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Stuart Henshall
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FCC Doom for Whom?

March 18, 2005 03:21 PM

Topics: Yet More News Topics

Om Malik posts today "Maybe the VoIP-Provider Model is Broke?" which follows a post "So Much for AT&T VoIP". Still this is not a story about AT&T's inability to get traction with Call Vantage, it's the deeper reference in Om's post to what the FCC may rule on VoIP provider access charges to the PSTN. To date they have been zero. Om points to Light Reading and while his gloom scenario may impact "traditional" VoIP providers I really doubt that it kills a product like Skype. In fact to the contrary, the problem with the "thinking" by the traditional telecom incumbents is they believe this is a great strategic move. The problem is it is completely short term. It won't stop VoIP and it will cut off an interesting migration path for them.

Then I read Richard's post:

I am not so sure about the "dark clouds" also over Skype, because they are the first ones to be on this new way. SkypeOut is only a leftover and Skype will move on.

Skype is permanantly shifting their business, from SkypeOut to selling numbers and getting termination charges via SkypeIn to selling phones or getting some royalties (they already started this business). VoIP and ENUM

Is only a leftover is a great way to think about the "visible" side of Skype's current strategy. Tomorrow's strategy has nothing at all to do with tradition. It bothered me in the beginning calling it a phone. Now users call it skype and skyping. An FCC ruling may kill Call Vantage, Vonage, and Packet 8, and other small fry. They will die because they don't have a vision and cost structure for the future of telephony. No matter how skeptical some remain about Skype earnings.

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