New TelcoSource Feature Excites Suppliers

The latest version of the free Saas procurement platform for Telecoms and IT services has an attractive feature for the growing supplier base. Now registered suppliers in the system are identified by products served and geographic area. When a buyer is designing their free RFQ or Auction they first set up invitations for their current vendors, then TelcoSource looks at their Scope of Requirements and suggests additional vendors who may be able to satisfy the requirements. Buyers can then add those vendors to the RFP process. This feature allows buyers to expand the competitive universe for thier RFP. It also allows the supplier base to gain new serious leads from the system. TelcoSource then send the RFP invite to both the current vendors and "Selected Vendors" for a vibrant bidding solution. Suppliers who have invested heavily in their brand are positioned to do particularly well with the new feature. A recent buyer said "I know several of these companies by name and would be happy to buy from them, I just don't have a contact at that company. TelcoSource has enabled me to add these quality vendors to my event. That is an excellent feature."
Again, registration and use of the TelcoSource platform is free to both buyers and vendors. Suppliers only pay a commission when the platform generates real revenue for them. Since suppliers often get invitations from the new feature, its a pure win as we know with certainty that the vendor would not have even been invited or known about the opportunity if not for the TelcoSource "Selected Vendor" feature. We invite you to try it today.

Are 3rd Party Optics a good way to Save Cap Ex?

We've been representing Integra Networks for years and we love this play. Carriers are all too often inclined to buy their optical electronics, also called pluggables or SFP's from OEM's, such as Cisco, Alcatel, Juniper etc. However, both the legal and technical landscape have involved in such a way to allow network providers the ability to disaggregate the procurment of the OEM box from the Optics which are often added as the system grows. Since this is a mature technology, 3rd party optics have proven to retain high quality while being significantly less expensive.

We did a recent analyis for a medium sized CLEC and determined that they could reduce Capex by $12 million annually by switching to 3rd party optics from folks like Integra Networks. That's big money. Integra also has increased CSat (another of our focus areas) by developing a operational process which allows them to frequently retain inventory of optics, locally in the US and then program the pluggables upon order. This has allowed them to sometimes ship optics overnight versus OEM timeframes of up to 6 weeks.

Here is another example:

One of the nation's largest cable operator has been able to dramatically reduce the cost of optical components by buying their optical boxes and plug-able transceivers from separate vendors. Their overall optical box cost is reduced by over 30% with improved customer service and no quality degradation. A major Cable Operator saved over $200k on one purchase order we reviewed. Another major carrier received 75 transceivers by hand delivery overnight to save a job after OEM components failed to arrive on time.

Please contact us if you'd like to learn more about this opportunity to save as well as turn up your revenues faster.

Missed PlumChoice\Parks Interview: Catch it now w Special Link

Parks recently interviewed our client Mike Cooch, GM SMB Vertical regarding the opportunities for broadband providers to increase revenues and enhance CSat by partnering to provide Premium Technical Support. If you missed the Feb 12 webinar, its not too late. You can use the special enclosed link to log in with your name and catch the recorded webinar. Contacts us at TelecomMarketplace to discuss how this program can be incorporated.

Thank You Facebook: Message from Egypt

I've been watching the amazing pictures out of Eqypt today as people raise their voices, risk their lives in the pursuit of freedom and democracy. At one point, the demonstrators were being quoted as chanting "Thank You Facebook". This made me pause. I think we all appreciate and understand to some extent the significant impact which the internet, social media and all the related developments have on the business community and maybe on the way we as Americans socialize and interact. However, this is an example of the far reaching impact of broadband, internet etc on the world in which we live. It is not just a business, marketing, communication, an IPO etc. its really about empowerment. The internet empowers people. It levels playing fields. It enables the few to speak like the many. The weak to speak like the powerful. Would the Egyptian revolution have taken place without Facebook? In a world where the margin of victory is quite small, maybe the answer is yes. Will we look back years from now and realize that while we thought we knew, we really had no appreciation for how this technology changed the world. A good friend of mine, David Walsh, told me a story about how during college his Professor assigned him a project to go out and find the next great disruptive development which would change the world. David was a bit overwhelmed so his professor gave him access to a new service they had at the college which was designed to help educators and professors collaborate. They called it the Internet. (Al Gore was still as Senator). David spent months searching and analyzing new developments using his password to "the Internet" In the end, he wrote his paper and only later in life did he realize that the answer to the Professors project: "What technology or product with change the world the most?" was in face the very tool he was spending all his time using to seek the answer.

Kit gets into Social Media and Multi Screen Play

So I find myself blogging on Kit Digital (KITD)again. Not my initial intention but they've gone again and made another set of strategic acquisitions in the video and social media space. There seems to be a solid consolidating effect around Kit. Innovative companies seem eager to be acquired, take stock and remain part of the management team. All good signs. With many enterprise customers trying to figure out their social media, web presence, Utube for the enterprise and video strategy; it looks like Kit continues to put together the pieces of the puzzle to benefit from the growth of video on the Internet. The part I like alot is that Kit continues to be profitable and these 3 acquiusitions are accretive. How long before Kit gets taken out? Who will in be? New school players like Google, Yahoo, Facebook etc. Or will we see an old school Cable Operator try to advance their multi screen strategy and defend their TV based video business.

Parks Associates Interviews PlumChoice

Excellent free Webinar this Thursday. Premium Tech Support space is exploding with almost every MSO and Carrier offering or designing a product. Many are using PlumChoice under a white label partnership. You can learn all about how PTS plays with the Enterprise Community from Mike Cooch during this webinar.

Parks Associates

TMC Interviews James Martino regarding TelcoSource.net Launch

Click to Watch Interview with James Martino

What is UTube for the Enterprise?

Fascinating panel at IT Expo regarding YouTube for the Enterprise. Clearly was news to me that major corporations were setting up in house video content management systems which set policy and allowed employees to create and post video content for other employees to view. Seems many employees were posting sensitive info on public http://www.youtube.com/ and corporations felt they needed to harness the movement and provide employees a way to share information within the corporate cocoon. Microsoft, ATT and Accordent Technologies were represented on the panel. Each spoke about a vibrant internal (akin to video intranet) system which they created to encourage and allow for internal communication by video. Applications ranged from training videos to product development announcements to taping meetings to CEO communications.

My immediate reaction and concern was in regards to how publicly traded corporations like Microsoft and ATT were monitoring the risk of sensitive information becoming public via these systems. Either via a cyber breach of the system or via employee dissemination outside the corporate community. It seems to me that stock traders, hedge funds, etc would love to gain access to a YouTube for the  Enterprise system for the stocks they cover. How many little tid-bits of information could they gain? I was a bit amazed that this trend had gotten so much traction in major firms without a major breach being publicized. I asked the panelists and the responses ranged from "We have strict corporate policies" to "Our employees were already posting to public YouTube and we needed to do this to get control of it" How hard is it to manage the unapproved dissemination to YouTube of corporate information I wondered? Seems you make it a fire able offense to do it and then you enforce it. Most corporate execs know when they can or can not speak to the press, so why is it so hard to determine that it is inappropriate to post videos regarding corporate business to the public Internet without approval from legal and corporate communications? Enterprise UTube systems seem to me to be opening Pandora's box. I'm amazed that huge bureaucratic, publicly traded and risk averse companies such as ATT and Microsoft seem so comfortable with the new format. I predict we'll here stories in the future about how information was leaked, systems compromised etc. I think that the Enterprise UTube systems may be confusing to the average employee. If you are doing a video that 5000 other employees can view: are you speaking publicly or privately? The following vendors are selling systems or services which allow companies to set up private YouTube:  Google, Microsoft, Accordent and Veodia.
Seems like something to watch and rolls back into our previous post on the rise of video content on the Internet. This seems to be one movement which will generate lots of corporate content. I'm sure the SEC and Class Action attorneys are thrilled to hear that their will be lots of other discoverable data which they can subpoena.

Kit Digital (KITD) to benefit from Surge in Video on Internet

The IT Expo show had a special track on Video content. One of the presenters, Jim Byrne, SVP of Sales Engineering was from Kit Digital, a rapidly growing company which provides software and hosting of enterprise video content. The interesting part is that their software is designed to label, tag, keyword and organize millions of pieces of video content in a way that then allows the user to easily search, sort and find the video they are seeking. According to Cisco's IP Traffic forecast (link above) , by 2013 Video will make up 90 percent of consumer IP traffic (which makes up the majority of total IP traffic)  Cisco also sees mobile data traffic being overtaken by video, with 64 percent of total mobile content becoming video by 2013 according to Cisco report.

So with all this video content being created and posted, who will benefit. Well I'm thinking KIT will continue to grow exponentially.  With all this content being created and streamed, enterprise will need to organize it all. KIT has been acquiring its way to market leadership in this area and seems poised to be a big winner. (for disclosure, I've been folllowing KIT for a while and have a long position in the stock. What I saw at IT Expo only reinforced my original forecasts.  Ticker KITD on Nasdaq)

IT Expo East 2011 Jeep Giveaway Winner was from Columbia

For those brave who stuck it out in sunny south beach till the end, they got to see Jorge from Latam country Columbia win a new Jeep. For those of you who left early, the good news is that his was the first card pulled. Great marketing idea. 8 companies sponsored the giveaway and attendees needed to get a stamp from each booth before depositing their card in the bin. So for about 3-4k per booth exhibitor more, they garnered about 4-5x the traffic compared to a similar competitor from me estimates. If you have paid 10-20k for a booth then the added investment is probably worth the added return. It also kept the show floor active on a friday afternoon.

Friday ITExpo

Heading to the show today to meet Contractual, Sidera and Hypercube. We have picked up many supply side members for TelcoSource at the show. We came in with a robust 55 and will leave on the mid 60s. Need to figure out if our buyers would want to procure conferencing, cloud services and unified communications via TelcoSource. Will put it in the future development group for discussion. Meanwhile registrations continue to pour in as a result of all the press we received this week. It is great to deliver a product which everyone sees as a win win. Buyers love getting a free e- procurement platform and our Alternative Channel leaders on the supply side love the solid RFPs delivered and reduced agency commissions. They can now give better pricing since the www.TelcoSource.net channel costs up to 70% less. Result happy buyers and sellers.

TelcoSource e-procurement platform for Telecoms launched at IT Expo

iT Expo East Summary Review

I made it out just before the snow/ice storm hit Monday. Arrived to 80 degree weather in sunny south beach for the Shows. We launched our TelcoSource.net e-procurement platform on Tuesday with a press release and a full day of interviews with the press. Lots of energy at the show and the snow storm doesn't seem to have dampened attendance too much. I have already had quite a few compelling meetings and plan to post blogs on some of the more interesting developments soon. See press release at www.telecommarketplace.net/news.