ITExpo Miami Best of Show
Last week was ITExpo in Miami – generally a good conference. There was lots of news this year. I think the biggest story was Digium’s new phones (see here and here). I don’t think most people realize how impact-full these (well…
StartupCamp5
StartupCamp5 will be taking place at ITExpo Feb 1-3 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. I’ve attended the past four ITExpo’s and StartupCamps, but won’t be at this one. Feeling a bit wistful as so many people I know are…
10 Reasons Why RIM Won’t Die
It has been fun to kick RIM. Text book example of why incumbents get disrupted/ RIM owned/invented email on a mobile phone. They invented the smartphone. We used to call their addicts ‘”Crackberries.” But they (along with everyone else) underestimated Apple….
Word is Getting Out on TalkingPointz
It’s a new brand. It’s a new concept. It takes time, but the word is getting out. TalkingPointz Research reports are independent UC research that can be purchased ad-hoc, without a subscription. Check out what InsideCTI says. I like how it…
Social Blue
IBM is an impressive company – It has lived through more computational generations than any other. The company doesn’t have the fan base of say an Apple, or the fight evil of Google – but it does have impressive credentials…
Cisco and Avaya Leaders Again
Cisco and Avaya were once again identified as industry leaders. This time, by a new IDC worldwide unified communications Marketscape report. The report claims to use a “rigorous scoring methodology that produces a definititive assessment of each vendro’s current market…
Top 2011 Posts from Pin Drop Soup
Most read stories this year. The blog really saw some traffic increases in 2011. Though moving to a new site – and new name (TalkingPointz) caused a disruption in traffic and messed up my annual stats. Thanks for bearing through…
HP UC
Is HP a UC player? And if so, “Player” as in vendor or poser? The hot part of UC right now is mobility – and HP doesn’t seem to be in that space. Although that could still change. I’ve written…
Industry Update
The iPhone and iPad have broken more records than the iPod did CDs. Microsoft buying Skype was a game changer, but the new game remains a mystery. Here is the current industry round-up. Read it quickly as things are changing…
ShoreTel Does it Again
Is it just me or does the word “ShoreTel” keep coming up? There is no question in my mind that ShoreTel is drawing the attention and ire of its competitors.
HOLD THE virtual PHONE
Today at VMworld in Las Vegas, we learned of a new capability: virtual softphones! Mitel’s US desktop suite, UC-Advanced, includes a softphone (and presence, and IM), and it is now supported on VMware’s View virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). To my…
Seven Reasons Why ShoreTel is Booming
ShoreTel (Nasdaq: SHOR) recently reported fourth quarter revenues of $56.5 million. That is an increase of 34 percent from a year ago and beat its own guidance. The results enabled ShoreTel to close the year with revenue of $200.1 million,…
Conference Update
Telecom and UC, VoiP, telephony, or whatever term you choose to describe the convergence, concentration, and diversification of real time communications is indeed in a state of transition, transformation, disruption or whatever term you prefer to use to describe explosion. There is…
Mitel NASDAQ Day
About a year ago, Mitel had its second IPO. The company went private around ten years ago when its co-founder Sir Terry Mathews returned and took the company private. On July 5th, Mitel CEO Rich McBee rang the proverbial closing…
Collaborating with VMware
VMware is on fire. The company recently reported year-over-year growth at 49%, ending FY2010 at $2.9 billion. Included in that top line is 95% increase in operating income. Q111 revenue is 33% higher than Q110. In UC, VMware is everyone’s…
InterOp
May is a crazy month for conferences, and it is hard to keep up with the posts. The Interop conference is a shadow of its heyday years, but still a significant event for networking technologies. It used to attract more…
Skype For Asterisk Was Already Dead!
The big story this week (so far), Skype for Asterisk (SFA) comes to its end. The official notification reads: Skype for Asterisk will not be available for sale or activation after July 26, 2011. Skype for Asterisk was developed by…
Mitel Changes
Mitel announced several significant changes today – about three months after hiring Rich McBee as CEO. I am traveling this week, so just a quick review of the press release. Mcbee was to smplify the business! Mitel has become a…
ALU’s Silent Auction
Lots of conversation this week about the possibility that Alcatel-Lucent intends to sell its enterprise business unit. I have a few thoughts on the matter. To my knowledge, no one at ALU has actually publically stated ALU Enterprise is for…
Upcoming Conference: Mitel Freedom Partner Event
Busy time of year for conferences… the next event is what used to be known as Mitel Forum. Many of you know that I have a long history with Mitel. I’ve always been impressed with their products and their chairman…