by Alan Percy, CMO @TelcoBridges
There was a time when all photographers used film-based cameras, and after exposure, taking their rolls of film to a local pharmacy or photo lab to be developed into slides or prints. With the invention of digital photography, the need for processing labs and equipment quickly faded, making it difficult to purchase film and get it processed. More recently, the artistic value of “analog” photography has been rediscovered and with it, a few boutique labs have made processing film a high-value business opportunity. They are “the last labs standing” for the growing community of film photography aficionados.
We see a similar trend in the TDM telecommunications equipment market. While much of the new product development investment is on IP-based network equipment, there remains a significant amount of TDM equipment in operation. Media and signaling gateways play an important role in bridging between the old TDM equipment and new IP networks. The trends we see show increasing demand for these bridge technologies, helping service providers get the most out of their TDM equipment while migrating to new SIP-based networks. However, the number of vendors that make these technologies continues to shrink. Whether by acquisition, change of priorities, or lack of skills, the number of vendors that invest in media and signaling gateways continues to shrink.
Despite this, the demand remains strong. One example is the migrations from SS7 to SIGTRAN. SS7 is a widely used TDM signaling protocol that has been the backbone of the telecommunications network since the 1970’s. As a TDM protocol, SS7 typically is delivered over expensive DS1 leased lines, while SIGTRAN offers a means to carry SS7 signaling over low-cost IP networks. The ROI for a service provider to migrate from SS7 to SIGTRAN is very clear – usually only a few months payback.
However, the number of vendors that make SS7 to SIGTRAN signaling gateways is now very small. TelcoBridges is one of the few vendors that continues to invest in gateways that support both SS7 and SIGTRAN. With a broad array of product offerings and a long-term commitment to support our products, TelcoBridges is committed to help service providers get the most out of their existing networks.
As to SS7 to SIGTRAN signaling gateways, TelcoBridges is one of a few “last vendors standing”
Learn more about TelcoBridges signaling gateways at: https://telcobridges.com/products/signaling-gateways-tsig/
If you are old enough to remember 
By Alan Percy, TelcoBridges
by Alan Percy, TelcoBridges
Microsoft Teams Gets Smart – Lori Wright’s keynote demonstrated new AI capabilities in Microsoft Teams that drew audible gasps from the audience with a feature that allow conference participants to see through presenters and see whiteboard content that would otherwise be hidden. Other features included using proximity to automatically detect meeting organizers entering rooms, background image replacement and real-time translating / transcribing of live events. All are important new capabilities that will be built-in to enterprise Office365 subscriptions and accelerate adoption from Skype for Business and other competitive platforms. 
Having just spent this last week at Mobile World Congress, time for my Top 10 observations and some hints for you: (with a little tongue-and-cheek humor to go too)
A root of the problem is the ease at which bulk phone calls can be made with spoofed caller-ID information, tricking unsuspecting victims to answer call they think are from friends or neighbors. While there are legitimate reasons to substitute caller-ID information (Doctors office reminders, school notifications, etc) fraudulent abuse continues to be an industry-wide problem.
