Tag: ceo

  • Verizon Clarifies Succession Plans; Names Lowell McAdam as COO

    Verizon Wireless President and CEO Lowell C. McAdam has been named president and chief operating officer of Verizon Communications, reporting to Chairman and CEO Ivan G. Seidenberg, effective Oct. 1, 2010.

    According to Verizon, the appointment of McAdam by the Verizon Board of Directors "is an important step in the succession process for when Seidenberg retires from the company." McAdam will have responsibility for the operations of Verizon’s network-based businesses — Verizon Wireless and Verizon Telecom and Business — as well as Verizon Services Operations. Also reporting to him will be the technology management and CIO functions.

    Separately, Verizon named Francis J. Shammo, currently president of Verizon Telecom and Business, to become executive vice president and chief financial officer of the company, effective Nov. 1. Shammo will succeed John F. Killian, who last Monday announced he will retire around the end of the year.

    Verizon also announced that Daniel S. Mead, currently executive vice president and chief operating officer at Verizon Wireless, will become president and chief executive officer of Verizon Wireless, succeeding McAdam.

    Verizon Chairman and CEO Seidenberg said, "This is a timely and logical next step in our evolution as we put in place an outstanding senior executive team that can carry us into the future."

    Seidenberg emphasized that the decisions to name these executives to key posts was based on their individual successes operating a wide range of businesses. "The pedigree of these executives puts them in a league of their own. Each one of them is a leader who has repeatedly delivered results and enhanced shareholder value."

    Regarding McAdam, Seidenberg said, "The Board’s selection of Lowell to this key, central position underscores its commitment to reward success while working with me to prepare our company for an executive transition in the future. Lowell is undeniably the right executive at the right time, given his track record of growth while managing one of the most dynamic and successful businesses in America."

    In his current role at Verizon Wireless, McAdam, 56, leads the premier wireless provider with the wireless voice and 3G broadband data network. Prior to assuming this position in 2007, McAdam served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Verizon Wireless from the company’s inception in 2000, helping to build the industry’s leading wireless company.

    Previously, McAdam was president and CEO of PrimeCo Personal Communications, a joint venture owned by Bell Atlantic and Vodafone AirTouch. He also served as PrimeCo’s chief operating officer, responsible for overseeing the build, deployment and successful launch of the new company’s customer service operations and all-digital network.

    McAdam has served as vice president – international operations for AirTouch Communications and was lead technical partner for cellular ventures in Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Italy, Korea and Japan. McAdam joined AirTouch as executive director of international applications and operations in 1993. Prior to that, he held various executive positions with Pacific Bell.

    In addition to serving on the Verizon Wireless Board of Representatives, McAdam is a member and past chairman of the Board of Directors of the CTIA, the wireless industry trade association.

    Related news
    Verizon to Build 4G LTE Network in Rural America
    Verizon VoIP Services Show Strong Growth at 10-Year Mark
    BlackBerry Bold 9650 Coming to Verizon
    Verizon Announces New Unlimited Voice Plans

  • Tadiran Telecom Eyes VoIP market in Africa, Partners Teledata


    Tadiran Telecom has signed a distribution agreement with Teledata Technologies in a collaboration aimed at targeting "vast" VoIP opportunities in the African telecom market.

    The IP business telephony and communications supplier has also announced the appointment of Zeev Aviv as acting President and CEO.

    Until recently, he served as VP Sales and Marketing.

    He will be replacing Eitan Livneh, who served as President and CEO since early 2007.

    Aviv said Africa is one of the most valuable emerging markets, with opportunities abounding in Kenya and by extension the wider East and Central Africa region.

    "It is a fertile market that has great opportunities for telecom growth," he said.

    Aviv said numerous tenders are currently advertised for corporate telephony solutions that specify IP-PBX platforms.

    He said the demand for VoIP telephony services in the region has drastically increased due to improved cost-benefit awareness.

    Many corporate organizations are decentralizing regionally (with Nairobi as the region’s hub) and are looking for converged solutions with maximum ROI.

    In many organizations, the older-generation, traditional PABXs are now being phased out due to the emerging technological trends and the related cost benefits.

    Requirements are expected to increase drastically with the advent of the TEAMS undersea fiber optic cable project (linking the East Africa region) and due to the increase of Internet bandwidth IP converged solutions.

    Duke Onkundi, of Teledata, said his company’s knowledge of the Kenyan evolving market, enabled it to determine Tadiran Telecom’s solution as the most suitable fit.

    "It will facilitate a seamless move to VOIP with no loss of investment in legacy systems and combining the best aspects of both quality and financial feasibility," he said.

  • SinglePipe Restructures Management Team


    Jeff Carr has been appointed CEO of VoIP provider SinglePipe as part of a strategic restructuring to support a market and product expansion.

    Matt Phillips, who had been CEO, shifts to vice chairman of corporate development for the Kentucky-based managed services provider, while Cynthia Carpenter has been named as president and COO.

    Carr, who joined SinglePipe in 2008 as COO, was a partner in Accenture’s Global Technology Consulting practice.

    Priot to that he was COO of ZoomTown, a Cincinnati Bell unit that provides Internet and data services to consumers and businesses.

    George Tronsrue, SinglePipe’s executive chairman, said he was confident Carr would accelerate the company’s growth.

    As COO, Carpenter has responsibility for sales, marketing, product management and customer operations. Before this, she was founder and president of Wheelhouse Strategies, a strategic marketing consultancy targeting venture-backed startup technology companies.

    Before that she had marketing and operations positions at Level 3 Communications, Cablevision Systems, High Speed Access Corp., Time Warner Cable and Starz Encore Group.

    In April, SinglePipe raised USD $5.1 million in equity funding, led by existing investor Chrysalis Ventures and also involving Meritus Ventures and the Kentucky Science and Technology Corp.

  • Panasonic makes Tsuyuzaki new CTO


    The executive who helped Panasonic develop its Blu-ray discs and 3D FullHD TV technologies has been named as the new chief technology officer of Panasonic Consumer Electronics North America.

    Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, Panasonic’s Hollywood Laboratory managing director, is replacing Paul Liao who is leaving the company to be the new CEO of Cable Television Laboratories.

    Tsuyuzaki has served in the Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory as managing director since 2005.

    Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, chief technology officer of Panasonic Consumer Electronics North America

    While in the post he directed the company’s next-generation entertainment R&D activities in the US, including the development of the Blu-ray Disc format and 3D FullHD TV technologies.

    Tsuyuzaki is well known in Hollywood studio circles, furthering Panasonic’s ties with the software and creative communities.

    He is regarded as the consumer electronics industry’s chief champion of Blu-ray.

    A participatant in various panels, conferences and seminars with his studio counterparts, he has talked up the format in both the trade and the consumer media.

    He also masterminded several big Blu-ray Disc promotions.

  • Palm Targeting Smartphone Growth – Not Apple


    Palm’s new CEO Jon Rubinstein believes there is sufficient growth in the smartphone market to profitably sustain "three to five players".

    He was speaking after announcing "strong and growing" sales of the company’s new Pre handset – with download applications now numbering more than 1 million three weeks after it launched.

    What Rubinstein didn’t reveal in unveiling Palm’s fourth quarter results – its last full quarter before releasing the phone – is how many Pre smartphones have actually been sold.

    Analysts estimate Palm has shipped about 150,000 units so far.

    Palm posted a narrower-than-expected fiscal fourth quarter net loss applicable to common shareholders of USD $105 million, compared with a loss of USD $43.4 million in the year-ago period.

    Palm said it could turn cash-flow positive in the second half of fiscal 2010 and reassured analysts that its capital position was sufficient.

    Revenue fell 71 per cent to USD $86.8 million.

    However, despite increased losses and falling revenues, Rubenstein said he was happy with the way the Pre launch had gone.

    While there have been problems with meeting demand at Sprint stores in the US, he said this is being addressed.

    "We’re successfully ramping supply to meet demand that is strong and growing," he said.

    The Pre, featuring Palm’s new WebOS, is entering a smartphone market full of competitors, from Nokia and RIM to HTC.

    A new iPhone 3GS launched last Friday and sold more than a million units in the first three days.

    However, Rubenstein said the "significant growth" forecast for the smartphone industry meant there is room for up to five smartphone manufacturers.

    "We don’t have to beat each other to prosper," he added

  • Palm Entrusts Pre Success to New CEO Rubinstein


    Palm has appointed Jon Rubinstein, the man credited with delivering Apple’s iPod and iMac. as its new CEO amd chairman.

    He replaces Ed Colligan, who is stepping down after sixteen years leading the company.

    The executive changes come just a few days after Palm launched its Pre smartphone.

    Rubinstein, who joined Palm as Executive Chairman in October 2007 to help bring innovation back to the company, assumes his role as CEO on June 12.

    In his time with Palm he has been instrumental in the development and launch of the Pre and webOS.

    Palm said Colligan plans to take some time off, then join Elevation Partners, a major financial backer of Palm.

    Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal is claiming that Verizon will end Sprint’s exclusive deal with the Palm Pre in January 2010.

  • INTERVIEW: Carriers' "Sea Change" Towards IP Networks, JAJAH CEO Trevor Healy

    JAJAH CEO Trevor Healy talks to voip.biz-news about the "sea change" currently taking place in the communications industry – and explains how that has resulted in JAJAH itself evolving from a consumer VoIP focus to become a global IP communications platform provider.

    Telecom operators realise their business is shifting – what they do about it is another matter.

    One company that appears well placed to offer an opinion is JAJAH – not least because it is about to sign "three or four" operators globally to use its IP platform.

    Since its launch in March 2006 it has gone from being a web-activated calling solution to a platform of choice for outsourced IP managed services, partnering with a growing number of carriers, telcos and technology companies to white label its services.

    Trevor Healy, CEO of JAJAH, said there is no doubt that mobile operators’ views have evolved over the last two to three years.

    JAJAH CEO Trevor Healy

    He told voip.biz-news that their attitude to a service like mobile VoIP has gone from ‘this is not going to happen’ to ‘it’s a problem on a small scale’ and had now reached ‘it’s going to happen and we have to be involved’.

    "When we started our business we always had these strategy debates internally about whether we should engage the operators," he said. "We knew it would take time for them to get their heads around it.

    "Now we are close to signing three or four operators globally to use our platform."

    Healy said JAJAH is offering carriers a fully serviced data communications platform, from which they can then cherry pick services such as payment and billing, fraud protection and termination engines.

    He said the carriers would use the JAJAH IP platform for a number of different things.

    "Some want to effectively capture more international call traffic, either originating or arising in their country," he said.

    "They now understand that customers are using this tool for long distance calls. But rather than build a platform themselves it’s easier for them to partner us and OEM our platform."

    Healy said operators didn’t only want to capture domestic calls but also those made by displaced internationals.

    "So, for example, it could be an Irish operator trying to capture all Irish callers in the US," he said.

    At the other end of the spectrum were operators such as Japan’s EMOBILE who are working on pure Voice over HSDPA.

    "They are right at the edge of the technology curve," said Healy. "Then there are the WiMAX guys who are coming to us saying ‘we need something to bridge the gap between now and then."

    Another "market" for JAJAH is operators that are experiencing saturation in their domestic markets and who are looking to find new sources of revenue.

    This is the case in Italy, according to Healy, where there are two mobiles for every male in the country.

    "So because of this they need to go overseas," he said. "As they go international they look at how they can build up their market internationally."

    Healy said he expected to see interest from the Tier 2 operators first, since they were facing far more competition.

    And he said the Tier 1s would probably try and integrate platforms internally initially, a process which he reckoned would see some failures and provide "pickings" for JAJAH.

    "There’s definitely a sea change in the operator landscape – and it will continue to evolve," he said.

    "We are trying to evolve a business model philosophy. The CAPEX model is not going to work.

    "If we do not put a barrier in front of these companies, we will drag them along to our vision."

    That vision has been developing for the past three years, during which time JAJAH has been shifting its focus away from just providing the mobile web VoIP model of free client-to-client calls and low-cost international rates.

    A year ago the Silicon Valley-based company began providing VoIP back-end operations to customers such as Yahoo and Match.com.

    It formed a strategic partnership with Intel to get its technology onboard next-generation PCs and offers a range of software clients to support VoIP calling on WiFi.

    However, the real emphasis has been on becoming a service provider as well as a brand for end-user calls. At the end of February, JAJAH signed a deal with BoldCall to provide online retail customers with JAJAH’s click-to-call services.

    Healy said JAJAH has effectively re-invented itself three times in its corporate life, while staying in the same core market.

    The genesis behind the changes had been seeing the flow of dollars from large companies into enterprises, which then wanted to offer new solutions to their customers – very often their employees.

    "We started as a consumer business. What we did for consumers, we did very well," he said.

    "Then other companies started saying: ‘why not open up your platform on an OEM/white label basis?’"

    The resulting evolution has seen JAJAH design its IP platform to suit three general participants in the market:

    • Enterprises – especially large multinationals such as Pfizer
    • Internet companies – such as Yahoo, that use JAJAH’s platform to carry voice
    • Operators – who want to make a platform for OEMs

    Healy said the initial part of this business model change saw JAJAH offering its services to large companies.

    Then Yahoo asked JAJAH to integrate voice into its messaging platform for its 100 million IM users.

    "More recently we re-invented ourselves again by putting it into the cloud and offering a purely managed service to companies like Yahoo with no upfront fee," he said.

    "We started to see unified communications in the cloud."

    Healy said they saw what the likes of Microsoft, Cisco and Oracle were doing in enterprises and identified a "sweet spot".

    He said they realised that enterprises had a lot of front-end applications but no connectivity.

    So large corporations with offices worldwide were having to organise and invest in UC – effectively replicating JAJAH’s offering.

    "So we reiterated our platform as a full platform for enterprises, moving into UC," he said.

    While enterprises have always featured in JAJAH’s activities – there are more than 5,000 businesses using the platform at any one time – this shift into UC on the cloud is a new niche.

    However, Healy said various factors mean the company is well placed for the change.

    He said JAJAH is global by nature, connecting into 220 countries around the world, and its consumer background means it understands what services and apps people are using outside the office environment.

    This global connectivity is device-agnostic – the company has an "anything in and anything out" philosophy of connectivity – and it has mobile solutions for a wide range of devices.

    In financial terms, the change in emphasis has meant revenues shifting in favor of infrastructure activities.

    Healy said this is increasing every quarter and is nearly at an 80-20 revenue split between the IP platform and consumer sides of the business.

    "Having said that, the consumer business is a very good one and is still important because it’s our sandbox to test a lot of our offerings," he said.

    "When we bring it to a carrier, it’s been seriously tested. A lot of companies are doing their testing in a lab environment and then testing it in an operator’s environment."

    Healy said the VoIP calling business had also proved itself on a small scale – it has more than 15 million subscribers.

    "If our consumer business was in the hands of a bigger brand and with more investment then it would be a huge business," he said. "The model works and consumers are very loyal."

    It has been necessary to concentrate on the platform side at the expense of the consumer business, according to Healy, because JAJAH is a small company and can’t afford to dilute itself too much.

    He fully expects the company to reap the rewards from this approach.

    "In the long term, enabling others to do what we do is the better strategy," he said.

  • SanDisk CEO Harari Bullish About Flash Memory


    SanDisk CEO Eli Harari believes that at $2/GB SSDs aren’t competitive yet with hard drives.

    But he is bullish about the technology’s prospects and believes it offers an ideal storage solution for netbooks.

    In an interview with Tech Trader Daily, he said that you can buy an 80 GB HDD for USD $30-$35.

    SanDisk CEO Eli Harari

    However, that same USD $30 would only get you 15 GB of flash. He suggests that 32 GB of storage is probably enough for many netbook applications.

    But to be competitive with hard drives, Harari said the flash industry will have to be able to sell at USD $1/GB while maintaining profitability.

    He said that wasn’t possible at the current 42-43 nm process technology now used for manufacturing flash.

    But he believes it should be possible at 24 nm, or two generations ahead of the current technology.

    Harari told Tech Traders usage of SSDs will start to pick up in this year’s second half and hit the mainstream in a big way in 2011.

  • i2Telecom Eyes New Opportunities As Berman Appointed CEO


    Telecomms veteran Andy Berman has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of i2Telecom International.

    The move follows a "transitional period" for the Atlanta-based company which has seen it shift priorities towards mobile applications and services.

    Berman, 50, replaces founder and current CEO Paul Arena, who will remain the chairman of the board, secretary and CFO.

    A director of i2Telecom since last April, Berman said i2Telecom had created a valuable intellectual property portfolio surrounding its Internet telephony and mobile applications technology.

    He said this provided it with an excellent platform from which to deliver end-to-end Internet telephony solutions and applications on an international scale.

    i2Telecom products and services include VoiceStick, MyGlobalTalk and Digital Portal communications and microgateway adapters for VoIP long-distance services.

    "Unlike many of its competitors, i2Telecom has successfully developed award-winning solutions and applications that are superior for the communications needs of users in many demographics," he said.

    "I hope to leverage my business and sales experience to assist i2Telecom in penetrating a variety of key strategic markets."

    Berman said the company was currently in negotiations regarding initiatives that should expand the market for, and revenues from, its products and services.

    "We believe that certain new products we have developed are ahead of the market curve and have the potential to drive powerful newly identified business relationships," he said.

    Among those are a new mobile VoIP solution being readied for launch that will allow users to make low-cost international calls from anywhere in the world using one SIM card.

    With over 27 years of industry experience, Berman has been involved in nearly all sectors of the technology and telecommunications industries and was instrumental in revolutionizing global Internet connectivity in the early 1990s.

    He has extensive experience in the disciplines of strategic alliance planning and business development, as well as sales and marketing, product development and distribution.

    Berman is the founder and owner of Virenta LLC, a consulting group of high-level executives specializing in strategic global alliances and business development for the technology and telecommunications industries.

  • ADVERTORIAL: Record-breaking Attendance Expected At East Africa Com


    More than 600 telco leaders are due to attend East Africa’s premier learning and networking event which gets underway on Wednesday.

    East Africa Com is a two-day, multi-streamed conference with a 40+ stand networking exhibition.

    The conference is the only event to represent the East African region and evolved from the highly successful GSM>3G World Series.

    Any biz-news subscribers taking the opportunity to reserve last-minute tickets will receive a 25 per cent discount (details below).

    Among the speaker panel of 37 are 19 operator CxOs and ministers, including:

    • Raed Haddidin, Commercial Director, East Africa Region, Zain Group
    • Michael Joseph, CEO, Safaricom, Kenya Peter Reinartz, Deputy-CEO,
    • Orange Telkom Kenya Tushar Maheshwari, CCO, Warid Telecom Uganda Ali
    • Bin Jarsh, CEO, Canar Telecom Sudan Noel Herrity, Director General,
    • Zantel, Tanzania Nkateko Nyoka, Chief Officer: Regulatory and
    • Government Relations, Vodacom Group Shiletsi Makhofane, Acting Chief
    • Executive Officer, Africa Online Holdings Deng Malok, Managing
    • Director, Bilpam Telecommunications Co. Ltd, Sudan Charles J.K
    • Njoroge, Director-General, Communications Commission of Kenya Joe
    • Kimani, CEO, Flashcom, Kenya

    Part of the Com World Series, the conference reflects the changing mobile communications market, where previously well defined boundaries between wireless and fixed technologies and providers are becoming increasingly blurred.

    The organisers, Informa Telecoms & Media, say that broadening the remit allowed attendees to benefit from a more all-encompassing prospective whilst still delivering focused, actionable and incisive intelligence.

    "Moreover, our technology agnostic stance embraces the global nature of the changes the market is experiencing but is careful to apply it specifically to our markets to allow a 360 degree view of the future landscape within the distinct territories in which we operate," according to the organisers.

    Among the innovations this year are:

    • New Keynote sessions, by popular demand, extra plenary speakers on the
    • morning and closing afternoon – your chance to hear directly from even more C-
    • level speakers
    • More interactive sessions: more engaging panels, Q+A and industry debate to
    • ensure the most productive use of your time
    • New topics: convergence, broadband strategies, value-added services backed
    • by our in-depth analysis
    • More of the region’s telecommunications ecosystem represented; more ISPs,
    • more fixed and wireless operators, more CxOs, all under one roof for you to
    • meet and do business with

    To take advantage of the biz-news subscriber discount, email [email protected] and quote "Biz News" for your 25 per cent discount off the ticket price.

    Conference details:
    East Africa Com
    1 – 2 April 2009
    Nairobi, Kenya
    www.comworldseries.com/eafrica

    View the very latest agenda

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    Other dates for your diary:
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    West & Central Africa Com 17-18 June 2009 – Abuja, Nigeria

    North Africa Com 27-28 October 2009 – Cairo, Egypt

    Africa Com – 18-19 November 2009 – Cape Town, South Africa

    View all ComWorldSeries 2008 events