Just a few stories in the news the last few days

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Cisco Pulls Trigger on Arroyo VoD-Server Acquisition; Big Decisions Await Competitors
In an acquisition that many of us had anticipated, Cisco Systems officially pulled the trigger on a $92-million cash purchase of Pleasanton, Calif.-based Arroyo Video Solutions today.

In one respect, Cisco’s decision to acquire Arroyo could be seen as an inevitable reaction to Motorola’s acquisition earlier this summer of Broadbus Technologies, which competed against Arroyo in the video on demand (VoD) server marketplace. Both Motorola and Cisco, through its $6.9-billion acquisition last year of Scientific Atlanta, provide digital set-top boxes that deliver television and video programming into the homes of consumers who subscribe to video services from cable MSOs and telecommunications carriers.

Cisco entering video services, especially over time, could be a big play. Video is going to play a much larger role in the future of the "net.

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Microsoft Nabs Anti-Virus Ace from Symantec
Veteran virus-hunter Vincent 'Vinny' Gullotto has joined Microsoft to head its Security Research and Response team, a move that adds instant credibility to the software maker's push into the Internet security market.

Gullotto, an anti-virus ace who served stints at McAfee and Symantec, will be general manager of the team, which handles all aspects of malware research and response.

An important observation inside the story - "Much of what gets done in the anti-virus industry is based on personal trust," says Roger Thompson, STO at Exploit Prevention Labs. "All the Microsoft anti-virus guys have been newbies, or outsiders. Vinny would be regarded as an insider," he added.

As Thompson points out, instant credibility could eb a big value for Microsoft, who's never been taken seriously when they spoke about their concerns for security

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VoIP critical for developing world - Nigeria
Ernest Ndukwe, executive vice chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has described Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) as the engine that will drive telephony in developing countries like Nigeria.

Speaking at the first day of the three-day VoIP forum in Lagos this week, Ndukwe said the commission had recently conducted a study into the Nigerian telecommunications market.

The study found, he said, that "a sure way to promote universal access to telecommunications services, at this stage of the industry's development is to evolve a policy framework that recognises the issues relating to VoIP as an engine for the development of telephony in the country."

This is really one example of how unified communications technologies are shaping economies in developing nations infrastructure. There's a much larger trend here than a single story about one country indicates.

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FTC Chairman "Surprised" Companies Want to Regulate the Internet

SAN JOSE, CA - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras yesterday spoke in Aspen, Colorado at the annual Progress and Freedom Foundation gathering and stated, "proponents of net neutrality regulation have not come to us to explain where the market is failing or what anticompetitive conduct we should challenge." This is a strong statement from a leading regulator who, in essence, stated that there haven't been any problems so those proposing regulations on net neutrality should be extremely careful what they are asking for when the market generally will take care of any issues. She stated that if there were issues of anti-competitive behavior from providers of internet services that it would be proper for regulatory bodies to step in.

Perhaps a telling comment on the raging battle over net neutrality. Chairman Majoras made some very direct comments that many people are now trying to respond to.



Technorati Tags: Cisco, Arroyo, video, VoD, Microsoft, Vinny Gullotto, VoIP, FTC