Re: Best of both worldsAdditionally i'd like to point out the FCC's work on NextGen-911 which is looking at adding the capability for OTT apps to interface with emergency services with similar requirements to carrier phone calls. Once a solution is defined they are linkely to mandate it for apps in the US, and if it works there's no reason why other regins wouldn't join the fray.
Re: Phone numberThats a great point and with all the data collected by carriers the opportunity the carriers have to create an advetizing platform with analytics second to none that can hep monetize OTT apps and gain a share of its revenues.
Services? Or just features?One of the problems here is that traditional telco "services" such as telephony and messaging are morphing into applications, and ultimately to features/functions of other services or websites.
We are used to the idea that phone calls and messages are billed "services" offered to "subscribers". But delivering capabilities as a service is only one approach. Increasingly, we will see these and similar functions embedded into certain "contexts", which will displace usage of the standalone services provided by telcos or the so-called OTTs. (The false distinction between the two groups is laughable anyway).
The way to think about it is that we have various ways to deliver words from point A to point B. In future, the web will be able to send words as "italic", "bold" or "spoken".
We'd all laugh at the idea of having an "distant italics service" & subscription - so why do we automatically think that "distant voice services" (tele-phone) is in any way the natural or optimal state of affairs?
Re: Phone numberIf the broadband service is not profitable enough, then yes, turn it off... if you don't do it is because you believe that you can get profit from that infrastructure in another way. Better business models are what we need, thats how services get better and markets get open. Here we had a monopoly for long time, when cable operators started to provide voice and internet, we started to have option and better service.
Same thing happened with the music industry. New business model, now they don't sell pieces of plastic anymore, sell the sell bit streams.
Re: Phone numberIts really simple....just stop offering residential broadband service. Just turn it off. It is not a mandatory service.
Now that you have said in your mind...NO....they could not do that! Look at the profit the carriers are making and ask yourself. What the carriers are complaining about is that somebody else came up with a good or great business model. They can NOT complain that their business model is not profitable. If they were LOSING money then discontinue the service!
Re: Phone numberI believe value will come from the connectivity. OTT applications are useless without the connectivity (try to make a skype call in Mexico over 3G to see if you can...).
Also, OTT is not really free... advertising is a way to get revenue from those free messaging apps, an that comes with your location, name, phone number, etc.. all that information that we like to keep private, but give away for "free" services.
So, telecom operators will need to reinvent themselves to compete against OTT, as IBM did to compete in the IT business world, went from hardware to software to services.. what would a carrier do?
Best of both worldsWhile all of the above is true, solutions exists that allow OTTs to add (or port in) telephone numbers, dial 911 (or 112 in Europe), etc.
Your companies offers such services in wholesales to OTTs, ours does as well.
It allows them to focus at what they do best : developping innovative new services (far better than what traditional service providers will ever be able to build themselves), while including the good things of the traditional telephone networks : quality of service, interoperability with other networks (OTT or traditional networks) and 911/112 reachability.
But these features have a cost and OTT services including them will never be free...
PartnersGood points - telcos bring plenty to the table, including an actual revenue stream, but it's tough to compete against free. I'm watching to see if more telcos strike partnerships with the messaging firms, on the basis of the 'if you're going to get cannibalised you may as well cannabilise yourself' principle.
Great question, Sarah. I am a colleague of Steve's here at Bandwidth. RingCentral is a perfect example of a carrier that is innovating with phone numbers. The company powers talk, text and fax for end-users, all from a single phone number. This capability has great potential for innovating in enterprise mobility. It's about decoupling a number from a specific device and moving it into the cloud.
We are used to the idea that phone calls and messages are billed "services" offered to "subscribers". But delivering capabilities as a service is only one approach. Increasingly, we will see these and similar functions embedded into certain "contexts", which will displace usage of the standalone services provided by telcos or the so-called OTTs. (The false distinction between the two groups is laughable anyway).
The way to think about it is that we have various ways to deliver words from point A to point B. In future, the web will be able to send words as "italic", "bold" or "spoken".
We'd all laugh at the idea of having an "distant italics service" & subscription - so why do we automatically think that "distant voice services" (tele-phone) is in any way the natural or optimal state of affairs?
Now that you have said in your mind...NO....they could not do that! Look at the profit the carriers are making and ask yourself. What the carriers are complaining about is that somebody else came up with a good or great business model. They can NOT complain that their business model is not profitable. If they were LOSING money then discontinue the service!
seven
Your companies offers such services in wholesales to OTTs, ours does as well.
It allows them to focus at what they do best : developping innovative new services (far better than what traditional service providers will ever be able to build themselves), while including the good things of the traditional telephone networks : quality of service, interoperability with other networks (OTT or traditional networks) and 911/112 reachability.
But these features have a cost and OTT services including them will never be free...
Cheers,
Dries (VP Marketing & PM, Voxbone)
Great question, Sarah. I am a colleague of Steve's here at Bandwidth. RingCentral is a perfect example of a carrier that is innovating with phone numbers. The company powers talk, text and fax for end-users, all from a single phone number. This capability has great potential for innovating in enterprise mobility. It's about decoupling a number from a specific device and moving it into the cloud.