/or field service employees; the groups roughly represents 20 percent of the work force.

Employees purchase their own devices, but end up expensing their corporate-related wireless voice and data access to the company. The wannabes include executive assistants, HR workers and finance department employees who are generally at their desks most of the time, but use smart phones to grab email and work with other corporate apps. The younger-than-30 Millennials also have come to expect mobile support, because they've ditched landline phones at home.

Happiness is forecasted for vendors, device makers, app developers and network operators - if they figure out they should be making mobile friendly products and services.

For more:
- eWeek talks about the new class of mobile workers. Article.

T-Mobile goes wide with home phone service

Dan O'Shea — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 09:09:16 -0400

The T-Mobile @Home VoIP service that the U.S. wireless carrier had been testing on a limited basis will be made generally available, the company is announcing today. The service, a stab at fixed-mobile convergence that could impact landline carriers, VoIP players and fellow wireless service providers, will cost $10 per month, definitely undercutting most other types of voice services.

The @Home service uses a Cisco Systems WiFi router that costs $50 from T-Mobile, but the router cost is subsidized with a two-year contract. Service providers of all kinds continue to test new FMC concepts, and the industry will be watching closely to see if @Home catches on.

For more:
- read this story at BusinessWeek

Related articles:
T-Mobile announced a trial of the service earlier this year T-Mobile report
Vodafone Italia has pursued a similar service Vodafone Italia report

French telecom market moves into new phase

Dan O'Shea — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:54:53 -0400

France's telecom market has been a showcase for broadband competition, with France Telecom, Iliad, Neuf Cegetel and Numericable aggressivly deploying new technology and recruiting customers. The market also recently has been reshaped by mobile carrier SFR's acquisition of Neuf Cegetel, and Iliad's plan to buy Telecom Italia's Alice French unit. With France Telecom also owning Orange and operating the Unik fixed-mobile converged service, the next phase of competition in the French market may be all about wireless and FMC.

Iliad is lacking a strong wireless presence thus far, but that could change soon if the company gets a good chunk of available 3G spectrum from French regulator Arcep.

For more:
- see this report at The Wall Street Journal

Related articles:
France Telecom has been interested in acquiring TeliaSonera France Telecom report
Iliad recently made a move on Alice Iliad report

Vodafone Italia FMC solution hits home

Dan O'Shea — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 08:59:40 -0400

Vodafone Italia has released a new broadband switch/router for the home that could be a key enabler of future fixed-mobile convergence. The carrier's Station box, developed with Huawei Technologies, is for use with ADSL2+ broadband connection and extends WiFi or Ethernet coverage throughout the home, but most notably, it can deliver 3G connectivity to Vodafone's wireless network via a USB connection. The switch/router supports seamless switching between wireline broadband and wireless, so Vodafone's 3G coverage could piggyback its way into customer homes. T-Mobile USA offered a somewhat similar take on FMC with a low-key rollout of VoIP and wireless over broadband in Dallas and Seattle earlier this year.

One of the differences with Vodafone is that if Vodafone expands availability of the station to other markets, it could do so in areas where it increasingly is becoming a wireline broadband provider through acquisition, meaning it can own both the coverage within the home and the broadband pathway into it. The recent wireline acquisition strategy and this pursuit of FMC could very well be remembered as hallmarks of the Arun Sarin era now ending its run at Vodafone.

On another note, could such strategies, if they catch on with carriers, be dangerous to the health of vendors who have bet on femtocell technology? I am not sure, but I am hoping to ask a few industry experts their opinions on the matter when I moderate a femtocell panel on Wednesday, June 18 at NXTcomm in Las Vegas. Hope to see you there. (How's that for a shameless plug?)

For more:
- read this post at GigaOM
- and more coverage at Telecoms: Italy

Related articles:
Orange to enable FMC picocell service. Orange report
T-mobile tries out femtocells; will U.S. follow? Femtocell report