U.S. Soldiers Face Tough VoIP Call
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American soldiers in South Korea face a tough call on using Internet telephony in the country.
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WASHINGTON, DC - Eight American soldiers have filed a lawsuit to win their release from the United States military, saying they are being kept on duty longer than their terms of enlistment specified.
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US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Michael Powell is calling for a hands-off regulatory approach to Voice over IP (VoIP) and has vowed to try to take regulatory control
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Telecom managers will have their hands full securing a VoIP network. Experts say layered security is the best way to protect it.
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A US military unit that wouldn't make a risky delivery poses a challenge to discipline.
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American soldiers venture out of their bases into dangerous streets, confronting myriad of  unseen risks.
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(InfoWorld) - American soldiers in South Korea face a tough call on using Internet telephony in the country. Thursday was the last day the U.S. military community in South Korea could make VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) calls through companies based in the U.S., such as VonageÂ and Lingo, according to a report Thursday in Stars & Stripes, a U.S. Department of Defense authorized newspaper. Beginning Friday, all new contracts must be made with South Korean VOIP providers, the report said. For service members used to making and receiving calls to and from the U.S. for as low as $15 a month, the move to a South Korean provider -- and a local phone number -- could ring up a pricey phone bill. Because U.S. VOIP providers assign service members a U.S. phone number, these users can be reached from the U.S. without callers being billed for international calling charges. Prices for VOIP services in the U.S. vary from around $15 to $25 a month for unlimited local and long-distance calls. South Korea's major Internet service providers, including LG Dacom, said in June 2006 they would block Internet calls through companies not registered under the Korean Telecommunications Business Act. But after U.S. Forces Korea Commander General Burwell Baxter Bell said the move would impact service members' quality of life, the companies agreed to delay enforcing the act until June 1, 2007. Demand for VOIP services have surged as service members -- and many others -- seek cheap ways to communicate with their families, friends, and business partners around the globe. Vonage offers a VOIP service that replaces the traditional telephone. Customers connect their phones to an IP-transformation device, which connects to the home or small-business DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) or cable modem. Vonage doesn't offer PC-to-PC VOIP service provided by companies such as Skype Ltd. Brooke Schulz, a Vonage spokeswoman, was unable to confirm whether the company's service is no longer available in South Korea and, if so, whether Vonage plans to apply for a VOIP license with the South Korean government. Companies registered to provide VOIP service in Korea include Korea Telecom, Hanaro Telecom, as well as LG Dacom.
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By MATT COLEMAN  It's easy to take instant communication for granted with the accessibility of cell phones and the Internet. This becomes a little more difficult when the person you're communicating with is in a war zone.
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Pentagon efforts to fix absentee voting problems among U.S. troops that marred the 2000 election have run into trouble as plans to use the Internet crumbled and a fax or e-mail balloting system draws fire.
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The U.S. Army is showing growing   signs of strain as it tries to sustain troop levels in Iraq and   Afghanistan, including stress on soldiers, lower unit   readiness, equipment shortfalls and money worries.
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The number of homes using Net telephony should reach 12 million by 2009, but existing VoIP players could face hurdles.
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The land of Internet calling may not be free of regulation for much longer.
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How insurgents turned a neighborhood into a battle zone in which U.S. troops have to fight for their lives
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The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, faced a tough challenge on Tuesday from both Republicans skeptical about war strategy and Democrats who want a swifter withdrawal of American troops
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Though the next president will probably command soldiers in two separate wars, few of those hoping to win the job can say they've ever seen combat or even taken abuse from a drill sergeant.
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TAIYEH, Iraq -- The distress call rang out over the radio. In the midst of one of the largest current military operations in Iraq, Capt. Mike Stinchfield recognized this was, so far, his most urgent mission of the day.
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(InfoWorld) - U.S. government agencies are interested in unified communications systems that integrate voice, video, and data over IP, but they have concerns about funding and security, according to a survey released Monday. Twenty-eight percent of U.S. telecom decision-makers surveyed in April said funding was their greatest challenge to achieving their communications goals. Another 20 percent said security was the top concern, and 17 percent said educating co-workers about the benefits was the biggest challenge. "We're talking to the boots-on-the-ground program managers, IT directors who are really charged and tasked with getting some of this stuff done," said Aaron Heffron, vice president of Market Connections, which conducted the survey for Cisco Systems. "They said, 'There's a lot of ... concern over security in my agency'." A unified communications system could include such servicesÂ as VoIP, instant messaging, remote access to agency files, and mobile data or voice devices, all managed together. There are heavy demands for unified communications in federal agencies, especially in the military, said Brent Byrnes, federal unified communications manager for Cisco. The U.S. military has "increasing needs to rapidly stand up services" in combat zones, he said. Asked of the benefits of a unified communications approach, 93 percent of respondents said better security would be a result of integrating IT and telecom systems. Ninety-three percent also believed system reliability would improve, and 91 percent said productivity and collaboration would improve. There seems to be a difference of opinion about a unified approach's effect on security between top-level managers in agencies and the IT and telecom managers, Heffron said. "Those individuals know that bringing these two systems together can improve their security and reliability," he said. "However, they're swimming upstream in some cases with other agency management." Another 88 percent said a unified communications system would allow agencies to improve their plans to continue to operate during a disaster, a major focus of the U.S. government since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the U.S. But only 44 percent of respondents said their agencies have the ability to notify employees in real time. Twenty-eight percent said their agencies have no plans to use real-time notification. Four in five respondents said their agencies already use audio conferencing and mobile devices. Three-quarters said their agencies allow remote or mobile access to agency files, and 71 percent have wireless networking access. Only 50 percent said their agencies use instant messaging, and 26 percent said they have no plans to use it. The survey also found that 35 percent of respondents said they had projects delayed or deadlines missed at least sometimes because of communication difficulties. Only 11 percent said they never have experienced delays. But only 38 percent of respondents said they are rolling out or have rolled out a unified communications system. Another 13 percent said they have either conducted pilot tests or identified a vendor, while 23 percent are investigating it, and 21 percent have done nothing more than talked about unified communications. Finally, 84 percent of respondents said communications devices have been a "blessing" in daily life. Eleven percent said such devices are a "curse." The survey solicited comments from 201 U.S. government telecom decision-makers.