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Viodi View

Viodi View – 02/27/15

Root Canal and FCC Open Commission Meeting #

It seems fitting that this author listened to the FCC Open Commission Meeting yesterday, while undergoing an unplanned root canal. The irony is that I couldn’t get the thought out of my head about how much of my monthly wireless data allotment that the FCC’s streaming video feed was consuming; all I really needed was streaming audio, but the FCC didn’t provide that lower bandwidth stream. I also had to wonder, under the Title II rules adopted yesterday, will the carrier I use be able to continue to offer different plans and use pricing as a signal?

As Greg Ip in a Wall Street Journal article points out, paid prioritization is just another term for price discrimination, which is commonplace in other markets. Although in its official release the FCC reinforces the idea (pdf) that they will forbear price regulation, will future regulators have a different interpretation of what Title II means? The only thing that is probably clear from yesterday’s actions is that the story of Title II regulation of broadband and the Internet will continue to unfold.

In the meantime, here are some attention grabbing tweets from the past couple weeks on this topic:


Discovering Insights With the Data That’s Already There

An image of an operational Maxxian solution.
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Next week will be a fun time catch up with ACA members and others to get their perspectives on what transpired yesterday. It’s not to late to register for the ACA Summit. To get an idea of what the ACA Summit’s exhibit floor is like, check out the following interview with R.J. Juneau where he talks about operational and revenue improvements by data correlation techniques that have led one operator to reduce customer support required truck rolls by 15%.

Click here to view.


Past, Present & the FUTURE of Cars

A collage of images from the SV Forum's event on the future of the car.
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There once was a conference where experts tried to find a solution to the increasing problem of congestion, pollution and the associated ill-effects of the transportation system. The attendees didn’t find a solution and it looked like modern civilization was headed in the wrong direction. Spoiler alert, this conference certainly wasn’t the one produced by the SV Forum last week, which dealt with topics such as the connected and autonomous automobile and how society is once again set for a major technological disruption.

Click here to read more.


Better Eyesight Than Humans – The Advent of Low-Cost LiDAR 

The prototype LiDAR on top of a ski rack on a Mercedes.
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“You have the information you need.” [to control a self-driving vehicle], said Louay Eldada, CEO and Co-Founder of Quanergy. In an interview filmed during International CES 2015, he explained that his company developed a relatively low-cost, LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) system that includes lasers and detectors, as well as the associated processing. This allows vehicle manufacturers to easily add 3-dimensional “eyesight” to their existing drive and control systems, without requiring vehicle-to-vehicle communications or integration with external communications’ networks.

Click here to read more and view the video


We Can Figure This Out – Part 1

Dave Fridley Fridley of FARR Technologies discusses working from home .
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Dave Fridley of engineering firm FARR Technologies imparts a positive message about how independent operators can turn the disruptions and uncertainties of today’s telecom business to their advantage. He points out that operators have faced and met similar challenges in years past. He uses ITS Fiber as an example of an operator that has found opportunities outside of its traditional service offering, which is helping it become even more independent and sustainable in the long-term. This is the first of three videos from Fridley’s presentation filmed at the Beyond Fiber & Into the Data Center conference hosted by ITS Fiber.

Click here to view.


Some Tweets and Short Thoughts:


The Korner – More than a Flying Selfie #CES2015

A palm size drone at International CES 2015.
Click to view

An informal, but popular discussion at the Beyond Fiber and Into the Data Center conference was the topic of flying drones. One of the attendees had brought a drone to south Florida and showed some amazing pictures and practical uses for these flying robots. The conversation reminded me what I saw at last month’s International CES 2015.

Imagine the interesting memories that could be recorded if you had someone invisibly filming a family vacation. Now, imagine how great it would be if this person was 50 feet tall and could capture virtually impossible perspectives. Imagine no more, as the ZANO drone from the Torquing Group promises to be a kind of miniature flying selfie stick.

With over 12,000 backers, the Torquing Group easily reached its Kickstarter goals and is well on its way to production, which is slated for June, 2015. Although this is Torguing Group’s first foray away from its defense market roots and into the consumer electronic realm, they are well positioned for market success with this product. With its rich feature set, its simplicity and a relatively inexpensive price of $270, this should not only capture the hearts of many consumers, but also their images.

Click here to read more and to view the video.

Author Ken Pyle, Managing Editor

By Ken Pyle, Managing Editor

Ken Pyle is Marketing Director for the Broadband Forum. The mission of this 25+-year-old non-profit “is to unlock the potential for new markets and profitable revenue growth by leveraging new technologies and standards in the home, intelligent small business, and multi-user infrastructure of the broadband network.”

He is also co-founder of Viodi, LLC and Managing Editor of the Viodi View, a publication focused on the rural broadband ecosystem, autonomous vehicles, and electric aviation. He has edited and produced numerous multimedia projects for NTCA, US Telecom and Viodi. Pyle is the producer of Viodi’s Local Content Workshop, the Video Production Crash Course at NAB, as well as ViodiTV. He has been intimately involved in Viodi’s consulting projects and has created processes for clients to use for their PPV and VOD operations, as well authored reports on the independent telco market.

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