Viodi View - January 7th, 2008 Issue

In this on-line publication, we share our analysis, opinions and direction on the interactive television news and views that we believe will be of interest and use to our friends associated directly or indirectly with independent telephone companies. For more information as to the various ways Viodi works with independent telephone companies, please go to http://www.viodi.com/alliance/

Disclaimer:

The Viodi View [Viodi, LLC] and its associates used their best efforts in collecting and preparing the information published herein. However, the Viodi View [Viodi, LLC] does not assume, and hereby disclaims, any and all liability for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions resulted from negligence, accident, or other causes.

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Viodi View Newsletter - January 7th, 2008

Contact Mo Dennis at 651-291-7311 to learn how to sponsor or click Here

By Ken Pyle, ken.pyle at viodi.com, Managing Editor, Viodi View

24+ hours without power. Who would have thought this could happen in the middle of Silicon Valley in 2008. The storm that brought hurricane-force winds to the Bay Area has receded, but PG&E is still fighting its after effects. Fortunately, my neighbor, who is on a separate power grid, lent me valuable power to keep my fruits fresh and my computer humming.

Consuming Electronics at CES …..Look for Peter Lowten

Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, CES will literally consume and metaphorically generate a great deal of electricity this week. Independent telcos, look for Peter Lowten at the CES or contact him at peter dot lowten at viodi dot com. He will be covering CES for the Viodi View.

Although there are thousands of consumer electronics and related goods introduced at this mega-show, there a couple of items of particular interest, including Samsung’s announcement of an 82 inch, high definition 3,840 pixels by 2,160 high definition television – ouch just when telcos thought they had a handle on regular H.D.

DXG USA’s DXG-566V HD high definition (1280x720) camcorder looks to be interesting because of its low cost. At $149, this camcorder records directly to SD memory cards and promises low-cost, high quality capture. More on this unit in a future issue.

Flipping Out Over a Low Cost Camcorder

In this issue, we review the Flip Video camcorder. This camera records 640x480 resolution, 30 frame per second video directly to internal flash memory. At $99, this camera is almost a throwaway item (at least you don’t feel too bad if you accidentally drop it in the Grand Canyon). Designed for easy uploading to online video sites, such as YouTube and Crackle, this device makes it easy for any to generate video content. Watch the review to see the pluses and minuses of this miniscule, yet powerful camcorder.

Flip Video Camcorder – More than Just for Personal Use?

Club Viodi members, click here to read how the Flip Video Camcorder could be relevant to independent telcos and how they might be able to take advantage of the Flip Video camcorder to further enhance their local content efforts.

Note, to view the above link, you must be a club.viodi member. Club.Viodi membership is only open to independent telcos and is made available at the sole discretion of Viodi, LLC.

Fill Up and Get Wireless?

Right on the heels of CES is the NTCA Wireless Symposium in Phoenix from Wednesday to Friday, January 9th-11th. To get an idea of what the NTCA Wireless conference is about, please click here (Open with MS Internet Explorer) for this presentation by Eric Mantion, formerly of InStat. In this presentation, Mantion speculated that an entity not traditionally in the telecom business, such as Walmart or Chevron, could use WiMAX to offer telecommunications services,. Interestingly, Chevron is one of the bidders in the 700 MHz auctions…..what does Chevron have planned for that spectrum?

Everyone Sells

Phoenix will also be home to OPASTCO’s Winter Conference. This is an intimate setting to meet with many of the leaders of the independent telco industry. It is also chock full of good speakers. I am especially looking forward to hearing Ben Stein’s insight. Another speaker who will be there is David Saxby of Measure-X. We caught up with David a few months ago at Innovative Systems User’s Group meeting in this video interview.

Alan J. Weissberger poses an interesting question on the telecom market and provides an excellent analysis of last month’s Cisco C-Scape conference. Click on the following links to read more.

Is the Telecom Market in Turmoil because of a Price War? Click here to read more

IEEE ComSoc SCV Telecom and Networking Newsletter- Part II. C-Scape Conference

Local Content Workshop - February 26th Roslyn, Washington

(advertisement for the incredibly informative Viodi Local Content Workshop)

People on the Move

Steve Klein, a long-time industry veteran of places such as Next Level and Zhone is a free agent. Well versed in the independent telco space as well as international markets, Steve is available for telecommunications vendors looking for expertise in IP networking, DSL, GPON and FTTx, Ethernet and EFM, and voice service technologies. Contact him at hstephenklein at gmail dot com

Many of you may not know John Matson. This transplanted Minnesotan was the classic early generation Silicon Valley engineer. Although not a huge name in the annals of Silicon Valley, his work ethic, love of family, church and community represent everything that is good about this area. His own words, memorialized at Great American Stories, are one of his last gifts to the people who knew him. The Great American Stories site seems to be an excellent way to capture the words and wisdom of our elders.

Naming Rights - Why Should Professional Sports Get All of the Deals?

Every year corporations give tens of millions of dollars to have their names associated with professional sports leagues; some of which are rife with scandals. Sponsor Moreland Little League and help kids who otherwise might not be able to play after-school sports, while making a lasting impression on both the youth and their parents. Click here to learn more about an opportunity to sponsor MorelandTV, as well as obtain field and other naming rights.

(advertisement for Moreland Little League)

The Korner - 21st Century Technology Etiquette

Two years ago, we opened the New Year with a review of the book, Talk to the Hand. This book looked at the increasing coarseness in today’s society. Although not necessarily the intent, this book gave some good ideas as to ways telecom companies could improve customer service.

Along these same lines, we kick off this year with some great advice from the granddaughter of the Queen of Etiquette, Emily Post. In this brief video, Anna Post gives tips on the proper use of email, instant messaging, speaker phones, video conferencing and new technologies in general. Feel free to pass this video along, as she has some common-sense ideas on the proper use of these relatively new communication methods.

(video source: Logitech)

Happy Birthday Sue!

Please feel free to forward the Viodi View to anyone who may be interested in our unique view of the intersection of the independent telecom, entertainment and technology industries.

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The Video Business Case for Independent Telcos – The Report

Viodi’s report, Video Business Case provides results to a survey of independent telcos and their business case for video. Most of the telcos that responded to the survey have figured out a way to deploy video services. This survey provides insight from the independent telcos as well as several of their Engineering firms.

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