VoIP News: September 2008

Mobile broadband push announced

Mobile broadband will be pushed as an alternative to Wi-Fi by a new alliance of IT and mobile companies.

Companies like Microsoft, Toshiba and Vodafone make up the 16-strong group, which is backing a GSMA-led move to make a new category of always-connected mobile broadband devices.

The first phase of the initiative will see the technology pre-installed on various notebook PCs which will be able to go online as soon as they are turned on.

These machines will be identified by a badge, which is being funded by a $1 billion media drive in the coming year.

According to GSMA chief marketing officer Michael O'Hara, the main advantage of the technology is the freedom it offers.

"Freedom from hot spots, freedom from complexity and freedom from security concerns," he said.

"The mobile broadband badge will assure consumers that the devices they buy will always connect - wherever mobile broadband is available - and that they can expect a high standard of simplicity and mobility."

According to the group, after this initial stage mobile broadband will begin appearing in a host of different devices, from cameras to cars and MP3 players to fridges.

Posted on: 2008-09-30, in: Broadband

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Businesses not taking to SaaS

Most businesses are not considering a move to software as a service (SaaS), according to research by BT.

A survey by the company found that 81 per cent of the telecom giant's customers did not know much about SaaS and had not thought about employing it at their company, reports silicon.com.

However, Chris Lindsay, BT Business general manager of SaaS, told the website that companies would be wise to change their view on the technology.

"It's quite eye-opening really in terms of the lack of awareness but [also] the benefits are very clearly spelt out by the customers who have adopted the services," he said.

This view was backed up by other research from the firm, which found that 60 per cent of businesses which have adopted SaaS have seen costs drop, while 50 per cent reported time-saving benefits.

Mr Lindsay believes that the technology will begin to see widespread adoption, as it has moved "out of the innovators and early adopters to what we call the early majority".

Posted on: 2008-09-30, in: Broadband

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China now biggest broadband user

China now has more broadband lines than the USA, making it the biggest broadband user in the world, according to research.

Analysis by Point Topic found that while both countries had roughly 78 million lines at the end of August, China was growing at double the rate of the USA.

Oliver Johnson, Point Topic chief executive, believes the news is perhaps more significant than the country's first foray into space.

"This is a major milestone for China. Launching people into space is spectacular, but having the biggest broadband market down here on earth means a lot more for building a modern, hi-tech economy," he said.

The analysis found that broadband growth in the two countries had been running almost parallel for a year and a half, before the trends differed in 2008.

Just 1.1 million new lines were added in America in the second quarter of 2008, down from 3.4 million in the last quarter of 2007, while China saw growth from 3.5 million to five million over the same timeframe.

Posted on: 2008-09-29, in: Broadband

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IPTV predicted to grow 64 per cent

IPTV (Television over the internet) subscriptions will reach 19.6 million globally by the end of 2008, a rise of 64.1 per cent from 12 million last year, according to research from Gartner.

The company found that revenues for the market will be $4.5 billion (£2.5 billion) in 2008, an increase of 93.5 per cent from 2007, with the figure for 2012 expected to be $19 billion (£10.5 billion).

If the figures are accurate, then 1.1 per cent of households globally will have IPTV by the end of 2008, while the penetration by the end of 2012 will be 2.8 per cent.

"The biggest change since 2007 is the rapid advent of new entrants making inroads in consumer video consumption and placing greater demands on IPTV operators to innovate," said Elroy Jopling, research director at Gartner.

He added: "The video consumption field will become increasingly crowded."

IPTV was found to be most popular in Western Europe, forecast to be reaching 8.2 million by the end of the year and 18.8 million in 2012.

However, North America was forecast to be the biggest market for revenue, reaching $2 billion (£1.1 billion) this year and $8 billion (£4.4 billion) in 2012.

Posted on: 2008-09-29, in: Broadband

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EC debate on Europe-wide broadband

The European Commission (EC) has launched a debate on how to provide broadband access to every European household by 2010.

According to EC figures, seven per cent of the EU's population do not have access, with the number 30 per cent in rural areas.

There is also disparity between different member states - Denmark, Belgium and Luxembourg all have 100 per cent coverage, while the figure is less than half in Romania and even the likes of Italy and Germany only reach 82 per cent and 88 per cent respectively.

"High-speed internet is the passport to the information society and an essential condition for economic growth," said Viviane Reding, EU telecoms commissioner.

"This is why it is this Commission's policy to make broadband internet for all Europeans happen by 2010."

However, despite the lack of access in some places, the broadband market does appear healthy in the EU, with usage tripling from 2003 to 2007 to 36 per cent of households.

Ms Reding also pointed out that the top eight EU countries are far ahead of the USA in terms of broadband uptake.

Posted on: 2008-09-26, in: Broadband

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