Alcatel-Lucent launches on unified communications software for iPad

OpenTouch Conversation will enable users to switch between voice calls, IM and video conferencing without interruptions.

Alcatel-Lucent's OpenTouch Conversation software will allow enterprise users to switch among different ways of communicating -including instant messaging, voice calls and video conferencing - without interrupting their conversations. The software will first be available on Apple's iPad, the company said on Monday.

The concept of integrating different ways of communicating is far from new, and is often called unified communications in the enterprise market. But products need to become much simpler for the sector to take off on a grander scale, according to Craig Walker, director of product marketing at Alcatel-Lucent's enterprise group.

That ease-of-use is what Alcatel-Lucent hopes it will achieve with OpenTouch Conversation.

On the iPad screen, a user can see a graphical timeline of recent, current and future conversations, pictures of their current key contacts and a "stage" where their current conversations takes place, according to Alcatel-Lucent. Presence information on the availability of their contacts is also visible, it said.

By clicking on the screen, users will be able to switch from a chat session to a voice conversation or a video conference.

Users will eventually also be able to start a voice call on an office phone, move the conversation to a video conference on a PC or tablet and then conclude it on a mobile phone, according to Alcatel-Lucent.

Alcatel-Lucent intends to make the OpenTouch Conversation client app available on iPhones, Macs, Windows PCs as well as Android-based tablets and smartphones based on both Android and BlackBerry OS.

"We were hoping to use just HTML5, so the client would be immediately portable between different operating systems, but it isn't ready yet," said Walker.

The plan is now to make the iPad client - which will be compatible with the 2048-by-1536 pixel resolution on the new iPad - available in June, followed by clients for PCs, Macs later during the year.

A client compatible with Android-tablets and Android-based smartphones will arrive in the beginning of next year, according to Walker. The application for the iPhone will be available for download at the end of the year or in the beginning of 2013.

All the clients will have the same design, Walker said.

For the OpenTouch Conversation clients to work, an enterprise would also need an OpenTouch server, which, in turn, can be integrated with telephony switches from other vendors.

The company didn't announce any pricing, but enterprises will pay per user and communications technology. For example, a company may have a thousand employees, but only pay for 200 of them to be able to use video conferencing, Walker said.

Source: CIO, By: Mikael Ricknäs

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Posted in: ICT

Smart Cities Miss Important Benefits When Telecommunications Service Providers Lack a Key Role

Smart Cities Miss Key Benefits When Telecommunications Service Providers Lack a Key RoleDoes it make sense that telecommunications service providers (SPs) are not playing a critical role in projects to create smart cities? The facts of the matter are that involvement still remains limited. This is true even though telecommunications itself plays a central role. As a result, telecom SPs compete with cable companies, utilities and other service providers in an effort to provide information and communications technology (ICT) and other services. 

Reality is that this competition can create a disconnect in the delivery of valuable services, limiting the reach and capabilities of the resulting smart city. 

A recent posting by Alcatel-Lucent "Getting Smart About Smart Cities About Smart Cities,” highlights the importance of leveraging key assets within telecommunications service provider infrastructures to partner with key players in the creation of smart cities using IMS solutions to leverage the migration to end-to-end IP networks. In doing so, these providers significantly change their role from facilitators to strategic partners with key industries and governments in the development of these projects. To gain a better understanding of the current environment and process to develop smart cities, the Alcatel-Lucent Market and Consumer Insight team conducted a three-part analysis of 52 smart cities in 2011. This process included examining smart cities from two angles: 

- Key stakeholders and their contribution to concepts and realization 

- The impact these stakeholders influenced development 

The study revealed that the value propositions for most initiatives involving smart cities do not position Information and Communications Technology (ICT) as key to the value of smart city (and smart grid in general) projects. In addition, they found that the implementation of the necessary capabilities tends to be determined mostly by the motivations of those driving the project and hence not having telecom SPs at the table from the start can be problematic. 

A vast ecosystem of key players is at the center of smart city projects, the players include those from multiple disciplines within government entities and representatives from small to large multinational business firms. Governments tend to start the projects for creating smart cities with vendor playing a somewhat background role. And, the study found that these scenarios can create their complications. 

While relationships develop among stakeholders involved with smart cities projects, it is not clear how these relationships are created or maintained over the life of a project. This is a classic case of the famous Nelson Mandela quote, “Where one stands depends upon where one sat.” Each project is driven by a multitude of motivations and interests. These include such things as the need to invent or construct a new economic model, the need or wish to reduce energy consumption, or the need to improve the environment of city life. 

For telecom and other SPs to find their role in the process and demonstrate the value they bring to the table, it’s critical that they understand how the development of smart cities impacts all other players. This means clear demonstration of the value of critical infrastructure elements as evolving 4G LTE (News - Alert) with integrated and/or predominant Wi-Fi access, along with how to leverage IMS. It also means a clear articulation of how using the vast array of mobile solutions for the key machine-to-machine (M2M) capabilities that are core to smart grids, and making the case as to how, what, when, where and why the planning, deployment and maintenance of such capabilities, are essential to project success. As the ALU posting observes, breaking through some of the ambiguous relationships, motivations and other elements can identify clear patterns for constructing the right strategy for involvement. And, as previously mentioned, telecom SPs must communicate that value of involvement with key stakeholders to ensure them not just a significant seat at the table from project start, but the centrality of their value-added from concept to project completion and beyond. In short, telecom SPs need to change the conversation so that they are involved early and often.

Source: Next Generation Communication, By: Susan J. Campbell

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Posted in: Business Management,ICT,smart city

Getting Smart About Smart Cities

Isn’t it amazing that today half of the world’s population lives in cities, and just a few decades from now, more than three out of four people will call a city “home”? At the beginning of last century, the number of mega-cities worldwide could be counted on the fingers of one hand. But within some decades, adding the toes of our feet will not be enough to count them. 

This growing concentration of people in cities will lead to constraints, new needs and additional pressure on the cities’ various systems. That’s why Jane Anderson, Debbie Fisher and I, all members of the Market and Consumer Insight (MCI) team within Alcatel-Lucent, were asked to study smart cities — and consider related market opportunities. 

Research phases 

Our 2011 research included the following phases. 

We first reviewed studies undertaken by key stakeholders in smart cities and looked at 18 smart city projects in order to better understand the players, the processes and the focus of vendors and service providers. 

Next, students from the EDHEC Business School of Nice joined us for a deeper dive into seven smart city projects. “Persons of interest” in these projects helped us grasp the business models, funding, and engagement models that manage complex relationships among players. 

Finally, we substantiated the smart city types and the initial motivations behind smart city projects by applying them to 52 projects. Students from the Presidio Graduate School of San Francisco (California, USA) joined us in this phase. 

Key results 

What did we learn from our research? We gained a better understanding of who takes the initiative to set up greenfield smart cities or to refurbish existing cities into smarter ones. We learned that smart cities are not possible without government involvement or government backing, and that, in general, telecom service providers are not yet taking a leading role in smart cities, despite having assets that could enable a more active and beneficial role. (However, a lot is changing in this respect since we undertook the studies.) And finally, we found that Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) play a major role in the development of smart cities projects, but ICT is seldom seen as a separate segment with its own designated budget. ICT is typically part of other functional areas, such as transportation, energy saving, or waste management. 

A market for service providers? 

Our research results are available on the Alcatel-Lucent website (see Getting Smart about Smart Cities). But how do these results help us in better understanding the market opportunities for service providers? We have segmented smart city projects in terms of types and motivations, so that telecom service providers can develop a focused strategy for each. 

We concluded that there are four basic types of smart cities (which can be further segmented). IT box types are the best fit with service provider offerings. Dream box projects require cooperation or partnerships with companies in the industry that drives the project. Black box types are “inaccessible,” except when invited to join the ecosystem. And, Fragmented box projects need a case-by-case evaluation to better define the appropriate strategy.

Our research also revealed three defining initial motivations, which will play a role in further development: social motivations intend to improve the quality of life for citizens and businesses; economic motivations result in observable advocacy for economic growth and a new economic model; eco-sustainability motivations intend to hit targeted sustainability goals that will result in environmental benefits. Service providers must take these motivations into account when creating solution offerings and approaching key decision makers. 

Going forward 

MCI’s research on smart cities does not stop here. The next round of research will focus on bringing out the voices of the citizens who live — or will live — in smart cities. Debbie Fisher is leading a survey of citizens, government officials and NGOs in cities worldwide. Some of the primary research results were presented at the Digital London event (March 13 and 14). Initial results of the research in Chattanooga (USA) can be found in the blog “Smart Cities – Today’s Difference; Tomorrow’s Ideas.”

Source: Alcatel-Lucent, By: Louis Witters

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Posted in: ICT,smart city

IBM Helps Geraldton Become a Smarter City

The Western Australia city of Geraldton will receive help from IBM to create a roadmap to improve technology thanks to a grant as part of IBM’s Smart Cities Challenge. 

Up to six IBM senior executives from around the world will reside in the city for three weeks and speak to businesses and citizens to ascertain the issues the city is facing. It will then recommend initiatives for improvement. 

Miranda Scarff, manager of corporate citizenship and affairs at IBM Australia, told Computerworld that Geraldton’s grant submission was a standout, with the city highlighting its desire to make the most of technology infrastructure investments in the region and the National Broadband Network. The city also wants to improve data sharing between agencies.

“We’re seeing a convergence of factors which set the stage for rapid advances in the efficiency and scope of citizen services,” said Ian Carpenter, City of Greater Geraldton mayor, in a statement. 

“IBM’s Smarter Cities grant comes at a pivotal time in Geraldton’s development as we seek to improve the living quality of all our citizens.” 

Scarff said the aim of the grant wasn’t to provide software, but instead to create a clear roadmap for improvement. 

“So they provide the city with an official report and recommendations about how to improve the liveability of the city in terms of whatever it is that the council put forward as projects to focus on,” she said. 

"So it’s really up to Geraldton to further identify what projects they’d like the IBM experts to come and address and then we would put forward recommendations for the council." 

The $50 million IBM Smarter Cities Challenge is a three-year program and part of the company’s philanthropic initiatives. It will provide technology and services to 100 municipalities worldwide over the course of the program. A total of 33 cities across the world will receive the grant in 2012, with Townsville, Queensland, the first Australian city to receive the grant. 

Three IBM experts from the United States and three from Australia spent three weeks in Townsville working with the city to help it leverage data technology to help it become a sustainable city. The council is currently implementing initiatives such as collaborative portals for the community and strategies for smarter building management. 

“We’re finding with most of the grants that have been done to date that the idea is certainly to share the lessons learnt with other cities around the world,” Scarff said. 

By the end of 2012, 65 cities will have received the IBM grant. Applications for the 2013 program will open later this year.

Source: ComputerWorld, By: Stephanie McDonald

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Posted in: ICT,smart city

Smart Cities and Telcos – the sleeping giants awake?

If you go back a mere 6 months, the ecosystem of Smart City movers and shakers in discussions, conferences and exciting new service concepts was similar to that of today but with one exception; the Communications Service Providers (CSPs), specifically the Telecoms Operators were not there in the front line of the movement.

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Posted in: Business Management,ICT,smart city