It’s still just a rumor, but repotedly Cisco is aiming to acquire over-the-top VoIP pioneer Skype before its upcoming planned IPO. The rumor was first reported on TechCrunch.com and of course triggered rounds of speculation. Now that the initial spin has died down, it’s interesting to ask: Is now the right time for Cisco to be making such a purchase, a deal that just a few years ago would have probably ticked off its enterprise customers and infuriated its carrier partners.
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Why the time is right for a Cisco/Skype deal
Don’t turn Net neutrality debate into prime-time wrestling
Verizon has been fairly quiet regarding its controversial Net neutrality proposal with Google — but that changed Monday. In an Aspen Institute conference speech, Verizon’s head lobbyist and executive vice president for public affairs, Thomas Tauke, said consumers would benefit from the new services — and improved service quality — that the pact would enable.
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More sunny outlooks for the cloud — time for a reality check
The hits keep on coming for the cloud market. Today, Yankee Group detailed a new survey that found that although infrastructure-as-a-service cloud offerings are not yet mainstream, they are starting to “find a home in early adopter enterprises.” Meanwhile, PricewaterhouseCoopers (courtesy of Computerworld) is pushing the idea that cloud infrastructure not only cuts costs, but can be an engine for IT innovation, as well, when compared with traditional, rigid IT systems. Is there anything the cloud can’t do?
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Dems, cable players not happy with Google/Verizon Net neutrality proposal
The Google/Verizon Net neutrality proposal continues to generate buzz, both positive and negative. Not surprisingly, AT&T came out in support of the proposal, which aimed to keep wireless away from any heavy-handed broadband regulation. Not surprisingly, Time Warner Cable — lacking the wireless assets of AT&T or Verizon — is wary, with its CEO saying he’d “really support having more people in the room and getting more of a consensus.”
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Google counters neutrality criticism but faces protest Friday
We’re not evil, we really mean it! Google continues to face strong criticism for teaming up with Verizon on a Net neutrality proposal earlier this week. Today, several consumer groups that have typically been on Google’s side of most technology arguments — including Free Press, MoveOn.org and others — are planning a protest at Google’s Mountain View campus.
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Feds divert $302 million from broadband stimulus funding
Some call it “robbing Peter to pay Paul” — the federal government just calls it business as usual. As part of a budget compromise to find money to help avert state-based teaching layoffs, about $302 million of the total $4.7 billion devoted to broadband stimulus funding was taken away from the National Telecommunications & Information Administration and Rural Utlities Service this week. President Obama signed the Education Jobs Fund bill resulting in that funding loss this week.
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AT&T backs Verizon/Google Net neutrality proposal
For Net neutrality backers, this must “prove” that the Verizon/Google Net neutrality pact is indeed evil: AT&T backs it, too. Ralph de la Vega, head of AT&T’s consumer and mobile divisions, told an investor conference today that the proposed agreement was “the right step forward.”
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Inside (and insights into) Google’s ‘data question’ secret document
Fascinating story today at The Wall Street Journal chronicling a secret, seven-page “vision” statement that shows Google struggling to find the right approach to dealing with all the data it collects about its users. It wouldn’t be difficult at all to replace “Google” with “telco” and have much the same questions raised — and most likely unanswered. Both Internet search sites like Google and telecom service providers have vast amounts of information about their users and their activities, most of which goes “unused.”
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Google, Verizon pursue Internet traffic accord
Google and Verizon, which normally stand on opposite sides in the Net neutrality debate, are close to reaching an agreement that could help pave the way for Verizon to offer differentiated classes of Internet service delivery, The New York Times and others are reporting. According to the New York daily, such an agreement “could allow Verizon to speed some online content to Internet users more quickly if the content’s creators are willing to pay for the privilege.”
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Net neutrality talks grind on; reclassification hits roadblock
Net neutrality and reclassification discussions have moved off the front page and into the back rooms of D.C. — probably where they should be until there’s something firm on the table. Here’s what’s been happening behind the scenes, according to The Hill:
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