Technology
Ideas matter.
Businesses start as ideas. Ideas transform them. And more often than not, what they sell are ideas—bundled into a brand, organized to create a better way of life, or collated to create a new way to communicate. Search our website to see how some of our ideas might transform your business or browse our roster of thought leaders.
Demi-Monde of Progress in IT / by Bhaskar Chakravorti
We frequently express indignation and surprise when the hyperbolic promises of the information revolution are not instantly fulfilled. Yet, given the interconnection of decisions that must occur for a standard to be set and equilibrium to be reached, it is safe to assume that technological progress will be truly realized only half as fast as technology permits. → more
Why Microsoft Should Be Left Alone / by Bhaskar Chakravorti
Microsoft's market penetration has given it the heft to create a technological standard, with 90 percent of computers now using Windows operating systems. → more
A Primer for Government Auctions / by Bhaskar Chakravorti
Economists have long viewed auctions as a highly efficient pricing mechanism for buying or selling products and services. But it isn't widely understood that the rules and terms of a given auction can profoundly affect its outcome. Therein lies danger for governments which want to capture the benefits of auctions but don't fully understand the process. → more
U.S. Telecommunications Demand: a Macroeconomic View / by Michael Weingarten
This paper attempts to develop an understanding of critical macroeconomic demand drivers in telecommunications and how they may interact to shape the future telecom industry. → more
The Demise of Digital Dysfunction / by The Next Big Thing at tnbt.com
A report about on the broad influence of information and technology in our lives → more
Has High Tide Come for ISPs? / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
The lack of profit among major ISPs is the most obvious signal that the standalone business does not have a long-term future. The fact that some smaller, standalone ISPs have been profitable, and the continued growth of companies that want to call themselves ISPs, have led some observers to argue that there is a viable business model: that small ISPs, who can offer customized services and personalized attention, can succeed where the larger ISPs haven't. → more
The Death of Innovation? / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
The splitting off of Bell Labs from AT&T is not the only reason to wonder about the fate of telecom innovation. There is also the growth of deregulation in the U.S. and world markets, assuming we take the recent World Trade Organization agreement at face value. Over the past 35 years, large public- and private-sector organizations such as equipment manufacturers, universities and government, have played a significant role in telecom innovation. Interestingly, none of the conceptual innovations came from small startups-they have tended to function as commercializers rather than conceptualizers. → more
Rethinking Depreciation / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
There may be other alternatives that achieve the goal of fostering ILEC adoption of new technology on an accelerated basis. Arguably, however, the current regime (and alternative sectarian positions) by ignoring the fundamental need to move to much faster depreciation cycles, is getting in the way of upgrading the public network. The historical strategy of long depreciation cycles based on legacy pricing regulations is becoming obsolete. It's time to dynamite the old telecom structure and come up with something that fosters new technology deployment. → more
There's No "There" There / by Michael Weingarten
In Asimov's classic novel Foundation, there is a memorable scene in which a high-ranking emissary visits a planet that gravely needs help. After five days of reassurances, almost everyone feels more optimistic, but one skeptic doesn't accept what he's heard. So he runs the emissary's words through a 'linguistics analysis' computer, which confirms his worst fears: stripped of the hype, the emissary spent five days saying absolutely nothing. It's possible to reach the same conclusion about a proposal submitted to the FCC last month by five incumbent local exchange carriers and six high-tech companies/associations. → more
So You Thought the Supreme Court had Decided Things... / by Michael Weingarten
On January 25, 1999, the Supreme Court ruled mostly in favor of the FCC in the Eighth Circuit appeal regarding the FCC's authority to establish binding pricing regimes for unbundled network elements and local service resale. So this settles things once and for all, and Telecom Act implementation can proceed. Right- Well, not quite. → more
Can Carriers Make Money on IP Telephony? / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
In a society where micro-processors are poised to become as ubiquitous as electric motors, we believe that converged, IP-based video/data/voice networks ultimately will be created. As the old AT&T commercials used to predict, you will-starting with business and with applications such as fax and international long distance calling-but eventually covering all. → more
Going the Distance / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
Several years ago it was fashionable to talk about two wires to the home fiber local loop build-outs by cable TV operators and incumbent local exchange carriers. Wireless was relegated to high-priced, low-volume mobile specialty status. The stampede toward fiber, however, was never absolute. Even in those days, futurist George Gilder championed the concept of a bandwidth-unlimited Ethersphere based on high digital multiplexing and capable of supporting wireless broadband service. → more
Choose Carefully! / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
No Substitutions- Value-added services are becoming a telco specialty. But as customers develop gourmet tastes, CPE vendors may be poised to duplicate some popular menu selections. → more
The Upcoming Revolution in Customer Demand / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
The next period of telecom competition will be characterized by a fundamental transformation in consumer behavior. In place of the old POTS 'one-size-fits-all' product set, consumers will be able to choose from multiple product sets that fit their individual needs more closely. The result will be an order-of-magnitude increase in the importance of segment-based marketing, well beyond the price-based competition that characterized the old MCI/AT&T LD marketing wars. The resulting consumer marketing wars will be won or lost over the issues of product bundling, end-to-end capability and geographic footprint. While standards are not set and interconnection not mandated, the network providers who can offer these capabilities will have an important advantage. → more
Will Bandwidth Ever Be Too Cheap to Meter? / by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
by Bart Stuck, Michael Weingarten
Probably not, and the alternative-usage fees-is equally undesirable. But there may be another way. → more