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September 30, 2004

Bob Pepper Interview on CNET

CNET just posted an interview Declan recently did with my friend and long-time VON speaker, Bob Pepper from the FCC.

Posted by jeff at 03:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Charity Poker Tournament @ Fall 2004 VON

Please join me for the Fall 2004 VON Charity Poker Tournament.

What are the 3 most happening trends in the world today?

1. VoIP
2. Poker
3. Celebrity Spotting

For the first time ever, the three come together for one day only at Fall 2004 VON at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Oct. 17, at the Best Bet for the Cure: Charity Poker Tournament To benefit The Barton Center for Diabetes Education, Inc. (a 501(c)(3) non-profit). The Barton Center will donate a portion of its proceeds to the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation.

The money raised for this event goes directly to the Barton Center. pulver.com is helping to underwrite this event and is donating our resources to help produce it.

Click here to register to play in the tournament.

Corporate Sponsorships are still available. Includes VIP passes to the Celebrity Reception for you and your guests, private lessons with Phil Hellmuth and signage throughout the tournament For more info, email: Jonathan Askin.

PRIZES:

Winners of the Charity Tournament will advance to the Celebrity Tournament later in the evening. The last player sitting takes home the coveted Pulver Cup. In addition, all players will have the opportunity to enter a raffle at the event for a wide range of prizes, including a $10,000 buy-in to the 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas.

CELEBRITIES:

Phil Hellmuth, arguably the best tournament Hold 'em player in the world, will serve as Master of Ceremonies. There will also be opportunities to play one-on-one poker with Phil Helmuth. Take the Phil Hellmuth Challenge and know you went up against the best in the world. While the list of celebrities will expand up until the day of the tournament (pending celebs include: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Denis Leary, Luis Tiant, Cam Nealy, Ray Bourque), our confirmed list from the Entertainment Industry includes: John Ratzenberger, Cheers' Cliff Clavin and currently host of the Travel Channel's "Made in America" , Survivor All-Stars Boston Rob (Mariano) and Amber Brkich, Playboy Playmate Nicole Wood and Lyndon Byers, former Bruins player and WAAF radio DJ. Additional big shots from the world of telecom and politics will also play.

Bloggers: Please help us spread the word of this charity event.

Posted by jeff at 07:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 29, 2004

R.I.P. Scott Muni:The Voice of FM Rock Radio

A very sad day for anyone who has ever listened to FM Rock Radio...Scottso is gone.

Legendary DJ Scott Muni died today at the age of 74.

Growing up in New York City in the 70s I was a faithful listener of WNEW-FM back at a time when WNEW had a soul and FM Rock Radio meant something.

Scott was a familiar voice of my youth and someone who will be missed by the generations of people who grew up listening to him.

Posted by jeff at 06:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A New Social Network for College Students: The Facebook

A new social network has hit the college campus this semester - The Facebook.

Access to this social network is limited to those people who are affiliated with various colleges and universities.

At first glance the current version feels like a lightweight version of Friendster.

Posted by jeff at 07:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Free World Dialup as a Wireless/Mobile Instant Messaging Network

A funny thing happened during the alpha testing of pulver.Communicator for RIM, PocketPC and PalmOS…we realized the cool implications of being able to use Free World Dialup as a public Instant Messaging network that transcends: PC desktops, Wi-Fi and Cellular (GSM and CDMA) Networks. Presence information and Text are the common denominators that we are able to share across ALL these networks. Even cooler is the ability to use these mobile devices to demonstrate SIP based third party call control.

For the past couple of days, I’ve been demonstrating to everyone who has dropped by my office this new ability of mine to send instant messages from my T-Mobile powered RIM device thru the Internet to my PC desktop. I just found the entire experience to be real cool. In fact, there was no real noticeable delay in the delivery of the messages across these platforms.

So instead of paying for SMS on a per message unit basis, the software application running on my RIM is able to send/receive an unlimited number of messages on the T-Mobile GPRS network. When/If I can get the attention and interest of enough people who normally use SMS and these mobile devices, I believe the implications for what this represents could be pretty significant…and this is only a sign of the things to come.

To date while Skype for PalmOS has been just hype, in less than three weeks we will be demonstrating the ability to send/receive Instant Messages and share presence information from Free World Dialup on the PalmOS platform on a Treo600 with pulver.Communicator on Windows XP as well as with a HP PocketPC and our RIM devices..

I’m currently working on the public demonstrations for the variations of pulver.Communicator that we will have on display in the Free World Dialup Pavilion on the Fall 2004 VON show floor.

I’m open to ideas on the best way to present this platform and these emerging technologies.

Posted by jeff at 01:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

September 28, 2004

2004 - The Year of VoIP on Google

Back on January 4th I started tracking the hits on the term "VoIP" and "IP Communications" on Google.

While VoIP has historically been a more popular term, IP Communications has grown in popularity this year as well.

On January 4th a search on "VoIP" found 1,960,000 website hits and 1,250 news stories. A search a few minutes ago on September 28th found 5,970,000 website hits and 3,660 stories.

On January 4th a search on "IP Communications" found 57,100 website hits and 56 news stories. A search a few minutes ago found 199,000 website hits and 336 news stories.

Posted by jeff at 08:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

And other IP focused Business Unit is Sold: Band-X IP Trading Exchange goes to Arbinet

Looks like Arbitnet was looking to strengthen their S-1 filing. Doesn't hurt to pick up the business of a potential competitor along the way to an IPO.

Band-X was the first "exchange" in the IP Communications space and their original target was the sale of bandwidth. Min-X, a company that I started which eventually morphed into Vonage, focused on IP based Minutes. Band-X was amongst the first of the bandwidth exchange to raise "real money." Back when Arbinet started their core focus was on TDM (non-IP) Minutes. Arbinet only entered the IP Minutes trading space after Min-X launched operations.

Band-X has been a survivor in the bandwidth exchange wars and in effect was amongst the last companies standing in that space. Over the years Band-X did all the right things to build their business and differentiate their offerings. There was a time when Band-X purchased Telegeography and at the time it made perfect sense...and due to the economic times that it lived thru came the time to sell the Telegeography business.

I look forward to watching Band-X continue to morph and redefine the markets where Wall Street trading concepts meet with the Communications Industry.

Posted by jeff at 07:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

VoIP Acquisition of the Day: Artisoft Acquires Vertical Networks

September 2004 continues to be VoIP Mergers and Acquisitions Month.

Yesterday it was announced that Artisoft has agreed to acquire Vertical Networks for US$ 19 million cash.

Vertical Networks founder and VON Alumn Scott Pickett will serve as CTO for the combined companies.

Posted by jeff at 12:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 27, 2004

In Search of... a pulver.com Communications Corp. CEO

During 2004 I've been incubating five different companies within the friendly confines of pulver.com. The one thing these companies have in common is that they operate within the IP Communications space. They run the gamut across: VoIP Hardware, VoIP Software and IP Communication services.

I've now reached a crossroads in the lifecycles of these companies and the time has come to seek out a dynamic CEO who can help me execute on the vision of these companies and help drive these companies forward, all under one roof.

The ideal candidate has a track record of past success as a CEO within the IP Communications space, is from the metro New York City area (or would like to move here) and would not mind a day job which was based out of Melville, New York.

If any such candidates exist, please feel free to reach to me directly by sending email to: jeffp@pulver.com.

Please: Principals only; I have no interest working with any agencies.

Posted by jeff at 11:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fall 2004 VON: Just Three Weeks to Go!

At just 3 weeks out, Fall 2004 VON is on track to be our largest VON to date, with a total community of 5,000 participants from across all segments of the communications and Internet industries.

What's on the agenda?

As always, we'll be looking at the 'present future' of IP Communications markets, technology and regulation. In other words, our speakers and panels are firmly focused on defining the 'what happens next', as opposed to simply repeating known fact, or truisms that have been known for some time.

Specifically though, one of the aspects of VON that we expect to be most exciting this year is the evolution of the competitive landscape - which is discussed in sessions, as well as mirrored in the attendees and speakers at the show itself.

There's everything to fight for right now. Skype, Vonage and other new entrants into the voice business are gaining market share, cable's been gaining traction with the triple play, and from the fixed corner, AT&T's CallVantage have been in the market for some months now.

Who's next to launch and what will their proposition look like? Find out at Fall VON - we expect some major announcements at the show, plus the insights from both speakers and the rest of the Conference community will give you the inside track.

Another major focus of Fall VON will be the regulatory and telecom policy developments. Right now, regulators and policy makers around the world are drawing up the distinctions that will have a dramatic impact on the future make-up of the communications industry.

At VON, both the Chairman of the FCC Michael Powell, and US Senator John Sununu will be sharing their views on IP Communications regulation and legislation. And in the pre-Conference Telecom Policy summit we've brought the Feds, the Hill and many renowned regulatory experts together to take a detailed look at what's on the horizon.

The other major theme is, of course, the technology. We've got over 200 exhibitors on the show floor, and many sessions exploring the future evolution of communications networks, be they enterprise or service provider. In particular, as VoIP moves from the labs into the marketplace, we'll be looking at the implementation and operational management issues with converged voice/data networks (OSS, Security, Network Management and so forth).

In sum, at VON the industry talks business - and technology - at a strategic level.

Don't miss out on the industry event for VoIP! Take the temperature of the industry, get up to speed with the latest developments, get a realistic, unbiased vision into the present future of communications markets, and network with peers in this vibrant dealspace.

Please note, the Conference is expected to sell out in the next couple of weeks, and the hotel availability on the ground in Boston is already very tight. In other words, if you're planning to register, please do so and make your travel plans as soon as possible.

Posted by jeff at 07:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Another Recap of the CRTC VoIP Hearings

From Today's Toronto Star: A eureka moment at the CRTC.

One reporter's accounting of listening to the CRTC's VoIP Hearing Webcast.

Posted by jeff at 07:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The pulver 100 of 2004

The 2004 “pulver 100” identifies who we at pulver.com believe to be the top privately held growth companies in the worldwide communications sector.

2004 has been the year of VoIP – and the companies named in the pulver 100 have made significant contributions, by helping to spread IP communications worldwide with little or no dependence on traditional telephone network, equipment, or service providers. This year’s pulver 100 represents the future of the communications ecosystem, and we’re proud to honor them.

Each company named to the pulver 100 will be honored during the opening reception at Fall VON 2004.

First introduced in 2002, the pulver 100 features private companies in the communications sector that have substantial real-world deployments and enjoy significant growth rates. The value chain characterized by the pulver 100 differs from the vertically integrated telecom model of the last century, focusing more on a networking-industry model that espouses open interfaces, connectivity decoupled from services, and software decoupled from hardware.

The companies named to the 2004 pulver 100 are: Access Line, Acme Packet, Aculab, Adax, Amtelco, Atreus Systems, Bay Packets, BlueSlice, Bridgeport Networks, Brix Networks, Broadsoft, Broadvoice, CallWave, Centile, Cicero Networks, Cinergy Communications, CITEL Technologies, Commetrex, Convedia, Diamondware, Digilinea, Digium, EADS Telecom, Ecuity Advanced Communications, eStara, Excel Switching, GrandStream, Hexago, Hotsip, i3Micro, Inclarity, Ingate, International Systems Research, Intertex, Intoto, IP Unity, Iptel.org, IPeria, IVR Technologies, Jasomi Networks, jNETx, Kagoor, locustworld, LongBoard, M5Networks, MailVision, Mediatrix, Mera Systems, Meru Networks, Metaswitch, Natural Convergence, Netcentrex, Netintact, Netrake, Neustar, NexTone Communications, Nimcat Networks, One Connect, OnRelay, Pactolus, PalTalk, Paradial, Peerio (Popular Telephony), Peoplecall, Personeta, Pingtel, PointOne, Psytechnics, Quintum Technlogies, ring2, Sansay, SentitO, SIPQuest, Skype, SkyWave, Strix Systems, Surf Communications, SWYX, Sylantro, Telchemy, TeleGea, Telio, Tellme Networks, ThinkEngine Networks, Trinity Convergence, Ubiquity Software, Unimax, VegaStream, Versatel Networks, VidiTel, Vocera, VoicePulse, VoIP Americas, Volo Communications, Vonage, Voxpath Networks, WebCall World, Webmessenger, Wildpackets, Zultys.

Posted by jeff at 12:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

10th Anniversary Party for pulver.com Set for December 14th

December, 2004 will mark the 10th anniversary of the founding of pulver.com.

This event will be celebrated with a gala black-tie event that will be taking place in New York City on Tuesday, December 14th.

Back in 1999, we held our first gala event when we celebrated the first five years of pulver.com.

Posted by jeff at 12:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 26, 2004

2004 pulver100 will be announced tomorrow

On the morning of September 27th, we will be publishing and announcing the list of one hundred private companies that made it to the 2004 edition of the pulver100.

Posted by jeff at 08:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kind Words from Alan Meckler

I just ran across Alan Meckler's blog with his references to me and the VON events in his Trade Show Irony posting.

I remember meeting Alan the first time right after 1996 Internet World in San Jose as we were both on the same United flight from San Francisco and I managed to get an upgrade from coach to business and I ended up spending 6 hours sitting next to him. :-)

I remember my father telling me that "you never know who you will get to sit next to when you fly business class" and in this case he was right. This started out just as a chance meeting and grew from there.

Alan was the one who coached me regarding the things to look out for before I produced my first event in September, 1996.

During 1996/97 I had a column in Internet World Magazine and I partnered with his company to produce a VoIP tracks at Fall 1996 Internet World in NYC and Summer 1997 Internet World in Chicago.

I find hard to believe that this took place what is now eight plus years ago.

Carpe Diem!
Seize the Day!

Posted by jeff at 07:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 24, 2004

pulver.Communicator: Going Mobile!

Now that the beta testing of pulver.Communicator for Windows XP has reached it's final phase of testing prior to the formal announcement and worldwide rollout, we have started the beta testing of a new version of pulver.Communicator for a new platform - RIM - Research in Motion.

pulver.Communicator brings the ability to traverse: AOL/Yahoo!/ICQ/MSM/FWD IM Networks to a RIM device. pulver.Communicator for RIM also supports elements of "third party call control."

By using pulver.Communicator for RIM, an FWDer can make their regular FWD phone ring and then use their RIM device to invite one (or more) people to join the call.

For someone not connected with the communications industry this is a pretty magical concept and does help to demonstrate a "personal central office" -- something I first spoke about at the Spring 99 Voice on the Net show back in Las Vegas.

At the moment we are running a very small and focused trial for FWD/RIM users. This new application will be on display and available for demonstation inside the FWD Pavilion at Fall 2004 VON.

If you are a "Power" RIM user and would like to give pulver.Communicator for RIM a test drive, please drop me a line at jeffp@pulver.com.

Versions for both WinCE and PalmOS are also under development. :-)

Posted by jeff at 07:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 23, 2004

Back in the States; Onto Fall 2004 VON!

Now that the CRTC hearings have started to become a memory, my focus and attention turns back to Fall 2004 VON...

Posted by jeff at 08:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Leaving for Home...

It turns out that the direct flights from New York City to/from Ottawa are pretty limited. So this morning I find myself up at a time when I'm usually asleep and on a 6am flight from Ottawa back to NY.

Jonathan Askin will be representing us today at the CRTC Hearing and will be making our five minutes worth of closing remarks later this morning.

When looking back at the process that got us to become engaged in the CRTC's VoIP Hearing we have no regrets and just positive thoughts from the experience. We look forward to becoming more active with the CRTC and being there to help contribute to the future growth of the Canadian VoIP Industry.

Posted by jeff at 03:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 22, 2004

My confusion over the meaning and use of the word "How"...

During the Question and Answer session at the CRTC immediately following my presentation, I was asked by the chairman of the CRTC: "...Do you know how we regulate?"

Without blinking an eye, I responded: "I heard you are reactive, not proactive."

The attending audience burst into laughter and the CRTC seems a bit red faced.

I didn't realize I said anything funny or wrong. I thought I was simply restating what I had been told from several Canadians while preparing for my appearance.

From my perspective I didn't mean anything more or less than what was said but it seems that the audience and the CRTC was expecting me to address the rules by which the CRTC regulates the telecommunications industry, and not to address how responsive or non-responsive the CRTC appears to be.

I do apologize to anyone who may have been offended by this remark.

It was truly naive on my part and nothing more.

I'm remind of the old joke: "How do you get to Harvard?" The answer is either, "Hard work in high school," or "You take a left on Mass Ave." I'm not sure exactly which question I answered. But I did not intend to be flip.

The "Save VoIP in Canada" team greatly appreciated the opportunity to present before the CRTC earlier today.

Posted by jeff at 09:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

My Testimony at the CRTC

TESTIMONY OF JEFF PULVER
BEFORE THE
CANADIAN RADIO-TELEVISION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Regarding the Regulatory Framework for
Voice Communications Services Using Internet Protocol
PN 2004-2

September 22, 2004

Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to testify today. My colleagues and I have been sitting here listening to the commenters before us, and, frankly, we are concerned that many of the entrepreneurs, innovators and Internet enthusiasts driving the communications revolution are not sufficiently represented in this proceeding. You have heard well-stated testimony from the largest, most established players in Canadian communications -- the ILECs, the CLECs, the cablecos, the wireless carriers -- but you have heard very little from the smaller start-ups, be they Canadian or foreign-based, that have been driving, and hopefully will continue to drive communications innovation. The truth is that many entrepreneurs simply do not have the time, staff and resources to participate in this proceeding or similar proceedings underway around the world. Frankly, many of these entrepreneurs and innovators might not have conceived their visions just yet, and only will do so if the CRTC and other oversight authorities establish an environment that fosters innovation and entrepreneurship. For this reason, I am grateful to the CRTC for allowing us the opportunity to speak today, not just for Free World Dialup and the other pulver.com enterprises, but also for the IP communications entrepreneurs, innovators and Internet enthusiasts around the world.

I became engaged in the nascent VoIP industry in 1995, combining my passion for community and technology and connecting my Ham Radio to the Internet to communicate with people around the world. This led me to launch Free World Dialup, the world’s first Internet-based communications network. Since then, I started the VON Coalition in 1996, to combat efforts to regulate Internet communications. I started the company that became Vonage back in 1998. And I have incubated numerous other IP communications-related enterprises over the past decade. I also run the VON Conference, the leading and longest running tradeshow for the VoIP Industry, and publish VON Magazine. I like to think that pulver.com has provided essential thought-leadership and incubator services for the emerging industry.

Free World Dialup has evolved into the world’s largest open communications network. It is based on open source and open standards. I like to think that FWD is the living greenhouse for IP communications and innovation. Since its inception, FWD has grown to more than 300,000 registered members in 187 countries, including 15,000 members in Canada, which quite possibly makes FWD the leading VoIP offering in Canada. As it’s name implies, FWD empowers its members to communicate with each other around the world for free. Free World Dialup was, in fact, the subject of the US Federal Communications Commission’s first order, and perhaps the world’s first positive regulatory statement, on IP communications. In the pulver Order, the FCC recognized Free World Dialup as an “interstate, information service” and exempted it from traditional telecommunications regulation. I am here today because I want to ensure that the entire world may avail itself of the capabilities of Free World Dialup, as well the many other evolving flavors of IP-based communications.

When I look to the future, end-to-end IP networks have the power to disrupt traditional telecommunications and to empower consumers and enterprise users of future communications services. Over the next decade, as traffic moves from legacy networks to wireless and broadband, what will be needed is fair and unfettered access to the Internet and, frankly, not much more. The advent of Open Source communications is helping to level the playing field and to put high quality communication software into the hands of communication enthusiasts.

As much as there are email and web servers on the Net today, look for communications servers to become part of the Internet experience. The deployment of such servers will empower a new generation of communicators -– people who can “talk” on the Internet without any formal billing relationship or need for a voice service provider.

The Internet is a user’s network, not a service provider’s network. It has a rich history as a result of the universities, enterprises and entrepreneurs that represent the end points that utilize the technology and not because of the service providers that transport the bitstreams. IP communications is “disruptive” communications in the most positive sense and, if allowed to evolve, will dramatically enhance the ways in which we communicate. Applications and services, be they video, music, or even voice, are now clearly severable from the telecommunications transport on which they ride. Today we are talking about VoIP, but tomorrow it is really EoIP – or Everything over IP. Services and applications can be deployed from anywhere to anywhere. Like email, “voice” will be enabled from a variety of everyday consumer devices, managed in a variety of architectures. Anyone can deploy new applications and services and no one is beholden to the “one-size-fits all” service provider model of the legacy telecommunications network. IP-based communications are capable of empowering users to control their own communications experience. I implore the service providers of today as well as the regulators to look at IP communications as more than a mere replacement or substitute for traditional telephony. And we must establish a regulatory structure that nurtures innovation and does not constrain the future with the legacy vision and rules of the past.

We, the IP-based communications pioneers, need room to innovate and experiment in a regulation-free zone for the Internet. There should be a broad hands-off approach to IP-based communications, particularly peer-to-peer IP-based communications that do not connect to the Public Switched Telephone Network. If there is regulation, it should be smart, targeted, and narrowly tailored to achieve a very precise goal that is not otherwise achievable with market solutions.

It is for these reasons that we are concerned about the approach that the CRTC might take in imposing unnecessary and debilitating regulations on the nascent, emerging IP communications industry.

It is evident that IP-based communications obliterate traditional geographic distinctions. An IP-based communications service provider could deliver services to residents in Ottawa, from a computer based in St. John’s, Newfoundland, or even from a computer in St. Johns, Virgin Islands. And, to the extent that Canada embraces IP-based communications with a favorable regulatory environment, it is far more likely that the serving computer is based in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

In fact, there is, at least technologically, nothing stopping any of the large incumbents from empowering all expat Canadians who have broadband Internet access anywhere in the world with the ability to maintain a local Canadian number where they can be reached by leveraging the global broadband Internet. Canada has a rather sizeable expat community. I think such a revolutionary offering could profoundly enhance Canadian ex pats’ bond and sense of community with their families, friends and colleagues back home in Canada.

The real trick for regulators is to establish the proper regulatory structure that will empower consumers to control their own communications experience. Regulators and other authorities should ensure that consumers genuinely have the freedom to access content; the freedom to use applications; the freedom to attach personal devices; and the freedom to obtain service plan information. Giving more than lip service to these consumer freedoms and ensuring no one may encroach on these freedoms will serve to maximize consumer choice, foster competition, and promote investment in infrastructure and Internet applications.

The issues before us today while they appear to be national issues in Canada are really global issues, which need to be addressed on a worldwide basis.

For this reason, pulver.com and many other members of the IP-based communications community are committed to promoting the public good by establishing international, industry-based solutions to the host of social issues confronting IP-based communications. To this end, pulver.com has established the Global IP Alliance, an international consortium of IP-based communications providers committed to realizing the promise of interconnecting IP-based communications. The Global IP Alliance will adopt and implement common principles designed to promote the social good.

I am pleased to report that at the Voice on the Net Canada Conference that pulver.com hosted in Toronto a few months ago, we brought members of the industry together with public safety experts to hammer out an emergency response solution -- an emergency response solution that should, because of the power of IP technology, dramatically surpass the capabilities of the PSTN solution. We intend to continue these efforts at our next VON Conference, set for Boston, MA, the third week of October. And, we’ll back in Toronto next April. Perhaps many of you will join us as we attempt to work out the other social, technological, and business issues that confront the emerging industry.

The countries that embrace the new technology and foster the growth of IP communications will simultaneously become havens for IP communications entrepreneurs and allow their residents to avail themselves of the benefits of IP communications. The countries that choose to impose unnecessary burdens on IP communications will find that they have become pariahs to the would-be entrepreneurs who will take their business, money and ideas to more inviting locations. Additionally, the residents of those backward looking governments will become disenfranchised wallflowers at the communications revolution.

We imagine a very limited role for government, and one primarily focused on consumer protection and consumer empowerment. Regulations, or at least the proper application of antitrust principles, should ensure that consumers can control their own communications experience and avail themselves of all that the Internet and IP technology afford. Under some circumstance, this logically might compel minimal antitrust or regulatory oversight over bottleneck transmission facilities. Regardless of how many potential applications exist on the Internet, there will be only a limited supply of transmission facilities available to the consumer. A controller of such a bottleneck, be it a wireline local exchange carrier, a cable company or a wireless carrier, must not be allowed to parlay its dominance over a bottleneck facility to choke a consumer’s access to the Internet or the application of his/her choice. With emerging last-mile access technologies, such as wimax and broadband over powerlines, these oversight obligations might become increasingly less necessary, but for some time to come, there will still be an opportunity for unfair market control and gamesmanship that could stifle innovation and competition.

Having said that, I think it is important that we not prejudice a company based on its DNA. The CRTC should allow incumbent telecom carriers the same latitude to offer IP-based broadband services largely free of onerous regulations. Frankly, these are the companies with the deep pockets to invest in new infrastructure and to seed innovation. The default presumption should be that regulation need not apply. If a potential monopolist demonstrates that it cannot play fair, then it should be slapped silly.

While there might need to be a limited oversight role for government to push the industry to support law enforcement objectives where market forces might otherwise not compel industry to develop its own market-based solutions, the other social goods are more readily achieved through the pure play of the competitive market. For instance, we do not believe that the CRTC needs to address quality of service for IP-based communications services.

Today, we can only glimpse a hint of the IP-based communications future. Personal and enterprise instant messaging and “presence” continue to grow and empower users. Social networking is helping to supplement business and social mixers. Open source communications is disrupting the vendor marketplace. With push-to-talk, we are rediscovering the walkie-talkie of our youth. At least mine… Wi-Fi VoIP is disrupting mobile communications. We do not yet know the full potential and promise of IP-based communications. Our children will be dreaming that up if we give them the tools and latitude to innovate and evolve the ways we communicate.

What we know at this point is that VoIP has emerged as the “killer app” and, arguably, the first great driver of broadband. It’s important to note that VoIP is still in its infancy. Apparently, only 15,000 Canadians today can be counted to subscribing to VoIP over broadband services, and many of these simply to complement and not to replace their standard POTS line. Compare that statistic with the growing number of consumers who have abandoned their wireline services for wireless alternatives, not to mention the degree to which email has cut into traditional wireline telecom revenue. On top of that, lawmakers and regulators do not consider wireless, with its millions of customers, a substitute for traditional wireline service. Based on this fact alone, it is frankly absurd to impose regulations on an industry that has barely made a dent in legacy telecom revenue streams, and will, in fact, drive new broadband revenue to builders of telecommunications networks and infrastructure. I’m forced to wonder what would have happened had the CB radio first emerged today. Would the LECs, the wireless industry and regulators attempt to stifle or control the disruptive technology simply because it had the potential to cut into traditional revenue streams by offering consumers the option for a different communications experience? Putting CBs aside, where would mobile communications be today if cellular rollout was disallowed, simply because the cellular industry did not yet have an emergency response solution?

Open IP-based communications have already enabled early adopters, carriers and enterprises to interconnect directly as peers. End users have access to numerous alternative solutions. Customers can utilize multiple providers as well as enterprise or end user systems. End users can attach a variety of hardware and software including their own “switching” from varying locations -- blurring demarcation points.

This scenario exists because, to date, IP-based communications pioneers have had the courage to test the waters, to experiment with Internet and other IP-based communications under the belief that voice is simply an application and will not be pulled into the morass of telecom regulation. Acoustic regulation is absurd! It makes no sense to think that acoustic applications are somehow qualitatively different from any other bitstream that appeals to any of the other senses except the ear, simply because of the existence of archaic voice regulations that make no sense in an IP-enabled world. Confirmation of this logic will go a long way in giving the innovators in IP-based communications the comfort to continue developing the technologies and services enabled by IP technology.

The conclusions and rules that will result from this proceeding will greatly affect the future of all IP-based communications, including the speed of deployment, consumer and enterprise adoption and ubiquity of IP-based communications. The CRTC has the opportunity to get a regulatory structure in place that will shape the future of communications, allow new technologies and services to evolve, enable both traditional telecommunications and emerging communications entities to cooperate and compete, establish the right incentives to ensure investment in and deployment of networks, infrastructure and equipment, and empower consumers to control their own communications experience. The CRTC should adhere to two core principles: (1) do not impose regulation unless absolutely necessary; and (2) ensure that no entity can leverage its market power to stifle choice and innovation.

The CRTC should certainly herein confirm that peer-to-peer, Internet communications products that do not touch the PSTN, such as pulver.com’s Free World Dialup, are not telecommunications and may proceed unfettered by unnecessary government intrusion.

We do not know the future’s requirements. IP-based communications can change the way we work and live. It has the potential to redefine communications as we know it today. In order to realize this potential, it is essential for the CRTC to lead the way and ensure that governmental bodies around the world do no harm and ensure the growth and viability of IP-based communications.

Thank you for your time and consideration. We would be happy to answer your questions.

Posted by jeff at 05:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Back to the Future: AT&T Announces (Again) their own VoIP Interop Lab (sort of)

At Spring 2004 VON I remember saying it felt a lot like 1999 based on the buzz and feel of that event. The recent wave of VoIP funding announcements has reinforced this. And the very recent trend of “VoIP Company Acquisition of the Day” announcements has helped just drive this point home.

Several years ago, back during the first wave of VoIP mania, AT&T announced (for the first time) their intentions on building an industry focused voip driven interop lap where they could test products around their own specs and standards. This was back around the time after pulver.com had announced and launched our “Open Test Network” which at least on paper was trying to achieve very similar goals.

This time around, AT&T is once again leveraging their position in the VoIP space to get vendors to compete and build products based on their internal specifications and “AT&T's proprietary Specifications.” Sounds like a great way to leverage a brand and help marginalize their internal discussions/ negotiations with some of their targeted equipment vendors along the way.

Hidden in plain sight of this announcement is AT&T’s statement that they are in fact in production with technologies which represent AT&T proprietary Specifications rather than industry standards. Looks like the detente in the late 1990’s VoIP protocol wars may be broken.

Posted by jeff at 06:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Special Thanks to David Cuddy and the Ottawa VoIP Cluster

Last night, David Cuddy, CTO of Natural Convergence produced and hosted a semi-regular meeting of the Ottawa VoIP Cluster.

I was given the honor of being their guest speaker and it was a great opportunity to catch up with so many people from Ottawa who were involved in the VoIP industry.

Special thanks to David and the rest of the Natural Convergence team for their hospitality and generosity of their time to help foster VoIP community development within Ottawa.

Posted by jeff at 01:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ready to Testify at the CRTC...

Yesterday's CRTC VoIP Hearing represented a "Who's Who" with regard to the players in the Canadian Telecom space, at least from the VoIP perspective.

And speaking about perspectives, there were quite a few different viewpoints shared during the course of the day.

It was great to be in the same room with many familiar faces from our past VON events.

While there were a few times during the day during the Q&A part of the various company's testimonies where I felt like jumping up and screaming "BullSh*T!" from the back of the room, I restrained myself and spent the time reviewing my oral testimony which hopefully will get presented on Wednesday.

The Canadian VoIP industry is at a regulatory crossroads and it is critically important for the future of VoIP in Canada for the CRTC to get it right the first time.

Posted by jeff at 12:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 21, 2004

From Gatineau With Love

This morning the pulver.com “Save VoIP in Canada” team is in Gatineau, Quebec to attend and be part of the CRTC’s historic VoIP Hearings. We have been preparing for this event during the past few months and spent a part of the summer responding to the numerous amount of interrogatories as part of this process. We are scheduled to be number twenty of thirty-three scheduled presenters but the chance remains that we may end up presenting today, just in case some people traded places in their scheduled appearance.

Unlike my prior testimony at the FCC and at the US Senate where remarks were limited to be 5-7 minutes, each presenter at the CRTC hearing will be given a full 20 minutes to talk and then will be engaged by members of the CRTC in a question and answer period. For us, this has translated into 19 pages of written testimony.

What I find interesting and worrisome is that to date the telecom reporters covering the state of VoIP in Canada by in large did not have any issue with the CRTC’s initial finding with regard to the treatment of VoIP in Canada. Here in Canada the mindset seems to be that it is ok to treat an incumbent service provider one way when offering voice over broadband services in their local service area and another way when offering services in their competitor’s territories.

If it is true that there are only around 15,000 people in Canada today paying for voice over broadband services, then the 15,000 Canadian members of Free World Dialup represent something of a significant amount of users on a relative basis. What I don’t see is how or why a user population of 15,000 should be getting so much attention at a time when the real threat to the future of the public switched telephone network in Canada and around the world is the success of wireless and accelerating trends observed during the past four years known as “Landline Replacement.” In the past four years in the States 28 million access lines were turned off, not to be replaced.

In the States, at a time when there are over 160 million cell phone numbers in use, Cellular is still not regulated as a “replacement” to traditional wireline services. And in the States there are over 8 million homes which have converted to being only powered by Cellular. So why should the people providing the 600,000 or so people who subscribe for voice over broadband services in the States be worried about being regulated like a telco? In the Canadian subset of the global IP Communications marketplace, now is not the time to regulate but rather the time to put positive policies in place to ensure the growth of IP Communications and put in place a policy that encourages growth and investment by those companies best positioned to make such investments.

Posted by jeff at 06:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 20, 2004

Leaving for Ottawa...

After months of anticipation, the CRTC's VoIP Hearing will be commencing tomorrow morning.

The pulver.com "Save the VoIP Future in Canada Team" includes: Carl Ford, Jonathan Askin, Glenn Richards (ShawPittman) and myself.

I am looking forward to a lively positive debate with regard to communications policy and an opportunity to share an outsider's perspective with the CRTC.

Posted by jeff at 07:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

VoIP Acquisition of the Day: Tekelec picks up VocalData!

While September, 2004 will be known for the hurricanes which affected the Caribbean, Florida and other parts of the United States, September 2004 will also be known as the time when the first major waves of VoIP acquisitions started again.

This is a repeat of the acquisition mania that affected the VoIP space back in 1998/99.

Picking up after Alcatel's purchase of eDial last week comes the VoIP acquisition of the day -- this time it was Tekelec's acquiring of VocalData.
This is just another sign of how strong the VoIP industry is becoming and if history is any indication, a foreshadowing of a combination of mergers, acquisitions, funding announcements and IPO fillings that we will continue to see for the foreseeable future.

Posted by jeff at 07:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Quantum Leap: Back to Quantum Leap...

Years ago, there was a time when I made it a point that if I were to watch only one series on TV it would be Quantum Leap.

One of the better birthday presents I recently received was: Quantum Leap - The Complete First Season. I spent a portion of yesterday watching the DVDs and getting back in touch with Sam Beckett and Al.

I enjoyed the DVD interviews with the actors and creator of the show...and for me it was like a Quantum Leap back to the early 1980s, back to a time which was so much different than today.

Posted by jeff at 07:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

FWD is amongst the leaders in the Canadian VoIP Marketplace

According to last week's National Post VoIP story, there are about 15,000 people in Canada who pay for voice over broadband services across multiple providers.

Looking at the Free World Dialup user demographics, there are about 15,000 people in Canada who have a Free World Dialup account.

As far as I can tell, this stat should add some level of additional significance to the 20 minutes of testimony that I will be giving at the CRTC later this week during their VoIP hearing.

Posted by jeff at 12:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 19, 2004

Om and Andy discover Dan Berninger

Dan Berninger is starting to finally get "discovered" by some of the Net Digitari.

It was bound to happen. I've known Dan since 1995 and worked with him in the early days of the VON Coalition, while he was at VocalTec, in the pre-Vonage days at Min-X, WHP Wireless, Free World Dialup and during the time while he was at pulver.com.

While he is already infamous in some Washington D.C. circles for his antitrust activities, people like Om Malik and Andy Abramson are starting to give Dan his due.

Posted by jeff at 10:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Sunday Star-Ledger Story on VoIP Regulation

NJ Star Ledger: Net calls put regulators in a quandary

The end quote from this story brings to my mind the caption: 'Alex - I'll take What ever happened to VoIP? for $500 please'

---

from: Star Ledger: Net calls put regulators in a quandary

…Pulver, for one, is confident the government watchdogs will figure out how to protect the market without hurting it.

"The people in D.C. have a keen sense of what's at stake, and they are destined to get it right." he said.

---

Like most interviews, this was a quote taken out of context. What I was referring to was Michael Powell's FCC and the work they are doing in the VoIP space to secure our future.

But this quote should not be taken out of context. In reality this is not a time to become complacent. Just the opposite! Now is the time to be engaged, stay engaged and communicate directly with those who will be setting our regulatory future. There is just too much at stake to risk getting this wrong.

In many ways this is why I've committed the time to travel to Canada and be a part of the CRTC's VoIP Hearings Sept 21-23rd. I've also committed the resources to contribute content to other VoIP regulatory proceedings around the world.

Those interested in the worldwide state of VoIP regulation are invited to learn more about the Global IP Alliance at their website - www.ipall.org.

Posted by jeff at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

LibreTel's Global PortofCall has Launched!

LibreTel has just soft launched the (beta) version of Global PortofCall.

Global PortofCall offers the ability to call to route a LibreTel PortofCall virtual number to any landline telephone number in 30+ countries around the world.

At the moment, PortofCall virtual numbers are available from the following international rate centers:

England: Birmingham / London / Manchester
Israel: Jerusalem
Northern Ireland: Belfast
Scotland: Edinburgh / Glasgow
USA (East Cost) - DC, CT, FL, GA, MA, MD, NJ, NY, VA
Wales: Cardiff

The monthly fees associated with this service are based on expected inbound minutes volume. The basic fee of US$ 24.95 a month covers up to 500 inbound minutes a month to quite a few worldwide destinations including: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom and USA.

What this means is that now for only US$ 24.95 a month, it is possible to maintain a "virtual presence" in 30+ countries around the world.

Posted by jeff at 12:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 18, 2004

VoIP in Canada: New Tech Threat to Telcos

The pending VoIP hearings at the CRTC have been getting a lot of coverage in the Canadian press. I'm told that the actual hearing will be broadcast nationally across Canada starting on Tuesday on the Canadian equivalent of C-SPAN.

I will be amongst the people who will be testifying and one of the only non-Canadians.

After being interviewed by Kevin Restivo from the National Post earlier this week, I've have been waiting for him to publish this story.

"Jeff Pulver, the founder of a free VoIP service called Free World Dialup, says the regulator should make Rogers, Bell or other operator give unfettered access to Internet telephony players that want to send voice traffic over their networks."

Posted by jeff at 08:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 17, 2004

Alcatel sips up eDial

Earlier today it was announced that Alcatel acquired eDial for US$ 27 million.

Given that Free World Dialup is one of eDial's largest customers, it will be interesting to watch what happens to eDial now that it has been Aclatel'ed.

Posted by jeff at 02:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Covad’s Bizzaro TV Ad for VoIPTheMovie.com

On Wednesday night, in the time spot right before the start of the local 11pm NBC news, I watched on TV a faux movie ad for what was advertised as “VoIPTheMovie.com.” Last night, right after The Apprentice ended, another ad for “VoIPTheMovie.com” appeared. At a real fast glance it seemed as if it was a real movie ad for some kind of murder mystery movie.

While the AT&T VoIP ad which aired during the Olympics helped educate the general public about a new enabling technology known as VoIP, the TV ad from Covad does nothing of the same and it seems the goal of their ad is to get someone interested enough to enter “voipthemovie.com” into their web browser, assuming they have a computer near their bed.

Compared to the AT&T approach, this feels as if the entire concept ad was conceived of by Bizzaro. (An imperfect duplicate.)

I wonder what Madison Avenue has in store for us next…

Posted by jeff at 08:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 16, 2004

pulver.com Consumer VoIP Summit @ 2005 CES

pulver.com and the Consumer Electronics Association have recently entered into a strategic relationship, the result of which is that we will now be producing our own "Consumer VoIP Summit" on January 5th, 2005 in Las Vegas the day before the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show opens.

This one day summit will be taking a look at the state of Consumer VoIP from various perspectives. We will also be hosting a pulver.com TechZone on the CES Show floor.

Our summit is just one of the many content alternatives announced yesterday by CES.

During the past few years pulver.com has worked on developing strategic relationships with a variety of trade associations and in 2005 evidence of these relationships will be visable with the co-located events we will be producing at: 2005 CES , PTC '05 and Supercomm 05.

Posted by jeff at 09:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Cisco and Skype: Strategic Speculation

I just read a story on TheStreet.com which said that a senior Cisco executive, Mike Volpi, has joined the board of Skype.

Now things are starting to get...shall we say...interesting?

Cisco, the company that has yet to meet a protocol that it doesn't like may very well be working with Skype to implement their non-standard firewall piercing technology into their family of routers and other edge devices. This would be a move that would keep Skype technology proprietary and give both them and Cisco the edge in delivering real-time communication services in what would otherwise be hostile working enviornments.

To be continued...

Posted by jeff at 08:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

September 15, 2004

Jim Crowe Keynote Added to Fall 2004 VON

Jim Crowe, CEO of Level 3 will be giving a lunchtime keynote at the Fall 2004 VON Conference & Expo on Wednesday, October 20th.

I'm looking to hearing the Nucleus of the VoIP Enzyme speak.

Posted by jeff at 08:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Senator Hollings' Opus

On Monday night I was one of the six hundred guests at the Senator Hollings Gala Farewell Dinner.

It was an honor to attend the event and to be in the audience as friends of Senator Fritz Hollings honored him.

While I'm told such dinners are common in Washington, D.C., last night's event was very special and each time each guest spoke, one grew fonder by the moment for the great accomplishments of Senator Hollings. Each speaker, from Jack Valenti to Senator Stevens, Senator Daschle and Senator Inouye shared perspectives and personal stories about Senator Hollings. Others shared their memories in a video tribute which was played midway into the event. For me it was the speech by Senator Inouye which stood out in my mind. His talk was passionate and moving and left a very strong impression amongst all those friends of Fritz Hollings that were in attendance. And there were many, including 31 Senators.

The event raised 2 Million dollars for the Hollings Cancer Center in South Carolina.

Below are some images from the event

---

Kelsi Reeves and Jonathan Askin

Jack Valenti
Senator Stevens

Senator Daschle
Senator Inouye
Senator Hollings


Senator Hollings
Jack and Jeff

Posted by jeff at 12:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 14, 2004

"Wireless is not a Regulatory Substitute"

New Flash from FERUP - "Wireless is not a Regulatory Substitute."

This morning during the first session at FERUP, it was announced that there were 160 million cell phone numbers in use in the United States. Yet, in the United State, from a regulatory perspective, Wireless is not a substitute for landline services.

So why should the regulatory world be up in arms and focusing on the VoIP industry in the USA at a time when there are only 500,000 people paying for voice over broadband services?

Posted by jeff at 01:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Cisco should have acquired dynamicsoft back in 2000

Yesterday it was announced that Cisco has agreed to buy dynamicsoft for more then $50 million dollars. This is a deal that I would have liked to have seen happen back in 2000, at a time when the company wasn't run by their VCs, when their investors were not watered down, and back when the company still had the soul of its founders with them. This deal was simply a liquidity event for the VCs who came into dynamicsoft late in the game and helped turn around the company.

Back in 2000 Cisco was watching and looking at dynamicsoft before their acquisition of Vovida Networks. Some thought at the time their Vovida acquisition, part of the purpose was to slow down the progress of dynamicsoft. Glad to see things sort of worked out in the end.

Being one of the people who contributed to the initial seed capital for dynamicsoft, yesterday's news was a "validation" event for me.

During the past couple of years to the credit of their "professional management" there was a complete turn around and dynamicsoft closed a few very large deals within the wireless carrier community.

To co-founders Dennis Specht and Jim Nelson...congrats!

Posted by jeff at 06:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 13, 2004

Monday Morning VoIP Buzz

Recent stories in the business and consumer press have continued to help increase the worldwide VoIP Buzz.

At the moment, Google shows: 5,680,000 web hits and 3,110 News hits on the term VoIP.

This represents an incremental increase of 600,000 web hits since I last checked on August 2nd.

Posted by jeff at 05:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Look for Fall VON Ad in Tuesday NYT

Another sign that VoIP has gone mainstream...both the New York Times and the Boston Globe are media sponsors of Fall 2004 VON Conference & Expo!

Our first newspaper ads will be running in the NY Times and Boston Globe on Tuesday.

The pulver.com VON team is currently working on putting the finishing touches on a special VoIP Supplement which will be published on October 4th by both the NY Times and Boston Globe in support of Fall 2004 VON.

I'm looking forward to the publication of this special VoIP supplement.

Posted by jeff at 12:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 12, 2004

Talking Baseball: NY Mets: One for September

So far, the New York Mets have won only one game in the month of September. This makes being a Mets fan real hard.

Looks like the Mets are a lock for the worst record in the National League East and at the rate they are going, they are strong in the running for one of the worst records in the National League.

The Mets as a team have just quit cold. It has been a long time since I've seen the Mets play such bad baseball. It is time for the Mets to clean house, find a new manager and while they are at it, a new team. Hopefully: Al Leiter, Mike Piazza and the rest of the crew will be playing baseball next year wearing the uniform of a different team.

The Mets also need to clean house in their front office.

At this point the best I can do is reach out and root for the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox. My hope is that the Red Sox win the AL East and that the Cubs keep with their winning ways and win the NL Wild card race.

Posted by jeff at 11:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Getting ready for FERUP...

Tomorrow afternoon I'm flying down to Washington, D.C. to attend a gala event in honor of Senator Friz Hollings tomorrow night. On Tuesday I will be one of the speakers in the morning session at FERUP.

I applaud the efforts of Commissioners Chuck Davidson and Susan Kennedy for pulling together the first annual FERUP event. They have a great speaker lineup. I'm looking forward to contributing to their conference.

Posted by jeff at 04:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The Commitments - Live from the Stephen Talkhouse

Last night I caught up with The Commitments at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett, NY.

Their show was almost as much fun as we had with them in London back in June.

I especially enjoyed their Mustang Sally last night.

Posted by jeff at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

And now there is VoIP news in Bhutan!

This morning during my daily google of VoIP news I caught a story about VoIP that was published in Bhutan.

2004 really is the year that awareness of VoIP has "made it" around the world!

Posted by jeff at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 11, 2004

Vonage: Behind the Music – Part I

The story (subscription is required.) about Vonage and Jeffrey Citron in the September 20th issue of Fortune Magazine makes for an interesting read.

Stephanie Mehta spent quite a bit of time interviewing people for this story, including myself. It was great to see VON defined as “Voice on the Net” in the story. I would have liked it better if she would have included my reference to the VON Events and mentioned that I invented the term: “VON” back in 1995.

One piece of the story that was left on the editing room floor took place during the spring of 2000 while I was raising money for Min-X, “The Minutes Exchange.” Back then I had started positioning Min-X as the ECN (Electronic Clearing Network) for Telecom and when looking for investors, it was Dan Berninger who thought of reaching out to Jeffrey Citron and it was Dan who made the initial contact. Dan made the connection given Jeffrey’s background and connection to the origins of the ECN Equities marketplace. It would have been nice to see attribution given to Dan. In 2001 Min-X.com morphed into what is now known as Vonage

Back in 1997 it was Dan Berninger while working at VocalTec who was one of the people who came up with the idea for ITXC and who was the one who reached out to Tom Evslin, while at AT&T to help lead ITXC.

One day I hope Dan will get the recognition he deserves for indirectly contributing to the success of both ITXC and Vonage.

Posted by jeff at 03:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Ian Pulver is in the News Again...

My cousin Ian from Toronto has been the Associate Counsel of the NHL Players' Association for quite some time.

Ian has been in the news a lot this past week given that the NHL shuns union's latest offer.

For the sake of hockey, my hope is that everyone involved will figure out a way to work out their differences and avoid a lockout.

Posted by jeff at 09:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 10, 2004

pulver.Communicator: What I did during my Summer Vacation

A good part of my summer of 2004 was spent focusing on the upcoming release of pulver.Communicator and being very much involved in the process. It has been an interesting summer.

If you are not familar with this application, pulver.Communicator is one of the first applications that can showcase the power of IP Communications and leverage elements of: Instant Messaging, VoIP, Presence and Social Networking.

Since mid-July, pulver.Communicator has been in the hands of interested third parties who for the most part have been quite vocal with the feedback regarding pulver.Communicator. We appreciate such feedback. :-)

We are currently gearing up in both scale and size for the worldwide release of pulver.Communicator which be taking place later in the month.

pulver.Communicator will be featured in the FWD Pavilion at the Fall 2004 VON Conference & Expo.

Posted by jeff at 07:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

September 09, 2004

Mets FINALLY Win a Game!

Earlier today the New York Mets broke their 11 game losing streak and actually won a game for the first time since August 29th!.

For the record they won 4-0.

Hopefully the people who wear the NY Mets uniform for the rest of the season will learn how to win again and will engage themselves as "stoppers" and not just be an easy win for those teams still competing in the various pennant races.

One can only hope...

Posted by jeff at 07:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Virtual Phone Numbers – Not Just for Broadband Anymore!

A few weeks ago, LibreTel launched their PortofCall service which now empowers anyone who has a broadband IP phone, anywhere in the world, to be able to buy a telephone number from various cities around the world and have a virtual phone number be mapped to it. It turns out that this is a great service for the global Expat community. With PortofCall, the customer pays a
minimal monthly service fee, ranging from US$6 to US$12, depending on the
customer's choice of country-specific local number.

For example, an Expat from England living in Hong Kong can now give his friends/family a local London number to call and the Expat is able to answer it from his Hong Kong apartment. Software developers in Estonia who wish to have a Stateside “presence” now are able to give out a 212 number for their customers to call. While the service has been operational for only a few weeks, the response has been pretty tremendous and as a result the range of destinations LibreTel can offer continues to grow.

While I strongly believed in this concept, I realized earlier this year (when I was trying to raise money for LibreTel) that the market size for PortofCall would be limited to those people living in the broadband world who are also early adopters in the broadband communications space.

So…

In a few days (or sooner), LibreTel will start offering the (Beta) version of Global PortofCall. With Global PortofCall, gone is the requirement that the person purchasing the virtual number own a broadband IP phone. Instead, Global PortofCall will offer the ability to call to route a virtual number to just about any telephone number in the world (or so it seems.) The monthly fees associated with this service are based on expected inbound minutes volume. The basic fee of US$ 24.95 a month covers up to 500 inbound minutes a month to quite a few worldwide destinations.

Congratulations to the LibreTel team for being able to take a vision, turn it into a prototype and turn that prototype into a business.

Disruption in the Communications Industry Continues…

Posted by jeff at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 08, 2004

The Buzz for Fall 2004 VON is Growing...

Based on where we ended up last Friday at the end of our "Early Bird" registration period for Fall 2004 VON, we are on track to seat one of our biggest VON Conferences in recent memory.

To date we are expecting delegates from 28 countries and over 600 different companies. A snapshot of the attending delegate database is representative of the entire IP Communications Industry food chain.

Our numbers are in line with what we used to experience back in the VoIP Glory Days of 1999/2000 and VoIP will be the Buzz of Boston when we come to town the week of October 17th.

Posted by jeff at 12:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

pulver 100 for 2004 - Finalized!

During this week, members of the pulver 100 class of 2004 are being notified of their selection. The process took a lot longer than in past years as we continue to expand the scope of companies which we consider for this award.

During the past twelve months there were a number of members of past pulver 100 classes which had been acquired and/or were party to a reverse IPO and became disqualified for consideration.

The pulver 100 currently only considers the top private (not public) companies in the IP Communications space.

The pulver 100 for 2004 will be formally announced in less than two weeks and the awards will be presented in Boston at Fall 2004 VON.

Posted by jeff at 08:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 07, 2004

Back to School (and Work)

Today marks the start of the school season on Long Island and is just another reminder to me that the "Summer is Over..."

Dylan and Jake are starting 5th Grade today and it felt just like yesterday when it was their first day of kindergarten. These past few years have been amazing and I have them to thank for my recent new found obsession regarding delivering IP Communication applications for the soon to be released Sony PSP and Ninetendo DS.

I've been trying to get my kids excited about FM Radio DXing and Ham Radio but so far there isn't been much excitement or interest...but I still hold out hope that another pulver(.com) generation will be as fascinated with emerging communication technologies as I have been.

Posted by jeff at 08:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Forbes: VoIP's Point Man

David Ewalt's story regarding VoIP and FCC Chairman Powell.

...with some strong supporting quotes from myself and David Passmore.

Posted by jeff at 07:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 06, 2004

Time for North America to Start Experimenting with Broadband Telephone Numbers

This morning Reuters is reporting that Ofcom has stated establish the code "056" for non-geographic UK Broadband telephone numbers. This follows the recent announcement of a similar assignment, the area code "050" for non-geographic Japanese Broadband telephone numbers.

It was real interesting to see Ofcom take this action. I'm wondering what country will be next in the delivery of a non-geographic VoIP broadband telephone numbers.

From a North American perspective, I would like to see some of the service providers representing the countries inside of country code 1 to get together and for "experimental" purposes only, request the reuse of the "500" area code (or something similar).

If there is enough interest from the North American service provider community, I'd like to believe that the respective government authorities would be open to such experimentation, and in some cases would in fact encourage it.

The Global IP Alliance is available to help drive such an effort. If you know of someone who would be interested in this "thought experiment", please contact Jonathan Askin.

Posted by jeff at 07:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Happy Birthday to SER!: Celebrating Open Source SIP Communication

Three years ago when the open source work on SER at iptel.org was just getting started, there were a number of IP Communication Industry start-ups focused on selling high-end commercial SIP proxies (and related technologies) at the high-end prices their target legacy customers had grew accustomed to paying. (Or maybe it was just their VCs who were focused on keeping the legacy price models alive.)

While in 2004 there are still a few companies still trying to charge what seems to be millions of dollars for software that is now, thanks to SER, available for free, the communications software space has been disrupted.

The advent of the success of SER has had a profound effect on the future of the IP Communications industry that will be felt in the years ahead. Even though the base software is free, don’t hold that against SER since it is rock solid and a highly scalable solution. As it was pointed out at our 2004 IP Communications Industry Executive Summit in Sophia Antipolis, France, what matters are the “Commercial Grade Invoices” that come with a SER implementation from the perspective of a Systems Integrator.

There are quite a number of service providers from around the world who have been rolling out their VoIP service offerings based on SER. Free World Dialup switched over to SER in June of 2003 and hasn’t looked back since. Given our extensive SER experience, there have been times when we have leveraged it and offered our own services as a systems consultant / integrator thru the arm of pulver.com Consulting.

Everyone around the world who has over the years contributed to SER should be proud of the work they have done. Congratulations to Jiri Kuthan for being able execute on his vision.

I look forward to watching SER evolve in the years ahead.

Posted by jeff at 01:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Summer of 2004: Roscoe @ 6+ Months

Roscoe "the puppy" is growing up!

It has been awhile since I took pictures of Roscoe. In just a few short months, Roscoe is just about fully grown.

Posted by jeff at 12:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 05, 2004

Images from Aspen: August 2004

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An evening at the Snowmass Rodeo
Jonathan does his SMS from the Rodeo...

Posted by jeff at 09:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

NY Times Love Letter to Skype

NY Times: In Internet Calling, Skype Is Living Up to the Hype.

"An online love letter from the New York Times to Skype, appearing in today's
edition..."

Posted by jeff at 09:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Another Lost Summer: RIP: 2004 NY Mets

Ever since the 2000 World Series between the NY Mets and NY Yankees, I’ve been a NY Mets season ticket holder. Frankly, based on what I paid for tickets to games 3,4 and 5 of that 2000 World Series, it was cheaper in 2001 to own 4 seats for an entire season. ;-)

This year there was a point right around the All-Star break where the Mets season’s prospects looked nothing but great but then something happened, as something almost always happens, and at the moment the Mets are in a complete free-fall and in the middle of a losing streak that is already at eight games with no end in sight and their 2004 baseball season is long gone.

Being more than 20 games out of first place, the Mets have to be thankful that their record will not carry into Spring training next year...instead just lingering memories of another failed season

Hopefully the Mets will get wise this off-season and dump Mike Piazza to an AL team where he can flourish as the DH and where the Mets can get at least one player who will do better with them than the team they left.

While the Mets have been losing, one team that has never given up winning are the Boston Red Sox. While they lost last night, they just had an amazing run with a ten game winning streak. At the moment they are only 2 ½ games out of first place in the AL East and if I were the Yankees I would be running scared and looking behind my back. The Red Sox have a 3 ½ game lead in the AL wildcard race and it looks as if they more than any other team in the AL East deserves to be playing October baseball.

On the NL side, the Chicago Cubs have a slim lead in the NL Wildcard race and my hopes remain that they discover their winning ways and pull together a streak that helps them stand out in September so that they too can join the October baseball club.

While 2003 may have been the year of the hype surrounding the possibilities of a Chicago Cubs / Boston Red Sox World Series, my hope is that this becomes a reality in 2004.

Nothing is Impossible!

Let’s go Cubs!
Let’s go Red Sox!

Posted by jeff at 08:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

September 04, 2004

FERUP's 1st DC Summit - September 14, 2004

While I was at the recent 2004 Aspen Summit, I was invited to be part of the FERUP Summit.

FERUP stands for: the "Federation for Economically Rational Utility Policy."

FERUP is: "a bi-partisan coalition of state public utility regulators who favor a market-oriented, consumer-focused approach to advanced communications and other regulatory policies. FERUP supports policies that encourage market dynamism and consumer empowerment, while recognizing the difficulties of transitioning from regulated monopoly to competitive markets. At the same time, we believe that markets need strong regulatory curbs on fraud and abuse. We work to remove those regulations that serve only to preserve the jurisdiction of regulators, without providing real benefit to the economy and to consumers."

FERUP's 1st ANNUAL D.C. SUMMIT, taking place on September 14th, at the Willard Intercontinental in Washington, D.C. The Summit will bring together "...state and federal regulators, industry, Wall Street analysts, and consumer and public policy experts to dialogue on the development of economically rational policies for the communications sector."

The speaker lineup so far looks great. I'm with some very distinguished company.

SPECIAL KEYNOTE ADDRESSES:

- FCC Chairman Michael Powell
- FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein
- BellSouth Chairman & CEO Duane Ackerman
- Cingular Chairman & CEO Stan Sigman
- SBC Chairman & CEO Ed Whitacre
- and me.

I'm looking forward to attending and participating at this event and spending time in Washington, DC.

Posted by jeff at 09:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

.tel REALLY IS .dead

The other day I received the official email from ICANN regarding my recent sTLD application for .tel.

The email reinforced an "update" I received at the end of July, which at that time said .tel was more or less .dead.

It turns out that even if I had spent months preparing this application ICANN still would have said "no" because they see ".tel" creating conflict with "e164.arpa."

After carefully reading the ICANN response, it felt pretty consistent to what I would have expected if I applied for early admissions to ICANN University. ;-)

Oh well.

At least there are other ways to approach widespread adoption of public ENUM without the use of a new sTLD.

Posted by jeff at 09:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 03, 2004

Reminder: "Eary Bird" Registration Ends Today for Fall 2004 VON

"Early Bird" registration for our Fall 2004 VON Conference and Expo, taking place Oct 17-21 in Boston, which is the trade show for the international VoIP Industry ends today.

Just a reminder...

Posted by jeff at 08:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Poker, VoIP, and Celebrity Spotting

For the first time ever, three of my own personal interests: Poker, VoIP, and Celebrity Spotting will come together for one day only. (I'm also still looking for a way to include Rock'n'Roll...)

To help kick off Fall 2004 VON in Boston, on Oct. 17, I am proud to announce that pulver.com will be hosting a Charity Poker Tournament to benefit diabetes research. We expect many telecom and political luminaries as well as other renowned celebrities committed to helping to find a cure for diabetes. My friend Phil Hellmuth, perhaps the finest tournament poker player in the world and, undoubtedly, one of poker's most illustrious and colorful personalities, has agreed to serve as Master of Ceremonies. Phil will also be available for heads-up play (with his winnings also going to diabetes research), giving anyone bragging rights (and a video) to say that they played head-to-head against the best player in the world.

You may register and get the details at the event website. Your donation/buy-in is tax-deductible and will contribute to helping to find the cure for diabetes. It should be a great way to mix and mingle with others in the VON community and, in the process, help a worthy cause and, perhaps, claim the honor of winning the first VON Charity Poker Tournament.

Posted by jeff at 08:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 02, 2004

Looking for 2004 Consumer VoIP Ads from Around the World

I’ve just started working on my speech for Fall 2004 VON and one of the themes I would like to underscore is how much in 2004, VoIP Continues to Happen Around the World.

To help drive home this point, I am trying to put together a montage of consumer VoIP ads in multiple languages from around the world. For starters, I’m looking for: TV, Radio and Magazine advertisements for VoIP services from outside the United States. Any pointers to such ads would be greatly appreciated. If you have information regarding international VoIP ads that you can share, please feel free to drop me a line at: jeffp@pulver.com.

Posted by jeff at 08:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

September 01, 2004

@ jetBlue Terminal 9 in Oakland

Once again I find myself at what has now become a familar spot, sitting at a table inside the "Deli Express" section at the Oakland Airport sitting oppposite Terminal 9 waiting to board jetBlue flight 82 for JFK.

I'm starting to get used to living the jetBlue lifestyle and being able to fly a team across the coast at a moments notice. For what it cost for five of us to fly roundtrip from New York to Oakand, this is still less than what one full fare ticket on United or Delta used to cost.

jetBlue is helping to redefine the way some of us look toward domestic business travel.

Posted by jeff at 05:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

An evening with Phil Hellmuth Jr.

Yesterday afternoon after I arrived in Oakland, CA I sent an email to a friend of mine, Phil Hellmuth to see if he was on the same continent as I was on at the same time. Turns out that yesterday he was and I ended up catching up with Phil and spent a few hours with him in Silicon Valley.

I first met Phil at Fall 98 VON in Washington DC when he was enroute to a poker event in Atlantic City, NJ. Phil was the first person to give a keynote at our VON events when he spoke during lunch at Spring 99 VON at the Rio in Las Vegas.

Phil won the World Series of Poker back in 1989 and was the youngest person to ever win the title at the time. In the years since the movie Rounders came out, thanks to the World Series of Poker coverage on ESPN, members of the professional poker community have started to be treated more and more as sports celebrities. Back in 1999 I helped get Phil started with his website and we explored the early days and possibilities of on-line poker. These days there are times Phil can be found at Ultimate Bet. Phil helped give me a hands-on demo of this website when we were visiting in his home.

It has been a good 2-3 years since I’ve seen Phil and it was great to get together with him last night. These days Phil is a celebrity and a household name amongst anyone who plays Texas Hold’em. The manager of the Cheesecake factory in Palo Alto seemed to enjoy the fact that Phil and his pulver.com entourage had dinner there last night.

It was real interesting learning about all of the endorsement deals that he has recently done and those which are pending to be announced. At the time we were having dinner, someone on ESPN.com posted Phil's personal cell phone number and it was interesting watching the callerIDs from people all around the US who were trying to reach Phil last night.

Phil and I will be co-hosting the Charity Poker event that will be taking place at Fall 2004 VON on Sunday, October 17th and providing a Texas Hold’m tutorial prior to the commencement of the event. More details regarding this event will be available from both the VON.com and pulver.com websites in the very near future.

Posted by jeff at 09:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)