From editor@telecom-digest.org Mon Sep 13 14:23:21 2004 Received: (from ptownson@localhost) by massis.lcs.mit.edu (8.11.6p3/8.11.6) id i8DINKL12043; Mon, 13 Sep 2004 14:23:21 -0400 (EDT) Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 14:23:21 -0400 (EDT) From: editor@telecom-digest.org Message-Id: <200409131823.i8DINKL12043@massis.lcs.mit.edu> X-Authentication-Warning: massis.lcs.mit.edu: ptownson set sender to editor@telecom-digest.org using -f To: ptownson Approved: patsnewlist Subject: TELECOM Digest V23 #427 TELECOM Digest Mon, 13 Sep 2004 14:24:00 EDT Volume 23 : Issue 427 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Telecom Update (Canada) #448, September 13, 2004 (Angus TeleManagement) Hurdles For Digital TV's Global Reach (Monty Solomon) Honey, Did You Remember to Call the DVD Recorder? (Monty Solomon) Qualcomm Has Eyes For Displays (Eric Friedebach) Re: "Broadcast Flag", was Re: My New DVR From Cable One (Paul Vader) Panasonic FDH332 (Doron) Justice Department: VOIP Providers Avoiding CALEA (J. Decker-VOIP News) All contents here are copyrighted by Patrick Townson and the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other journals or newsgroups, provided the writer's name and the Digest are included in the fair use quote. By using -any name or email address- included herein for -any- reason other than responding to an article herein, you agree to pay a hundred dollars to the recipients of the email. =========================== Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be sold or given away without explicit written consent. Chain letters, viruses, porn, spam, and miscellaneous junk are definitely unwelcome. We must fight spam for the same reason we fight crime: not because we are naive enough to believe that we will ever stamp it out, but because we do not want the kind of world that results when no one stands against crime. Geoffrey Welsh =========================== See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details and the name of our lawyer; other stuff of interest. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 10:41:01 -0400 From: Angus TeleManagement Subject: Telecom Update (Canada) #448, September 13, 2004 ************************************************************ TELECOM UPDATE ************************************************************ published weekly by Angus TeleManagement Group http://www.angustel.ca Number 448: September 13, 2004 Publication of Telecom Update is made possible by generous financial support from: ** ALLSTREAM: www.allstream.com ** AVAYA: www.avaya.ca/en/ ** BELL CANADA: www.bell.ca ** CISCO SYSTEMS CANADA: www.cisco.com/ca/ ** ERICSSON: www.ericsson.ca ** MITEL NETWORKS: www.mitel.com/ ** SPRINT CANADA: www.sprint.ca ** UTC CANADA: www.canada.utc.org/ ************************************************************ IN THIS ISSUE: ** Rogers to Buy AT&T Wireless Shares ** Fido Offers Unlimited Calling Plan ** Banks Want Telemarketing Exemption ** Telehop and Yak Roll Out VoIP Services ** Provinces Want 3-1-1 as Health Triage Code ** Nortel Prepares Layoff List ** UNBC Students Get Bell Bundle ** Primus Pays to End U.S. Do-Not-Call Action ** RIM Unveils Consumer Blackberry Phone ** 2,900 Attend Call Centre Conference ** Bain Buys Canadian Directory Company ** Correction: Iles-de-la-Madeleine Cable ** Ian Angus to Keynote Telecom Conference ============================================================ ROGERS TO BUY AT&T WIRELESS SHARES: AT&T Wireless Services has agreed to sell its 34% stake in Rogers Wireless to Rogers Communications for just under $1.8 billion ($36.37 per share) in cash. The deal is subject to Board and other approvals. FIDO OFFERS UNLIMITED CALLING PLAN: "Unlimited Local Calls Anywhere in Canada," unveiled by Microcell last week, offers Fido mobile users unlimited local calling, no LD charges on incoming calls within Fido's digital coverage area, and 850 minutes of outgoing LD within Canada and to the U.S., for $70 a month. BANKS WANT TELEMARKETING EXEMPTION: The Canadian Bankers' Association has asked the federal Cabinet to direct the CRTC to exempt banks and their financial affiliates from the telemarketing restrictions established in CRTC Telecom Decision 2004-35. (See Telecom Update #445) ** If the Cabinet decides not to exempt them, the banks want it to "rescind or vary" the decision, or to instruct the CRTC to delay implementation until it has consulted with businesses affected by the new rules. TELEHOP AND YAK ROLL OUT VoIP SERVICES: Telehop Communications and Yak Communications both announced broadband IP telephone services last week. ** Telehop says its BroadTalk service is being offered to consumers and small businesses across Canada, with packages starting at C$21.99 a month. ** Yak's WorldCity VoIP is being offered in Canada and the United States, with a Basic Plan starting at US$19.95 a month. PROVINCES WANT 3-1-1 AS HEALTH TRIAGE CODE: Alberta Health and Wellness, on behalf of the Provincial/Territorial Ministers of Health, has asked the CRTC to assign a national phone code, 3-1-1, for access to non-urgent health triage and information services. www.crtc.gc.ca/PartVII/eng/2004/8665/a83_200409492.htm ** The CRTC is already considering an application by a group of municipalities to use 3-1-1 for non-emergency access to municipal services. (See Telecom Update #408) www.crtc.gc.ca/PartVII/eng/2003/8665/c126_200315699.htm NORTEL PREPARES LAYOFF LIST: Speaking in Ottawa on Thursday, Nortel CEO William Owens said the company will complete its list of 3,500 employees to be laid off within two weeks. About half of the cuts will be in R&D, particularly in areas that support legacy systems. ** Nortel has retained Accenture to help "transform its financial organization's structure, processes and systems." UNBC STUDENTS GET BELL BUNDLE: Bell Canada has received a five-year contract from the University of Northern B.C. to provide telephone, Internet, and satellite TV to students living in residence. The students will receive the bundle as part of their residential rental fees. Installation and service will be provided by Prince George-based ABC Communications. ** Bell is also donating nearly $200,000 worth of Tandberg videoconferencing equipment to UNBC's Northern Health Sciences Centre. PRIMUS PAYS TO END U.S. DO-NOT-CALL ACTION: Primus Telecommunications, the parent of Primus Canada, has agreed to pay US$400,000 to halt an investigation into alleged violations of the USA's National Do-Not-Call registry rules. The calls were made by a telemarketing service bureau acting on Primus's behalf. RIM UNVEILS CONSUMER BLACKBERRY PHONE: Research in Motion's BlackBerry 7100t combines a mobile phone, e-mail, messaging, and Web browsing. The device, which uses a new keyboard design, will be available in the U.S. from T-Mobile USA in October; Canadian availability was not announced. 2,900 ATTEND CALL CENTRE CONFERENCE: Advanstar Technology reports that the ICCM 2004 Conference & Exposition, held August 9-10 in Chicago, was attended by more than 2,900 industry professionals from 37 countries. The program for the call centre management event was developed by Angus Dortmans Associates. BAIN BUYS CANADIAN DIRECTORY COMPANY: Verizon Communications has agreed to sell its SuperPages Canada directory publishing operation to Bain Capital for C$2 billion. Verizon bought the business from Telus in 2001 for $670 million. ** SuperPages publishes Telus phone books and business directories in several Ontario and Quebec cities. CORRECTION: ILES-DE-LA-MADELEINE CABLE: Last week's Telecom Update said that Telebec is building a submarine fibre cable from the Gaspe Peninsula to Iles-de-la-Madeleine. In fact the cable will be installed by International Telecom, and the facilities will be owned by le Reseau Integre de Communications Electroniques des Iles-de-la-Madeleine (RICIEM), a local non-profit organization. Telebec is operating partner in the project. IAN ANGUS TO KEYNOTE TELECOM CONFERENCE: Ian Angus, chairman of Angus Dortmans Associates, will be the kickoff speaker at Telemanagement Live! scheduled for October 20-21 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. His topic: Enterprise Telecom in 2005: What's Hot, What's Not, and What You Must Know to Succeed. ** Other featured speakers include senior executives from Allstream, Avaya, Bell Canada, Cisco, Mitel, Nortel, OneConnect, Siemens, Sprint Canada, Telus, UTC Canada... and many more. ** For a full program and registration information, go to www.telemanagementlive.com or call 1-866-309-2227. ============================================================ HOW TO SUBMIT ITEMS FOR TELECOM UPDATE E-MAIL: editors@angustel.ca FAX: 905-686-2655 MAIL: TELECOM UPDATE Angus TeleManagement Group 8 Old Kingston Road Ajax, Ontario Canada L1T 2Z7 =========================================================== HOW TO SUBSCRIBE (OR UNSUBSCRIBE) TELECOM UPDATE is provided in electronic form only. There are two formats available: 1. The fully-formatted edition is posted on the World Wide Web on the first business day of the week at www.angustel.ca 2. The e-mail edition is distributed free of charge. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to: join-telecom_update@nova.sparklist.com To stop receiving the e-mail edition, send an e-mail message to: leave-telecom_update@nova.sparklist.com Sending e-mail to these addresses will automatically add or remove the sender's e-mail address from the list. Leave subject line and message area blank. We do not give Telecom Update subscribers' e-mail addresses to any third party. For more information, see www.angustel.ca/update/privacy.html. =========================================================== COPYRIGHT AND CONDITIONS OF USE: All contents copyright 2004 Angus TeleManagement Group Inc. All rights reserved. For further information, including permission to reprint or reproduce, please e-mail rosita@angustel.ca or phone 905-686-5050 ext 500. The information and data included has been obtained from sources which we believe to be reliable, but Angus TeleManagement makes no warranties or representations whatsoever regarding accuracy, completeness, or adequacy. Opinions expressed are based on interpretation of available information, and are subject to change. If expert advice on the subject matter is required, the services of a competent professional should be obtained. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 08:42:16 -0400 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Hurdles For Digital TV's Global Reach By Chris Mac BBC Monitoring in Amsterdam Heat, dust, erratic electricity supplies and insufficient training are the biggest problems to be overcome to get digital TV into developing countries, a broadcasting conference has been told. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3651402.stm ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 10:17:47 -0400 From: Monty Solomon Subject: Honey, Did You Remember to Call the DVD Recorder? By Ed Frauenheim Staff Writer, CNET News.com Panasonic announced on Wednesday a DVD recorder that takes requests from the road. The machine has a 400GB hard disk drive, is capable of zapping video elsewhere in a home, and is designed to let consumers program recording remotely over the Internet -- including via cell phones. The new product, dubbed the DMR-E500H, and related devices with smaller hard drives, are slated to be available in Japan beginning Sept. 21. The DMR-E500H, billed as allowing for more than 700 hours of recorded video, demonstrates the growing capabilities of devices combining DVD recording with hard drives. A hybrid between traditional DVD recorders and so-called digital video recorders , such machines allow users to begin watching a show from an earlier moment in a live broadcast. These types of products are battling against a new generation of personal computers to be kings of the digital living room. http://news.com.com/2100-1041-5357834.html ------------------------------ From: friedebach@yahoo.com (Eric Friedebach) Subject: Qualcomm Has Eyes For Displays Date: 13 Sep 2004 07:56:45 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com Arik Hesseldahl, 09.09.04, Forbes.com NEW YORK - Why would wireless chip company Qualcomm want to get into the display business? To do what it does best: license technology to mobile phone manufacturers everywhere. That's the plan behind Qualcomm's $170 million buy of startup Iridigm Display of San Francisco. Qualcomm already held a 14% equity stake in Iridigm, and today announced the deal for the remaining 86%. The investment arms of Intel and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing; Steamboat Ventures, the venture capital arm of The Walt Disney Co.; and the influential industrial design firm IDEO also were investors in Iridigm. "We're in the business of finding technologies that are fairly disruptive, and they have some fundamental intellectual property, which is a good thing for us," says Paul Jacobs, president of Qualcomm's wireless and Internet business group and third son of Chief Executive Irwin Jacobs. http://www.forbes.com/2004/09/09/cx_ah_0909qcom.html Eric Friedebach /Favorite OnStar commercial: crying woman drops keys in toilet/ ------------------------------ From: pv+usenet@pobox.com (Paul Vader) Subject: Re: "Broadcast Flag", was Re: My New DVR From Cable One Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 15:35:53 -0000 Organization: Inline Software Creations Danny Burstein writes: > Nope. He was just given given advance warning. New recording equipment > is supposed to recognize a "do not record" flag that gets sent > over-the-air along with the signal. Periodically a couple of the Except that it isn't sent over the air, and the flag is part of their licensing agreement with macrovision. Cable one was just passing along FUD. * * PV something like badgers--something like lizards--and something like corkscrews. ------------------------------ From: faroutdom@yahoo.com (Doron) Subject: Panasonic FDH332 Date: 13 Sep 2004 08:39:47 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com Hi, There are two versions to this FAX, one with voice mail and the other without. It seems though that they are both the exact same box. Anyone know how to upgrade the firmware to support voice mail? Thanks, FOD ------------------------------ From: Jack Decker Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2004 12:56:12 -0400 Subject: DoJ: VoIP Providers Avoiding CALEA Mandate Reply-To: VoIPnews@yahoogroups.com http://www.americasnetwork.com/americasnetwork/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=121788 Source: Warren Publishing, Inc. COMMUNICATIONS DAILY via NewsEdge Corporation : FBI and Justice Dept. officials told the House Telecom Subcommittee Wed. that there have been difficulties establishing wiretaps through some VoIP carriers. While members emphasized the importance of law enforcement having access to VoIP communications, some had questions about DoJ's and FBI's problems with access and if updates to the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) were needed. While the DoJ and FBI said they were trying to "work with" VoIP providers, they also said many products were introduced without thought to CALEA, though they declined to provide any specifics. Some members wanted more information about the problems FBI and DoJ officials face from VoIP providers when trying to obtain a wiretap. Laura Parsky, DoJ deputy asst. attorney general, said the information about specific problems was too sensitive. "We don't want terrorists migrating to these networks," she said. Marcus Thomas, FBI deputy asst. director, said it didn't appear to be "disingenuous effort" that prevented law enforcement access to networks. Rather, he said, many have deployed networks without giving much thought to law enforcement access. Thomas said CALEA was supposed to create an atmosphere where innovators factored CALEA standards into its development, but that atmosphere never developed. Rep. Buyer (R-Ind.) told law enforcement witnesses that they should do a better job of articulating their concerns, since they appeared to be rather vague. Parsky said more information could be given in a classified forum. Full story at: http://www.americasnetwork.com/americasnetwork/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=121788 How to Distribute VoIP Throughout a Home: http://michigantelephone.mi.org/distribute.html If you live in Michigan, subscribe to the MI-Telecom group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MI-Telecom/ ------------------------------ TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. 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