Posted on 08. Feb, 2010 by Roland Jimenez in NetworkIP Blog
Every month, NetworkIP publishes a new ad in the Prepaid Press Magazine. As part of our new Blog format, we’ve decided to share each ad with our site visitors. This month, we focus on a very important element that a service provider needs to succeed in this industry – The Right People and Skills. This ad reads:
W
e’re with you…every step of the way
NetworkIP has assembled one of the most experienced support teams in the industry. Partner with us, and you can not only trust that we’ll ensure the ease of transition but you can also count on us to deliver:
- your own dedicated Solutions Manager
- 24/7 support that’s just a phone call away
- one-on-one training (transition and new releases)
- superior level of customer service
- lifelong partnership to help you succeed
On your path to profitability, we’ll be there to help you along the way – your success is our success.
We Take You Higher.
Posted on 08. Feb, 2010 by Roland Jimenez in NetworkIP Blog
Welcome to the new NetworkIP corporate website. Chances are you’ve already navigated your way through many of these pages and if you’ve been here before, noticed several changes.
Our goal was simple: make it easier for our site visitors to understand who we are and what we do. We started by separating our services from technology and showcasing them directly on our home page. In our continued commitment to help our customers succeed, we’ve also developed a Resources center. Here we provide access to the tools that make running a prepaid business more effectively along with informational videos, downloads and other resources – expect more soon! Additionally, we’ve enhanced our Blog to include any and all news we post along with being able to access the latest directly from the home page. And, don’t be surprised to see posts written by a variety of authors including Pete Pattullo, NetworkIP Chief Executive Officer & Founder.
We hope you enjoy the new website and be sure to stay connected and sign up for our quarterly newsletter launching spring 2010.
Posted on 30. Dec, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
Every day is a wonderful day when working at NetworkIP!
OK, so maybe I’m exaggerating a bit; some days aren’t so wonderful and some are even down right tough, but that is true of every job (even Santa’s). However, the holidays truly are a wonderful time of year to work at NetworkIP. No, I’m not just saying that because it’s the time of year when we have our annual rockin’ company party.
It has everything to do with knowing that our relatively small company makes a significant impact in so many lives around the world. As we watch our call counts reach peak volumes during this holiday season, we know that families and friends across the globe are being connected. All of our employees are hard at work every day to ensure that each valued call is connected with quality and clarity.
Knowing that we are trusted to provide these connections makes being part of NetworkIP and coming to work each day so special for me. “Your Connections. Our Commitment.”, is much more than just a tag line for all of us.
So pick up the phone and stay connected to your family and friends during this special time of the year.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP and Jaduka
Posted on 07. Oct, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
Given the speed of technology advancements it is imperative that we all keep our eyes and ears open to new opportunities. In my opinion, there has not been anything as exciting as what we have seen take place in the mobile industry in the last 5 years – both here in the U.S. and abroad.
From a prepaid perspective, 2009 has to be the most impressive year yet. It was in early January that Boost Mobile introduced their $50 unlimited plan and from that point forward the “Prepaid Mobile Price Wars” began. Maisie Ramsay just recently wrote a great article titled “Duking It Out In Prepaid” in Wireless Week on this subject. Beyond the price wars, the introduction of smart phones and the demand for mobile applications have really changed the face of prepaid mobile.
Also in 2009 we have seen an explosion in the number of mobile applications developed, and more importantly paid for and downloaded. While Apple’s iTunes store model has been by far the most successful (2 billion applications downloaded to date), Nokia, T-Mobile, Verizon, and Windows have all introduced their application store models in an attempt to gain market share in this space. I foresee the day when having a mobile application for your company is just as important as having a website.
As I leave my hotel room this morning and make the short walk to the San Diego Convention Center to attend CTIA Wireless I.T. and Entertainment my eyes and ears will be open to the many new mobile opportunities that lie ahead for NetworkIP and our customers.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP and Jaduka
Posted on 13. Sep, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
Gary Kim, editor in chief of IP Business Magazine, shares his thoughts on “the on-again, off-again potential merger between MetroPCS Communications and Leap (Cricket) Wireless” that might be on again.
With Sprint Nextel’s recent buyout of Virgin Mobile and just this past week watching the merger in the UK between Orange and T-Mobile take place, it is no wonder that analysts are talking about MetroPCS and Cricket. Kim makes a great point in his post by suggesting that this price-war between the two carriers can’t be good for either company for an extended period of time. It only makes reasonable business sense that the two carriers will have to make some move in the near future to avoid the “race to zero.”
I for one would applaud a merger between the two companies. Better yet, I’d like to see some smaller regional wireless providers like Pocket Communications and US Cellular included in that merger – that would give the larger carriers a reason to step up their efforts and provide more competitive products in the market.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP
Posted on 18. Aug, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
We wouldn’t be the Gladiators of Prepaid if we just sat back and kept quiet. If you are coming to the Prepaid Press Expo this year you’ll have a number of opportunities to meet NetworkIP.
You’ll always be able to find one of us at booth 323 from sunrise to sunset this Tuesday – Thursday. We also have a number of speaking engagements planned throughout the duration of this year’s event.
Our CEO, Pete Pattullo will appear twice on Tuesday. First at 10:00 AM, Pete will talk about “Prepaid Virtual Operators – Turnkey Hosted Solutions for Card Providers.” Then later in the afternoon at 1:30 PM Pete will talk about “New Developments in Prepaid Technology – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.”
On Wednesday and Thursday morning, Nichole Janner, our VP of Prepaid Services & I (Brian Kirk), VP of Business Development will have show floor presentations. Nichole is keeping her presentation under wraps for now. I’ll be talking about the Prepaid Mobile Space and providing insight on what has occurred in just the past 6-months and how the prepaid calling card industry can best leverage the prepaid mobile space.
If your tied up during the day, then you still have a chance to catch up with one of us from 3:00 – 5:00 PM on Wednesday during the Gladiators of Prepaid Happy Hour Lounge at booth 512 – 514 which we are sponsoring.
We look forward to meeting you at the show.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP
Posted on 01. Apr, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
The annual CTIA conference kicked off in Las Vegas earlier today. Due to a conflict I was unable to make it for opening day, however, I’ll be on the conference floor both Thursday and Friday of this week.
According to today’s press releases about the show’s attendance more than 1,000 folks have registered to attend this event. Of the many wireless/mobile conferences in the U.S., I highly recommend you check out CTIA in the future if you have never attended before.
I first went to CTIA in 2007 when we were in our early stages of developing our Text-to-Talk products. My focus when attending CTIA that first time was to meet with all the major Short Messaging Service Center (SMSC) providers like Click-a-Tell, Sybase 365, VeriSign, etc. in order to establish SMS Points of Presence in the different countries we were targeting for these products.
While at the 2007 CTIA conference, I couldn’t help but be distracted by what was then a plethora of new mobile technologies. I’m referring to smart phones, mobile TV, voice-mail to text services, GPS, etc. Now, only two years later, we have 3G technologies, 4G and LTE networks are being engineered, and the end-all be-all game changer the Apple iPhone now exists and in my opinion is the ultimate Unified Communication tool for the consumer.
Given the poor economic climate we are currently in, the telecom industry has been no stranger to numerous layoffs, cutbacks, and even some Chapter 11s. So, as I prepare for CTIA tomorrow I’m trying to remain optimistic about the new technologies and services that the mobile operators and MVNOs will unveil. I suspect this industry to be focused more on providing value and savings to the consumer versus new and innovative services. In recent months numerous MVNOs have begun offering unlimited calling plans and they are in a fast paced race to gain market share. Reducing customer churn is also high on the priority list for all mobile operators and MVNOs right now.
In late February ‘09, Stacey Higginbotham of GigaOM assembled a Wireless Scorecard based on Q4 ’08 statistics from AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon. Based on Stacey’s breakdown she concludes that cheap rate plans win and that the iPhone is helping to keep AT&T running strong. To note, these numbers were released just prior to Sprint and T-Mobile releasing their $50 unlimited prepaid plans so this year’s Q1 numbers should answer whether those plans proved successful or not.
Tomorrow I’ll have a better since of what’s happening and how the carriers are responding. I remain optimistic and look forward to CTIA ’09 along with the other 1,000 attendees that I’ll be sharing the conference floor with.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP
Posted on 04. Feb, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
An article this morning on mobile commerce – “Survey Says: Retailers Need to Go Mobile” – referenced a recent survey conducted by Foresee Results that reported nearly a third of online shoppers said they used their mobile phone as part of their regular shopping trip. Whether used for calling or texting a friend for advice prior to making a purchase, or for taking a picture of a product with their mobile phone and sending it to themselves to look at it later from home, the mobile phone has become an important tool that consumers use when making purchase decisions. The article went on to explain the need for brick-and-mortar retailers to consider developing and offering mobile applications to their customers in hopes of increasing their sales numbers.
The article concluded by asking its readers, “How else do you think brick-and-mortar retailers could appeal to mobile-enabled shoppers?”
I’m a huge fan of mobile applications and I use my mobile for anything and everything that I can.
At NetworkIP and Jaduka, we have long envisaged that consumers who buy products and services at brick-and-mortar retail outlets will migrate to buying through their mobile phones and hand-held devices. That’s why NetworkIP and Jaduka have deployed a robust, global transaction processing platform that brands can use to engage with their customers both online and offline.
Our platform affords consumers four unique options for purchasing product, activating products, and even renewing existing product subscriptions: via the web, through traditional voice applications (using both automated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) solutions and traditional customer service), through mobile devices and via over 500,000 retail outlets equipped with Point of Sale (POS) capabilities.
Hunter Newby of Internet Telephony Magazine described our platform as “a virtual real estate for a giant digital Wal-Mart!…an IP version of a free-trade zone allowing multiple parties to virtually meet in the middle and transact.”
We agree, and the future, is, indeed, exciting!
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP and Jaduka
Posted on 26. Jan, 2009 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
Last Wednesday at PTC ‘09 in sunny Honolulu, Hawaii, our CEO and President, Pete Pattullo, participated in a Telecom 2.0 panel moderated by Gary Kim of IP Business magazine. Joining Pete on the panel were IntelePeer CEO Frank Fawzi and Jeff Lattomus, Area VP of MetaSwitch.
Pete shared with Gary and the audience that NetworkIP formed in 1997 as a Telecom 2.0 company; we built our platform from a “clean sheet of paper” and pioneered a revolutionary business model (at the time) of providing hosted voice applications for customers. Back then, the Telecom 2.0 label didn’t exist, and analysts often categorized us as a CLEC (competitive local exchange carrier).
Now, 10 years later, our core voice and transaction services platform is highly evolved. Our patented software has matured through 8 iterations. Our hosted services model makes it easy for customers to run and manage all varieties and complexities of business applications. And while we process over 25 million API transactions a month, we realize that those APIs are only the table stakes of Telecom 2.0.
For we are all about enabling frictionless transactions and solutions for the enterprise that enable customers to easily and cost-effectively solve complex business problems and drive efficiency, especially in this challenging economic climate.
Pete further elaborated that In 2009, our subsidiary, Jaduka, will be working closely with partners like IBM and initiating new relationships to meet the growing demands of Fortune 2000 companies. We’ll also integrate our real-time transaction processing engine, our billing solution, and provisioning capabilities in ways that save our customers money and enhance their business processes.
Telecom 2.0: that’s where we’re headed.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP & Jaduka
Posted on 23. Dec, 2008 by Brian Kirk in NetworkIP Blog
While most companies are reporting lower than expected earnings in 2008, there are some bright spots. NetworkIP has had our best year ever, reflecting a growing adoption of the NetworkIP Jaduka “Intelligent” Platform for telephony, voice/data applications, and feature development.
The Wall Street Journal reports that while software purchases are expected to decline, three pockets of technology will grow: Software as a Service (SaaS), Mobile Productivity Applications, and Security solutions.
We agree. We’re seeing a large increase in the numbers and types of telephony and commerce applications running on the NetworkIP Jaduka “Intelligent” Platform. Adoption of our SaaS solutions and voice API is growing by about a million API calls a month. Our voice API opens call control and transaction processing to businesses, enabling them to more efficiently manage products and accounts in the cloud. In 2009 we expect to see substantial gains as our platform is adopted by thousands of businesses developing applications on popular SaaS ecosystems like Serena.
In 2009 we will be releasing the first of several Mobile Productivity applications, including an iPhone Conferencing application based on Jaduka’s Conferencing API. Just like our Web-based Conferencing solution, the new iPhone Conferencing application will allow users to start and manage conference calls from the palm of your hand. Whether you need to connect to 3 people or 50 people at once, this application will make it easy.
It’s frictionless solutions like those offered by NetworkIP and Jaduka that are connecting people, improving business, increasing efficiency, and delivering significant value and costs savings to businesses. We look forward to 2009 with enthusiasm and vigor.
Brian Kirk
VP Business Development
NetworkIP & Jaduka
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