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Technology Stocks : Voice-on-the-net (VON), VoIP, Internet (IP) Telephony -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (2062)	12/8/1998 8:50:00 PM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 3178

Cisco to acquire router developer December 8, 1998 InfoWorld: Cisco Systems last week announced at CTI Expo, in San Jose, Calif., that it will acquire PipeLinks, a developer of Synchronous Optical Network (SONet)/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) routers that can simultaneously transport circuit-based and IP traffic. PipeLinks' SONet/SDH router allows service providers to offer integrated voice and data services at the edge of the network. The router will use Cisco's Internetwork Operating System software as a foundation and will enable the delivery of services such as managed Internet access and native LAN services. The acquisition is part of Cisco's end-to-end optical internetworking strategy, according to company officials. Cisco has been a minority investor in PipeLinks since 1997. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, shares of Cisco common stock -- with an aggregate value of about $126 million -- will be exchanged for all outstanding shares and options of PipeLinks not yet owned by Cisco. Cisco expects a one-time charge against after-tax earnings between 0.03 cents and 0.06 cents per share for purchased in-process research and development expenses in the second quarter of fiscal year 1999. The completion of the acquisition is still subject to approval by the board of directors of each company. Cisco Systems Inc., in San Jose, is at www.cisco.com. PipeLinks Inc., in San Jose, is at www.pipelinks.com. [Copyright 1998, InfoWorld]

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (2062)	12/8/1998 9:11:00 PM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Respond to of 3178

New Standard-- TAPI 3.0/ Just What The Doctor Ordered For CTI? December 8, 1998 COMPUTER RESELLER NEW: New York -- The sale of computer telephone integration (CTI) applications may have been off to a sluggish start due to deployment complexities. Vendors have been trying to solve this problem by developing open- standard-programming interfaces that would reduce the customization CTI applications often require today. Microsoft Corp., Redmond, Wash., which has been able to transform many of its programming interfaces into de facto standards, has tried to follow a similar course with Telephony Application Programming Interface (TAPI). But the company's interface has struggled to date, said industry observers. "Customers and third parties have preferred proprietary interfaces because they offer more functionality than standard interfaces, which usually support only least-common-denominator functions," said Art Schoeller, research director at the Gartner Group Inc., a Stamford, Conn.-based market-research firm. Microsoft hopes to catch up-maybe even surpass-those proprietary interface competitors with the release of TAPI 3.0, which will be bundled with Windows 2000 (formerly known as Windows NT 5.0). Once the new operating system ships, the developer will offer third-party CTI application developers integration with Active Directory (Microsoft's distributed directory service); support for Sun Microsystems Inc.'s Java programming language; and connectivity between Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and Internet voice services, said Microsoft executives. Yet there is skepticism about how much interest these features will garner from the indirect channel, users and developers. "Because Microsoft has not been able to deliver needed functionality in a timely manner, TAPI has gone from great to good to poor to simply not viable, " said Chris Thompson, industry analyst at Dataquest, a San Jose, Calif.-based market-research firm. Microsoft's interface has struggled for several reasons. The company's interest is mainly at the desktop level, but customers have not yet embraced applications such as unified messaging, according to analysts. "Vendors have been unable to demonstrate how companies can save money by deploying desktop CTI applications," said Schoeller. Parallel Technologies Inc., a Dublin, Ohio-based reseller, has had some success in this area. The VAR built a CTI application for a four-location, 80-stylist hair salon that improves appointment bookings and sends a notification to a pager on a stylist's belt whenever a walk-in customer arrives. "The salon wanted to notify its stylists in a discreet way so current customers would not feel rushed," said Martin Jacobs, vice president of Parallel. Therein is the dichotomy: Resellers have found it easier to sell CTI solutions in niche areas, mainly corporate call centers-an area where TAPI has been weak. TAPI 3.0 includes features so agents can exchange caller information more easily and could prop up the Microsoft interface in that market. Resellers may have to wait for reinforcements. Microsoft has been hesitant to set firm shipment dates for Windows 2000, but the new name and a third beta test program indicate that volume shipments probably will occur near the end of 1999, rather than in the beginning. CTI vendors will then need time to build applications that take advantage of TAPI's new features. To date, 400 third parties have delivered 550 products for current versions of TAPI and already many are working to enhance their products so they take advantage of the new features, said Mark Lee, a product manager for Windows NT server communications at Microsoft. Support is needed sooner rather than later, said observers. "Microsoft has been talking about TAPI 3.0 for almost two years now," said Gartner Group's Schoeller. "The interface needs to gain momentum soon because it is losing the battle to proprietary alternatives." Paul Korzeniowski is a freelance writer based in Sudbury, Mass. --- Growth Prescription: -Microsoft to bundle TAPI 3.0 in Windows 2000 once the new operating system ships. -Proprietary systems have been more functional. -Lack of timely shipping dates for TAPI 3.0 is an issue. Copyright c 1998 CMP Media Inc.