Telecom Ramblings

This article was authored by John Tanner, and was originally posted on telecomasia.net.

ITEM: The US city of Chicago has imposed a 9% “cloud tax” on online databases and streaming entertainment services. Chicago residents are none too happy about it, and the broader implications could be messy. [Read more →]

When the FCC’s new Net Neutrality rules took effect, so did its possible entry into the world of network interconnection and peering.  Not so coincidentally, perhaps, we have seen a spate of interconnection deals not just made but publicly announced.  What do you think?  Has the FCC’s threat to intervene in such disputes been a good, bad, or irrelevant thing? [Read more →]

With the July 4 weekend on tap, lots of folks are already firing up the grill. Here’s a few quick takes to finish off the week first: [Read more →]

But no, not for Colt or any other fiber network asset — at least today.  Level 3 announced today that it has acquired Black Lotus, in a move to further deepen its network security portfolio. [Read more →]

As I have expected, it is taking operators less time to dive into NFV than usual when it comes to new technologies. Yesterday, Masergy became the latest of the early adopters with an aggressive push to bring NFV-based services out of the lab and all the way to the enterprise market. [Read more →]

According to various reports, the FBI has been brought in to investigate cable cuts in California.  Apparently, yesterday there were three cases of deliberately damaged cables starting before dawn in the San Francisco Bay area, striking routes operated by both Level 3 and Zayo. [Read more →]

This article was authored by Dylan Bushell-Embling, and was originally posted on telecomasia.net.

Australia’s Telstra has commercially launched its nationwide Wi-Fi network, Telstra Air, and is now allowing broadband customers to join up to the service. [Read more →]

In an inorganic move aimed at cloud-based managed security services, Cisco has announced its intent to acquire OpenDNS. [Read more →]

Time for a quick roundup of data center and cloud news from the past few days: [Read more →]

The internet backbone market has long been one of the toughest neighborhoods in telecom.  One network that has withstood every storm that has come at the industry over the past 20 years is Hurricane Electric.  Hurricane Electric operates a global IP backbone as well as two data centers in its home market of Fremont, California, and has been at the forefront of the rollout of IPv6.  With us today to share his perspective is the company’s CEO and founder, Mike Leber. [Read more →]

After a few lean weeks, we have a new job listing on the Ramblings Jobs board from Virginia. [Read more →]

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Matthew McKenna, chief commercial officer, SSH Communications Security

Telecoms rely on online capabilities to provide the customer service and offer the experiences that customers now expect. Customers can pay their bills online, take satisfaction surveys on their mobile devices and upgrade their plans on the company website. To ensure [Read more →]

TGIF.  I’ll be back in full force on Monday after a week on the road out here in sunny California.  In the meantime, here’s a bit more catchup after a busy week: [Read more →]

Following up on last week’s bid for the remainder of Colt it doesn’t already own, Fidelity confirmed this week that it won’t be increasing its bid despite the view of independent directors that it undervalues the company. So what happens next? We wait to see if another bid emerges, and then we find out what Fidelity really wants. [Read more →]

Here’s a set of quick-takes on some of the interesting news from the international front this week: [Read more →]

This article was authored by John C. Tanner, and was originally posted on telecomasia.net.

As you may have read this week, the ITU announced that it’s officially outlined its vision and roadmap for the overall goals, processes and timeline for 5G development. [Read more →]

I’m on the road this week on the west coast, which is slowing down my writing a bit for those wondering.  Lots of news today from the world of colocation & cloud.  Here’s a quick rundown. [Read more →]

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Michael Gundling, Vice President of Product Marketing at TerraGo

In many industries, the mission-critical work happens outside the office walls. For example, when there’s a service outage, utility companies find themselves on the clock as they dispatch field crews to restore essential services. Electric, gas, water and other companies in the public sector are continually challenged to reduce [Read more →]

Next, here’s a roundup of some vendor news that’s worth a look: [Read more →]

I’m a little behind this week, posting from the road in California.  Here’s a quick update on some metro news from this week: [Read more →]

After entering the US cable market with the purchase of Suddenlink and feinting toward TW Cable, Altice made its next big move this morning — in France. They’ve submitted a bid for the French telecom Bouygues Telecom, which operates the #3 wireless network there. [Read more →]

Voice was once the only thing telecom did, but is now just one of many types of data communications connected over endpoints that are now more often mobile and wireless than not.  The Voice over IP revolution started well over a decade ago, but it was really just the tip of an iceberg of communications over IP.  With us today to offer his perspective on the world of VoIP, Hosted PBX, and Unified Communications is the founder and CEO of VoIP Logic, Micah Singer.  [Read more →]

Over in Europe, another pan-European fiber operator just might leave the public markets and go private. Colt has received an offer from its majority shareholder, Fidelity, for the 37.6% of the company it doesn’t already own. The price tag of £569m sent Colt’s stock up 20% today in London. [Read more →]