Will Financial Industry Need Underwater Data Centers?

Recent advances in high-frequency financial trading have made light propagation delays between geographically separated exchanges relevant,” write MIT professors Alexander Wissner-Gross and Cameron Freer.

The MIT researchers have done detailed calculations about where trading networks can locate data center infrastructure to capture additional microseconds. They first mapped out the locations of major global exchanges, and then charted the optimal placement of servers to create “chains” that could accelerate the transmission of pricing data and execution of trades. Many of the locations are under oceans.

read the paper here

Verizon Wireless to Sell iPhone: Only Issue is How Many

Among the longest-running "dramas" in the mobile business has been the question of when the Apple iPhone would be for sale by a second U.S. mobile provider. The betting generally has been that it would be Verizon Wireless. Here's a discussion of the potential differences, based in part on the different air interfaces and networks AT&T and Verizon Wireless operate.

Dish Wants to Buy a CLEC

Dish Network wants to acquire a competitive local exchange carrier, Liberty-Bell Telecom, that would give Dish the ability to bundle telephone service in 10 states, the Denver Post reports.

Liberty-Bell serves 6,000 residential and 4,000 business customers in Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. More important though, is that it is licensed to offer services in 10 states and has applications pending in four other states.

The historic take on the satellite TV providers has been that they might suffer as telcos and cable companies offered triple-play services. But Dish Network and DirecTV appear to be taking clear moves to alleviate that concern, in part. Dish would have to file applications in other states and acquire business rights to common carrier voice services in those additional areas to offer voice services on a wider basis.

Dish looks to acquire Liberty-Bell telecom - The Denver Post

No Current Plans to Acquire Clearwire, Sprint Says

Sprint has no current plans to acquire the rest of Clearwire, the company says. The statement, and other actions recently taken by Clearwire's owners, seem aimed at reassuring Sprint investors that the company would not be affected by any Clearwire default on its debt obligations.

The company does have the right to acquire more "exchangeable notes" in Clearwire, an option exercisable up to Jan. 2, 2011, that could be converted into more Clearwire shares.

But Sprint says "no decision on whether to exercise its preemptive rights has been made."

Sprint says it continues to hold discussions with Clearwire regarding further investment in the company but "has no plans at present to acquire Clearwire."

Sprint also said that the shareholder's agreement has been amended to permit Sprint, at any time, to unilaterally surrender voting securities to reduce its voting security percentage below 50 percent. That's important because some observers have worried that Sprint could be affected by any potential financial default on Clearwire's part.

Sprint now has additional flexibility to avoid any risk that Sprint incurs a default under its debt agreements because of its voting interest in Clearwire. Any reduction would only affect Sprint’s voting shares in Clearwire. Sprint’s economic interest in Clearwire would not be affected.

Sprint Newsroom | Sprint Statement on Closing of Clearwire Debt Offering

Google Voice for the iPad & iPod Touch

Google Voice now is available for the iPod Touch and iPad, Google says. Users can download a new version of Google Voice that lets them use all the features of the app on these devices, such as sending and receiving free text messages, with the exception of direct mobile calls.

While users can’t use their iPods or iPads as phones, they can use it to initiate Google Voice calls with your phones, as would be the case for many other Google Voice use cases, as when Google Voice is used to create a call session between two actual phones, with Google Voice as the set-up intermediary.

Google Voice Blog: Google Voice app now supports iPad & iPod Touch

Where is Innovation in the Telco Space?

Dave Michels asks Craig Walker, Google Entrepreneur in Residence where the innovation is now at telecom companies, either established or startups.

"Tough question," Walker says. "I think there's a lot of innovation on the mobile side with regards to the network, devices and applications."

"As for telephony services and features themselves though, most of the innovation seems to continue to come from the non-traditional providers like Google, Digium" and others.

In part, that is partly because most of the newer ways of providing voice services using fixed lines have something to do with web-based feature integration. Mobility, on the other hand, has the advantage of faster introduction and replacement of multi-function devices, more on-board processing and memory, video and multimedia features that are difficult to replicate on the wired networks.

That same sort of difference also occurs even on the fixed network. If you were trying to create something new, would you design for a PC with web browser and broadband Internet access, or a telephone? Pretty much the same sort of decision making might inform an entrepreneur's decisions about distribution channels as well.

Would you rather create an application that can be served up from any web browser, or an app that requires telco permission to offer or sell?

Also, there is the sheer matter of opportunity. As big and important a business as voice communications is, would you rather develop apps that create new businesses and markets, or take some part of what already exists?

In other words, creativity increasingly is deployed elsewhere for all sorts of good reasons.

No Jitter | features | Craig's Wild adVentures

U.S. Army May Make Smartphones Standard Issue

The U.S. Army wants to issue every soldier a smartphone, both for training and in-the-field operations. According to the Army Times, approved devices might include iPhone or Android devices, and it is possible each soldier will have a choice of preferred device.

The Army also is looking at paying some portion of monthly phone bills for the troops.

Lt. Gen. Michael Vane, director of the Army Capabilities Integration Center said the Army would issue these smart phones just like any other piece of equipment a soldier receives.

Army sees smart phones playing important role - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times