CXTech Week 20 2023 News and Analysis

The purpose of this CXTech Week 20 2023 newsletter is to highlight, with commentary, some of the news stories in CXTech this week. What is CXTech?  The C stands for Connectivity, Communications, Collaboration, Conversation, Customer; X for Experience because that’s what matters; and Tech because the focus is enablers.

You can sign up here to receive the CXTech News and Analysis by email or by my Substack. Please forward this on if you think someone should join the list. And please let me know any CXTech news I should include.

Covered this week:

  • Please Complete the Open Source Telecom Software Survey 2023
  • TADSummit 2023 Agenda begins to take shape
  • Enghouse Offers $21 Million For Bankrupt Lifesize
  • OpenAI tries to hamper Open Source Competition with Regulation
  • Those in Power have another go at Dissing Remote Work
  • India’s Vodafone Idea Replaces Three Existing OCS with Ericsson Charging
  • KDDI to Trial Vonage’s VCP
  • People, Gossip, and Frivolous Stuff

Please Complete the Open Source Telecom Software Survey 2023

Yep, I’m going to keep reminding you until June 15th 😉

The purpose of this survey is to gather your experiences and opinions in using Open Source Telecom Software, and share an anonymized aggregate result with those that compete the survey. I’ll also present a summary of the results at TADSummit in October 2023.

This survey follows on from the surveys run in 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019, with the results presented here: 2022, 2021 2020 and 2019. Thank you for your continued support.

Thank you to Olle E. Johansson, Sandro Gauci, Dave Horton, Arin Sime, and Alberto González Trastoy for your support in creating this year’s survey.

Here is the link to the Open Source Telecom Software Survey 2023. Please complete the survey by June 15th, thank you. It should take between 5-10 minutes depending on how many questions you answer.

TADSummit 2023 Agenda begins to take shape

We have so many sessions to add, but already I’m excited at what we’re bringing together.

Enghouse Offers $21 Million For Bankrupt Lifesize

The last time we mentioned Lifesize was its Seranova acquisition in 2000. Marlin Equity Partners was behind that deal. I was circumspect about adding video to the contact center, and not convinced on many of these quality, performance and optimization tools, that were folded into Serenova.

LifeSize is filing for bankruptcy with Enghouse subsequently purchasing a portion of its assets and brands, for example Lifesize, Kaptivo, ProScheduler, Serenova, and Telstrat.

Enghouse bought Altitude, a portuguese CCaaS, in Jan 2001, covered in CXTech Week 3 2001. They also got a bargain with Vidyo, $40M on $60M revenues, covered in CXTech Week 21 2019. Even if the acquisition was just for the accounts, at $21M for $60-$80 in revenue it’s a good deal. Enghouse seems to have a knack in bargain hunting acquisitions.

OpenAI tries to hamper Open Source Competition with Regulation

On the post about the Open Source Telecom Software Survey 2023, I covered the leaked Google report on AI. We Have No Moat

“Directly Competing With Open Source Is a Losing Proposition

This recent progress has direct, immediate implications for our business strategy. Who would pay for a Google product with usage restrictions if there is a free, high quality alternative without them?

And we should not expect to be able to catch up. The modern internet runs on open source for a reason. Open source has some significant advantages that we cannot replicate.”

Source: Leaked Google report, We Have No Moat.

Looks like OpenAI is trying to create a moat with regulation given all the cash its raised, given its performance in the senate hearing. In the Open Source survey we ask a question “What Large Language Models are you evaluating for use with your projects?” Currently ChatGPT is in the lead, but as Google’s report notes, that will change.

  • ChatGPT
  • Claude
  • Bard
  • LLaMA
  • Alpaca
  • Vicuna
  • Dolly
  • OpenAssistant

Those in Power have another go at Dissing Remote Work

Speaking at the British Chambers of Commerce’s Global Annual Conference 2023 yesterday, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt suggested the office should be the “default” for workers as he’s concerned about the creativity lost in permanent remote work. No data was provided.

Musk calls WFH ‘morally wrong.’ No data provided, just a unfounded claim about the ‘laptop class’ “asking everyone else to not work from home while they do and it’s wrong.”

It appears WFH is becoming a politically polarizing issue, sigh. Remember to follow Tony Jamous for a counter view and more importantly data.

There are many jobs that require people be in the office, factory, surgery, restaurant, shop, farm, etc. And there are jobs that can be done remotely. I’ve worked from home for 25+ years delivering to customers around the world. During the pandemic many of my neighbors commented on how they were now “working like you”.

Dall E prompt – boss attempting to stop people working from their homes. no text

India’s Vodafone Idea Replaces Three Existing OCS with Ericsson Charging

I liked this article because it’s quite unusual in avoiding all the usual buzzwords of cloud, transformation, 5G, innovation, blah, blah, blah. Rather 3 charging systems were consolidated into one, with I assume cost savings. Would have been nice to have had a figure on that. We need more matter of fact reporting than buzzword bingo.

KDDI to Trial Vonage’s VCP

Back in 2013, KDDI closed its API program and resold Twilio, it was a Japanese special. Twilio did not repeat this deal with other carriers. In March 2023 KDDI announced its closure.

And today (18th May) KDDI announced a memorandum of understanding to provide the Vonage Communication Platform (VCP) provided by Vonage Japan. With a trial over the summer, and to provide the service from this fall.

Etisalat and Vonage made a similar announcement last year which we covered in CXTech Week 44 2021. I referenced KDDI/Twilio in that article. Chatting with people in Japan knowledgeable about the KDDI/Twilio deal, it did generate business, but never enough to make either party happy, it was a special situation.

People, Gossip, and Frivolous Stuff

Sam Machin has an additional role as the EU Solutions Architect at the Connectivity Standards Alliance. He’s also the Dev Evangelist at Stacuity, sponsor of TADHack and TADSummit.

Deva DeDios is now Developer Marketing Manager at Union.ai. And Union AI has raised $19.1M series A.

Bogdan-Andrei Iancu is not the CEO of SIPhub

Răzvan Crainea is now Chief Technology Officer at SIPhub

Luka Milošević has won the prestigious Annual Award in the field of computing for MSc. students by the Mathematical Institute of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts for his master’s thesis. At TADHack Global 2019 the hack Inbus by Andjelka Milovanovic, Stefan Kapunac, Luka Milosevic; won Telesign Global Prize of $1000. InBus automatically notifies users on someone’s distance or time needed to reach a destination, using TeleSign SMS API.

Sunil Tolani is now President- New Business Development for the Group at Raymond Limited. We first met when he was with Idea Cellular.

Shawn Cook is now Vice President of New Business Direct Sales at Octane11.

Michele Campriani is now Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Optiva Inc. I’ve known Michele since Accanto Systems.

Vamshi Sriperumbudur is now Senior Vice President Marketing at Qualys. I first met Vamshi at Apigee.

Igor Pavlov’s Quilgo is on Product Hunt featuring their AI quiz generator https://lnkd.in/dPbRrj8f. Please support them. Boost your hiring process with Quilgo! Read the announcement here https://lnkd.in/dcx5g5sa.

You can sign up here to receive the CXTech News and Analysis by email or by my Substack.