Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft Serious About VoIP
VoIPluvr writes "Microsoft, is quietly turning into a voice-over-IP powerhouse. It all started with the launch of its Microsoft Live Communication Server. Bill Gates says, 'Communicating in a better way has a huge impact for business,' and he states that he wants Microsoft to marry the PC, the cell phone and the desk phone. Recently, Microsoft teamed up with VoIP companies like Sylantro to offer hosted IP-PBX services, and now is rumored to have bought Teleo, a small VoIP company based in San Francisco. Microsoft's dominance on the desktop is helping the company extend its reach into the fast growing VoIP business, thus putting it in direct competition with the likes of Cisco. Teleo, for instance could help the company compete more effectively with the likes of Yahoo and Skype."
I wonder how this is going to play with the Telco's. I worked a long time at one of the Telco's and we did much/most of our work on IBM mainframes and Unix servers. Then our high level management and Microsoft marketers got very cozy and all of a sudden many of our critical applications began shifting to the Windows 2000, SQLServer, IIS platform. This was all very much with heavy opposition from technical staff, but their input wasn't wanted. In the course of five to ten years I saw us (them?) become very heavily vested in Microsoft platforms (including the public facing web site (which was nothing but problematic rolling out on the MS platform)).
And now, Microsoft wants to enter the market of the telcos? I know everyone is jumping in on this, and I for one have little empathy/sympathy for the PHB's who've made their beds with Microsoft, but I wonder how much they like Microsoft now?
The submitter, VoIPluvr, must be using the Yale comma style and not the more popular Harvard style.
Method for outputting a crashdump as a series of audio tones.
Has everyone lost their minds??? Every large compay in the world has it's hands in so many different pots it's amazing. UPS builds battle ships for god sake. Phillip Morris makes bread... The list is endless. If any corporation truely wants to succeed the need to diversify heavily. If microsoft or Linus Torvalds, for that matter, wants to build a better diaper I say go for it!!! Especially if it helps employ some people. On a side note there was once a flsh website that had an active matrix of people and the many MANY boards they sat on. It was very scarey seeing where some board members crossed conflicting companies. If anyone knows what it was let us all know.