From computerworld this morning

Telecom chief executive Paul Reynolds has joined the board of XConnect Global Networks, which provides VoIP and IP-based services

From the Xconnect website

XConnect’s award winning services enable over 400 VoIP service providers and carriers worldwide to peer with millions of VoIP endpoints.

Am I alone in thinking that this is way up the bizarre scale? Telecom’s stance around fast broad band, VoIP Trunking and even VoIP solutions has been to treat it like something distasteful stuck to the bottom of your shoe, and their new CEO does this????

Disclosure – Diversity Limited is a consultant to Telecom New Zealand and its subsidiaries.

7 Comments
  • Hi Ben… Telecom has been trialling voice over IP, and says it intends to provide that service at some point. However, if it can make hundreds of millions of dollars on providing POTS, there’s not much incentive to invest in an alternative that won’t bring home the bacon on the same scale.

  • Hi Juha,

    I wrote this one. I’m aware of several Voip & UC projects within the group. At one level (the old world) you are absolutely correct. But Telecom are (slowly!) trying to build a new world business.

    my point with this post was to question Paul R involvement in a company that is clearly pursuing a competitive strategy to his ‘own’ company

  • Sorry, jumped the gun… wasn’t Ben who wrote the above entry. Anyway, I see what you mean, “UM”. It is a bit mystifying from that point of view.

  • I’m a guest ‘poster’. It does get a little confusing I guess.

  • You discredit yourself UM! – you’re an integral part of Diversity Blogs. The whole being more than the sum of the parts and all that……

  • Its a bit like S+S vs SaaS for Microsoft. Sometimes people realise (the market kicks their shins) they were wrong but admitting it publicly is a much to bigger pill to swallow. So they just action the changed stance. 🙂

  • Ben, thx for the nice words.

    Marc I agree with you (more than you will ever know!) Looking forward to the day UC hits the market big time.

    S+S is interesting.To me its a philosophical argument. MS do have a lot (billions!)of reasons to maintain a on-prem business. Aside from that tho,their hybrid play does have some legs imho.

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