February 20, 2008 - France Telecom leads team to fight Microsoft

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February 20, 2008 Sign up Forward Archive Advertise Read more at SmartBrief.com News for telecom industry leaders Search recent stories:       News of the Day    France Telecom leads team to fight Microsoft A trio of France's top telecom companies, led by France Telecom, has formed a joint venture to take on Microsoft's Mediaroom IPTV software. Sagem Communications and Thomson are the other players in the joint venture, dubbed Soft at Home, which will try to improve communications between electronic equipment such as TV sets, set-top boxes, phones and others. Reuters (2/20) , Forbes/AFX News Limited/Thomson Financial (2/20) Integrated Technologies - Global Solutions (ITGS), a division of Volt Telecom Group, is your single-source solution for Data, Security and Voice Systems. Providing the full spectrum of design, engineering, installation and maintenance for data, security, voice and video infrastructure, ITGS is your expert for ALL of your technology needs. Contact us today for a FREE project estimate: salesinfo@volt-telecom.com.   Business & Industry Watch    T-Mobile, AT&T join fray for flat-rate calling AT&T and Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA have unveiled unlimited-calling plans of their own -- announcements came soon after Verizon Wireless introduced its plans to market a $99.99 monthly plan featuring unlimited mobile calling. T-Mobile also is offering free texting and picture messaging, services that had previously cost users $15 a month. CNET/Reuters (2/19) , The Washington Post/Reuters (2/19) , Telephony Online (2/19) , American City Business Journals/Milwaukee/San Antonio (2/19) Microsoft may try proxy fight to gain control of Yahoo! Rather than raise its $44.6 billion Yahoo! takeover offer, Microsoft reportedly will spend $20 million to $30 million on a proxy fight, unless Yahoo! agrees to enter into merger talks by March 13, which is the deadline for nominating directors to Yahoo!'s board. Microsoft did not comment for this article. Meanwhile, Yahoo! said it is still considering its options. The New York Times (2/20) China telecom overhaul might be imminent Analysts say signs are pointing to China's finally completing a long-awaited retooling of its telecom industry that would enable development of 3G wireless services and potentially create a pool worth billions of dollars to equipment makers. BusinessWeek (2/19) Telecom switches emphasis: Preliminary analysis of the 2007 Telecom Industry Survey. To remain competitive as industry boundaries blur, telecom providers will require new sets of capabilities beyond the traditional strengths that telecom executives continue to emphasize. Learn more by downloading this IBM white paper.   Video Upload  BBC expands iPlayer service to Apple devices The BBC, pleased over the results of its iPlayer on-demand streaming video service, will expand the PC/Mac application to users of Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch "within weeks," the company said Tuesday. "We have seen good and consistent growth in the daily consumption of programming and it doesn't look to be in any way plateauing," said Ashley Highfield, the director of future media and technology at the BBC. New Media Age (2/20) , Macworld (2/20) Report: Asia most fertile for IPTV The Asia-Pacific region will surpass the Americas and Western Europe in IPTV subscribers by 2011, when worldwide usage will reach 103 million, research firm RNCOS predicts. Broadband subscriber numbers will grow at a compound annual rate of 91% between 2006 and 2011 in that region. The Hollywood Reporter (free content) (2/19) Cleveland, Akron get U-verse TV service AT&T has brought its U-verse fiber-optic TV service to parts of northeastern Ohio, making it available to 135,000 households within Cleveland, Akron and neighboring areas, the company said. EngadgetHD (2/19) The Buzz(CORPORATE ANNOUNCEMENTS) Make it a Double-Courtesy of Juniper Networks Double density, double capacity, half the space and power consumption: the new T1600 routing platform from Juniper Networks-it's like pouring two shots of espresso into your network's coffee cup. Learn about the T1600 then take a quick, fun online quiz to receive a Starbucks® gift card from Juniper Networks! Monitoring Hybrid Networks – TDM, IP, 2G/3G, VoIP & IMS Operators are deploying NGN, 3G & IMS networks, while continuing to maintain existing networks. The hybrid network consists of many different network elements, from different vendors supporting different protocols. This complex monitoring challenge is addressed in the Monitoring Hybrid Networks Whitepaper. Interested in learning more about advertising in the USTelecom dailyLead? Contact Amy Abbey at 202-737-5500 ext 250 or aabbey@smartbrief.com.   Technology Trends  Alcatel-Lucent builds on NCR partnership Alcatel-Lucent, already a level-one provider of telecom equipment to NCR Corp., has expanded its deal into a complete global-services arrangement so that the French company will provide operations support to business clients and distribution-provider channels. NCR will build a support infrastructure under the Alcatel-Lucent brand that will reach more than 130 countries. Total Telecom Magazine (U.K.) (2/19) Cisco ready to show new tech for clients' QoE Cisco Systems will soon introduce new technology, including its IP Next-Generation Networks, designed to help customers deliver a total "quality of experience" on an ever-increasing scale and to support advanced multiple-play services, according to this article. ipTVnews (2/18)   IP Download  Brits among the most active Web surfers Broadband and Internet use in the U.K. has escalated to levels where 60% of the nation's population was online in 2007, a figure expected to reach 70% by 2012, according to eMarketer, a research and consulting firm. The company said 40% of online sales for Western Europe would emanate from the U.K. this year. Broadband-Finder (2/20) A primer on unified communications With digital technology revolutionizing the traditional PBX, enterprise users need to understand the capabilities of IP-based phone systems that will enable unified communications, says a consultant in the field. Computerworld/CIO.com (2/19)   LeadQuote  Confusion is a word we have invented for an order which is not understood." --Henry Miller, American author       This dailyLead was created for webmaster@freeraovat.com Subscriber Tools       Update account information |  Change e-mail address |  Unsubscribe |  Print friendly format |  Web version |  Search past news |  Privacy policy Advertise Sales Account Director:  Amy Abbey (202) 737-5500 x250 Download Media Kit   Read more at dailyLead.com A powerful Web site for dailyLead readers including: Breaking News Industry Home Competitor News Readers' Choice Press Releases Search Archive       Recent USTelecom dailyLead Issues: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 Monday, February 18, 2008 Friday, February 15, 2008 Thursday, February 14, 2008 Wednesday, February 13, 2008     Lead Editor:  Susan Rush       Mailing Address: SmartBrief, Inc.®, 1100 H ST NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20005     © 1999-2008 SmartBrief, Inc.® Legal Information