Network access

Beefed-up cell phone networks in Washington, D.C., got their first real test over the holiday weekend--with reports of scattered outages affecting people who attended the pre-inauguration concert at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday.

According to a story in The Washington Post, Sunday's concert-goers "sent 10 times the volume of wireless calls, text messages, pictures and videos as on the busiest hour of a typical day." Some estimates put the crowd at 400,000.

"The vast majority of calls went through on the first try," Verizon Wireless spokesman John Johnson told the Post. "We'… Read more

When I head to Washington, D.C., this weekend for the 44th president's inauguration, there's one major question burning in my mind: Will my cell phone work?

I am one of the 240,000 people with free tickets attending President-elect Barack Obama's swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the U.S. Capitol next week. And like the other 2 million or so people descending upon Washington, D.C., this weekend for the festivities, I am counting on my cell phone to not only keep me informed of important traffic alerts and happenings around the nation's capital … Read more

Wireless equipment maker Meraki is helping make universal broadband a reality.

The company announced Thursday that it's working with a nonprofit called OneEconomy, which focuses on closing the digital divide by targeting low-income housing. Using Meraki's technology, OneEconomy will deliver affordable broadband via Wi-Fi to more than 100,000 families in the U.S. and, eventually, around the world over the next two years.

Meraki and OneEconomy will launch their partnership at San Francisco's largest housing development, which has more than 2,200 residents. AT&T is providing the DSL service.

OneEconomy provides affordable broadband to … Read more

LAS VEGAS--The sinking economy has actually been a good thing for Internet telephony service Skype.

Scott Durchslag, the company's chief operating officer, told reporters during a press conference here at the Consumer Electronics Show that Skype is actually seeing a surge in new users as people look for ways to cut their phone bills.

"We are seeing consumer take-up of Skype accelerating because people feel they can get value and quality without making a huge trade off," he said. "And we're seeing a whole new opportunity in the business market, as companies that I'd … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Verizon will soon allow some Fios TV customers to remotely access their DVRs online from a computer or via a Verizon Wireless cell phone, the company is expected to announce Thursday at the Consumer Electronics Show that it.

Using the remote access service, Fios TV subscribers are able to remotely review, change or add recording requests, delete recorded programs, browse and search TV and video-on-demand listings, and set parental controls.

The remote control service can be accessed through the Fios TV Web site or by using downloadable software on select Verizon Wireless handsets, including the LG enV2, LG Voyager … Read more

Microsoft is preparing to announce Wednesday it has been selected as the search provider for Verizon mobile phones, beating out archrival Google and Yahoo, according to a Reuters report.

Yahoo shares spiked during mid-day trading as news surfaced that Verizon had chosen a mobile search provider, but then fell back to earth after the Microsoft disclosure.

There has been much speculation over the past year about who would sign the coveted search deal with Verizon, which is expected to overtake AT&T as the No. 1 U.S. carrier after Verizon closes on its purchase of Alltel, Reuters said. … Read more

Cisco Systems, which builds the gear that powers the Internet, is making a big push this year at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas with new products that will help consumers move digital media around their homes.

The company plans to hold a press conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday to reveal the new products and its refined strategy for providing consumers with "communication and entertainment experiences that are more visual, more social and more personal," the company said in a press release.

To get a sneak peek at Cisco's strategy, I talked by phone with Ned Hooper, senior vice president of corporate development for Cisco's Consumer Business Group. While details of the soon-to-be-announced products are still under wraps, Hooper shed some light on why Cisco thinks there is a big opportunity in helping consumers get their homes connected and where the company plans to go with its strategy from next.

Q: Cisco isn't the first company to build products for the digital home. Dell, Gateway, and Hewlett-Packard have all tried to develop products to help consumers play their music and video throughout the home. So far, none of these companies have been very successful. Even Apple's Apple TV is a considered a niche product. Why do you think Cisco will have more success? Hooper: I think it's important to look at how media and entertainment is being delivered to the home. The presence of the Internet and digital media is transforming all these industries and how people access entertainment and how they communicate with each other.

Over 100 million households have set top boxes with their cable or digital satellite service. So the digital set top box market is doing well. Services such as video on demand and DVRs are in high demand. But building expensive devices for a single function hasn't proven to be a viable market.

Cisco has been positioned very well in terms of being able to offer infrastructure for these network services. And we're already in the consumer electronics business with Linksys and Scientific Atlanta. It might surprise you to know that Cisco has shipped over 160 million consumer devices. This includes set-top boxes and home routers.… Read more

Consumers are benefiting from competition between phone companies and cable operators when it comes to broadband pricing, but the same can't be said for pricing on TV services.

A report published by market research firm Pike & Fischer earlier this month notes that cable broadband prices have remained steady even though operators have been increasing speeds. The firm attributes this trend to more competition from Verizon's all-fiber network, Fios, which offers superfast broadband at competitive prices.

Average prices for cable modem service have remained steady at about $40 to $45 a month, the firm said. That's even … Read more

Parts of Asia, the Middle East, and Europe experienced Internet and telephone outages Friday when three undersea cables between Italy and Egypt in the Mediterranean Sea were damaged.

The affected cable systems, which run from Alexandria in northern Egypt to Sicily in southern Italy, carry more than 75 percent of traffic between the Middle East, Europe, and the United States.

It's still unclear how the cables were damaged or when they will be fixed. Reliance Globalcom, a communications provider in India, told Bloomberg News that there was no time frame for getting the network fixed. France Telecom said it … Read more