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AT THE CENTER
The electronic newsletter of the
Silicon Valley World Internet Center

Tuesday, March 11, 2003

 

The Silicon Valley World Internet Center thanks its Sponsors for their continuing support:

EXECUTIVE SPONSORS
• Amdocs, Inc. •• Cable & Wireless •• Deutsche Telekom •• Fujitsu •• IBM Corporation •• SAP •• Sun Microsystems •

KNOWLEDGE NETWORK PARTNERS
•• Halleck ••• IC Growth, Inc. ••• Internet Wire ••

Past copies of newsletters and directions to the Center are available on the Web site.

All programs are held at the Center unless otherwise noted.

To join our community, click on this link: http://center.infopoint.com/join.php

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SUMMARY: PUB TALK: THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2003
"The Promise of Cost-effective Broadband: Breakthroughs at the Fiber Internet Center"
By Mr. Bob Evans, Co-Founder, Fiber Internet Center &
Mr. Les Laky, Co-Founder, Fiber Internet Center
Summary and Presentation Link Below.

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SPECIAL PRESENTATION: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2003
"Are We There Yet? A Look at Technology and Where We Expected to be by Now"
By Dr. Bob Glass, Futurist, and Fellow, Silicon Valley World Internet Center
7:00 p.m. Open to the Public. No Fee.
Not held at the Center. Held at Cypress Semiconductor, 198 Champion Court, Building 6, San Jose

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SUMMARY: PUB TALK: THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2003
"The Promise of Cost-effective Broadband: Breakthroughs at the Fiber Internet Center"
By Mr. Bob Evans, Co-Founder, Fiber Internet Center
Summary and Presentation Link Below.

At last week's Pub, Mr. Bob Evans, Co-Founder of the Fiber Internet Center (FIC), addressed a crowd of 110, proving that the promise of affordable broadband is here (at least now offered through the Fiber Internet Center). One Pub-goer asked, "But when will broadband be free?" Mr. Evans explained that broadband will never be "free," but may only cost a dollar! His presentation, showing how the FIC has been able to overcome the costly challenges of delivering broadband, is posted on the Center's website.

Pub-goers were asked to share their ideas around what they consider to be the big issues facing local communities (business and residences) around connectivity. Here are the results of that impromptu survey, which underlines the continued concern about the reliable delivery of connectivity (in any shape or form). The innovators still have work to do to shore up our communication systems.

RELIABILITY
* Reliability
* Reliability (level) of service
* Bandwidth reliability vs. business integrity
* How reliable is data integrity in wireless?
* Guaranteed performance when? 1-10 MB/sec
* Reliable and low cost interface to broadband fiber access points

SECURITY
* Security of information
* Secure wireless communications - to much eavesdropping

ACCESS
* Access by remote (no DSL or cable)
* Lack of providers at some locations
* High speed link for sparse areas

PROFITABILITY/BUSINESS MODEL
* How to make this business profitable; what is the key: Content? Technology?
* Channel conflict
* Lack of time/interest to do every new connected thing that comes along
* No capital expenditure by corporate USA

AFFORDABILITY
* Affordability
* Cost
* Cost of cable vs. wireless & scalability
* Cost to end-user
* Competitive cost vs. alternatives
* Prices too expensive for value
* High cost of installation in rural areas
* When will bandwidth be free?
* Unconvinced that there is value (cost vs. benefit received)

EASE OF USE
* Ease of use
* Good ease of use

SERVICE
* Ubiquity of service
* Great customer service

POLITICS AND REGULATIONS
* AT&T/Comcast (cable) monopoly
* The incumbents suck
* Confused regulatory environment
* Concentration of economic power in ILECS and cable companies

OTHER
* Information literacy
* No useful local applications
* Confusing market/choices
* The distraction of fear (income, war, etc.)
* Availability (mid-America)
* Doesn't reach the White House

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SPECIAL PRESENTATION: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2003
"Are We There Yet? A Look at Technology and Where We Expected to be by Now"
By Dr. Bob Glass, Futurist and Fellow, Silicon Valley World Internet Center
7:00 p.m. Open to the Public. No Fee.
Not held at the Center. Please Note Special Location.
Held at Cypress Semiconductor, 198 Champion Court, Building 6, San Jose

In collaboration with the Silicon Valley Web Guild (www.webguild.org), the World Internet Center would like to invite you to a special presentation by Dr. Bob Glass, Fellow of the Center, on Wednesday, April 9, 2003, at 7:00 p.m. in San Jose (Please note special location.) The topic will be:

"Are We There Yet? A Look at Technology and Where We Expected to be by Now."

In 1992, "Dr. Bob" and his team at Sun Microsystems embarked on trying to envision the future with the hopes of trying to figure out where technology was headed. Two years later, "Starfire" - a Vision of the future was released. Starfire was a look at the world of 2004 (from the vantage point of 1992-1994) and an attempt to create a "video prototype." The team felt that by creating a short video, the user experience of a corporate customer could be better developed. At the time the film was developed and released (1992-1994), there was no common knowledge of the Internet or widespread use of email, yet these items are forecasted in the film.

Join Dr. Bob as he takes a glance at the future through the past. The film is 25 minutes in length and offers an amusing peek at where we should be by now... Are we there yet?

This special presentation will be held at Cypress Semiconductor, 198 Champion Court, Building 6, San Jose, CA 95134. There is no fee for attending. However, the favor of a reply would be most appreciated. To register in advance, please contact:

Ms. Claire Kahrobaie
Manager, Client Services
T: 650.462.9800
E: kahrobaie@worldinternetcenter.com

We look forward to welcoming you to this interesting look back into the future!

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For further information on the Center's Sponsors and Knowledge Network Partners, visit their Websites:

EXECUTIVE SPONSORS
• Amdocs, Inc. http://www.amdocs.com
• Cable & Wireless http://www.cw.com
• Deutsche Telekom http://www.dtag.de/english/index.htm
• Fujitsu http://www.fujitsu.com
• IBM Corporation http://www.ibm.com
• SAP http://www.mysap.com
• Sun Microsystems http://www.sun.com

KNOWLEDGE NETWORK PARTNERS
• Halleck http://www.halleck.com
• IC Growth, Inc. http://www.icgrowth.com
• Internet Wire http://www.internetwire.com

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To join our community, click on this link: http://center.infopoint.com/join.php

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