In the previous issue of the Viodi View, we took a look in the wayback mirror to 15 years ago and some of the things at the TelcoTV conference. Vantage Point’s Kevin Kloehn and Larry Thompson reminded me how far demands on the network have advanced since that time, as then 1 Mb/s was state-of-the-art. Thompson said he was criticized at the time for being overly optimistic for the need for bandwidth.
Fast-forward to 2017 and 1 Gb/s is available to something like 25% of the population and there the beginnings of 10 Gb/s service are starting to manifest in various locations. In 2002, we knew that video would be a driver, but most of us probably imagined the suppliers would be the traditional studios and content owners and not Silicon Valley disruptors, like Amazon, YouTube, Netflix and Facebook. It will be interesting to see what the next 15 years brings, as today’s fiber to premise infrastructures enables entirely new players and applications.
One of the people shown in the picture posted in the previous issue is long-time friend, Steve Pastorkovich, who was with OPASTCO in 2002. Fast-forward to the present and he is an independent consultant operating out of the Washington D.C. area. He reports on a recent and timely conference that covered Net Neutrality and more broadly the concept creative destruction.
Redl Highlights Rural Broadband in First Address as NTIA Chief at Telecoms Symposium by Steve Pastorkovich
David Redl, the newly-minted Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and Administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), put rural broadband front and center while making his first public remarks since being sworn into his new office. His keynote address to the annual U.S. Telecoms Symposium held on December 5, produced by the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies, noted that many Americans in rural areas “still can’t access broadband at the speeds needed to meaningfully participate in the modern economy.”
2017 Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) Award Winners Span the Globe by Alan Weissberger
The Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) announced its 2017 award recipients on December 7th after a late dinner in Santa Clara, California attended by over 1500 semiconductor industry executives. The GSA awards program has recognized the achievements of semiconductor companies in several categories ranging from outstanding leadership to financial accomplishments, as well as overall respect within the industry.
Reinventing the Wheel – Electrifying Mobility
The phrase “reinventing the wheel” is a typical admonishment for those who are recreating something that already has been developed and works pretty well. It is difficult to believe that someone could improve an invention so basic as the wheel, but from electric skateboards to robots to vehicles, we are starting to see the in-wheel motor as a building block for a new generation of moving things and people.
X-Ray Vision Via a Smart Phone Accessory
Everyone can have super human eyes using Vayyar’s low-cost, 3D imaging sensors. Vayyar makes an integrated circuit that operates from 3.5 to 10 GHz with up to 24 antennas to give objects sight. From security (see what’s on the other side of the wall) to health (detect heart beat) to finding a stud or a mouse in the wall, the applications seem endless.
1,500 Sq. Foot Frozen Yogurt Store Compressed to a 15 Sq. Foot Robot
A robot that makes a mean cup of frozen yogurt while shrinking a 1,500 square foot store into a 15 square space is the tasty business proposition behind Frobot, Inc. This Palo Alto start-up operates as a franchise model with a key distinction that front-line, retail employees are not necessary. Thanks to broadband and an easy-to-use app, an owner always knows the status of her frozen yogurt dispensing machines and when to add supplies or perform routine cleaning tasks.
Some Tweets and Short Thoughts:
- If you get a chance, view the Randy Klindt/Jonathan Chambers panel from the Calix ConneXions conference. Chambers encouraged operators to participate in the CAF Phase II auction and (1:09) “demonstrate that rural America is as important and will subscribe to levels of services as the rest of the country does.”
- GM sees that the future is clearly electric, shared and autonomous as seen in this presentation. They describe “AV as the biggest thing since the Internet.” Slide 16 seems to indicate that they are going to a motor in the wheel, as the new battery pack doesn’t show a motor above the pack, like their current generation.
- The City of San Jose indicates that, as a result of their RFI, an autonomous shuttle pilot as a transit circulator is being planned for the summer ’18 with a luxury ride-hailing service between Diridon Station & Santana Row to follow in 2019.
- While, at the same time, Voyage is already testing their autonomous taxi service at a private senior community in San Jose.
The Korner – Tom Olson on Cable TV Pioneer Phil Hamlin
Just after last Christmas, it was an honor to sit down with the man who hired me into the cable television industry many years ago and hear his perspective on his career and the people he has touched over the decades. Whether he was standing up for a friend who couldn’t rent a room because of the color of his skin or whether it was giving bonuses out of his own pocket, the theme of caring came through in our 3+ hour interview. After almost a year, all the episodes are now published at this link:
http://www.viodi.tv/2017/09/07/a-classic-silicon-valley-story-the-tomco-odyssey-begins/
Tom has that rare combination of a great engineer with a sharp mind for business. What I didn’t realize is that he had his mentors and that one of his major mentors was Phil Hamlin. The name Hamlin and converter were synonymous in the early days of set-top boxes. Set-tops extended the capability of cable television beyond the limits of broadcast TV. Tom Olson talks of his relationship with this cable pioneer and how he preemptively helped him identify and fix a problem that would have been a serious issue.
[Stay tuned to ViodiTV’s YouTube channel over the next couple weeks for additional CES coverage. In the meantime, Peace to you and yours and best wishes for 2018].
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