David Beckemeyer is one of the brightest minds in Telecom. For those that don't know David he's the guy who brought PhoneGnome to market (Note I am an advisor to PhoneGnome.)

More importantly, David was the co-founder of EarthLink and clearly is a technology visionary, as well as a world class technologist in his own right.

Finding out that he "didn't make the grade" from Skype for SIP's sign up roll is very disheartening. Surely, someone must have made a mistake at Skype....

Here's one for the USA carriers to consider. Over in Spain, mobile operator Telefonica is providing the unemployed a break on their mobile phone bills.

This is a great way to keep people on the network, versus losing them. It also helps keep their revenue constant, the carrier doesn't lose a telephone number, or the customer, plus the customer, who is likely job hunting, doesn't have a break in their ability to be reached.

I have to wonder which USA carrier will mirror this idea with unemployment reaching high levels these days due to the economy. In theory, AT&T should jump at this, but I suspect a more nimble player like Cricket or Metro PCS will be the first to make a similar offer.

The good folks at Telco 2.0 (sans Martin Geddes who is now at BT Design as Head of Strategy) have a great way for those that can't travel to the event in Nice on May 6-7 to take part. It's called their Distance Package and is a great idea.

Basically you can buy a "virtual attendance" admission and at least share in the knowledge that comes out of the event.

On the surface one has to say, "so, what does this matter" when the news emerged on Friday that UK mobile retailing giant Carphone Warehouse may buy UK broadband operator Tiscali.

First you have to recognize that Carphone Warehouse (and sister stores across Europe named "The Phone House") may be the best retail operation in mobile. Their sales teams are smart, well informed, can discuss pros and cons of various handsets, service plans, offers and know what works, especially with data and 3G dongles.

Second, they share the same parent investors with BestBuy here in the USA. Recently, BestBuy launched Best Buy Mobile, taking lots of lessons from their UK relatives.

Third, BestBuy has purchased SpeakEasy, a VoIP player who relies heavily on client Covad for DSL and T1 access. The fit of Tiscali into the mix means that BestBuy and Carphone Warehouse can roll out a converged VoIP, Data and Mobile service in the UK, then hunt around here in the USA for a network operator and do the same thing.

It may only be in prototype stage, but the idea of Nokia's EasyMeet is something that is perfect for the wireless mobile worker of the future.

Wireless Moves has the details, to the concept that sounds much like Pronto from iotum, a proof of concept play that Alec Saunders introduced at DEMO a few years back that led to iotum winning a DEMO God Award.

If you watch the Easymeet Demo video, you'll see lot of similarity between the EasyMeet concept and iotum's Calliflower service which is already available today.

You can also try the beta version of easymeet online as well. The big difference is Easymeet is combining the Nokia devices and services platform, while also making the invitation media rich, while Calliflower is making the experience richer during and after the call.

Two posts this week about Skype and mobile operators by Om Malik and Rich Tehrani underscores why playing with your competition makes sense.

What's interesting is neither has had any first hand experience (that I know of) using the 3 Skype service in the UK as I have. If they did, they would have been even more effusive on the positive side of things in their commentary.

First, from a price and performance perspective, I can't make calls any more cheaply in the UK while on the go than I can with the Skype phone from 3, running iSkoot's technology. Once 3 opened the service up to allow Skype Out calls, it was game over to any other carrier for someone who has to reach a community of people I deal with the way I can via Skype (or for them to reach me) or to make International Long Distance calls. The only rival is client Truphone and that's because their service is a mobile phone derived service at the core. The Skype phone though has the second largest telephony addressable audience in the world, next to the regular PSTN, so when the two are combined, 3 wins the game.

The key is presence. I spend almost no time leaving voice mails, as the presence data available via Skype makes it easier to reach someone I need to talk to. After that, everything else is just another feature.

By selling Skype as a service now, 3, is going to sell more data plans, and connect more people to more people. Other carriers should carry the same idea forward. What's more, since the new SkypePhone2 can be tethered, I can always us it connected to my laptop as a 3G modem, making it a great value for those who don't want to buy a separate 3G stick or card.

To me, both Om and Rich have made solid points why some USA carrier should embrace the SkypePhone from INQ. It will be a win, once their networks can support all that Data traffic of course.

Alec has written a killer post about the problem that both Microsoft and Apple are running into. The Netbook craze, and he's very right on.

Here's some history, from a very early adopter. I've been buying Netbooks since the were called UMPCs. I've purchsed OQOs, Medions (both underpowered using the older VIA chips which have since improved) as well as original EEE PCs from Asus (ask my wife our French EEE PC story-that one is in the hands of our winemaker friend, Sylvain Fadat) and then many more. Over 15 at last count. Why? I learn more and more about their utility with each model first hand.

But I digress. Back in 1980 I had a similar dilemma. I knew I needed to computerize my office operations, as I was charged with running Hockey Central, the Philadelphia Flyers Office of Amateur Hockey Affairs as it would become known as a few years later upon the arrival of Bob Butera as team President. Given I was always out and about the idea of a desktop computer from Apple or Radio Shack seemed hard to fathom. Many computers were expensive and didn't offer an all in one solution. As someone who never had owned (or used) a computer, the learning curve was monumental. But along came the Osbourne and my dilemma of buying one was solved. Why? It had everything in one box and was PORTABLE. That was the hook.

A short time later I bought a Osbourne II (blue grey case) and that became the daily luggable. Then out came the IBM PC and a short time later the Compaq. My boss at the time with the Philadelphia Flyers was a brilliant tax and finance guy named Donn Patton. He knew we needed to automate, and I was tasked with helping do that. He made me a deal. I would buy a Compaq and he would buy a desktop IBM PC running DOS. Together we learned more and more each week, and then when I started using MCI Mail for email, email to hard copy and a Western Union program that turned the Compaq into a Telex/TWX machine that immediately caused a sensation. No longer would a secretary (one of three have to log into "receive or send the twx" something that meant a lot when it came to the waiver wire or to confirm a trade, a contract or more associated with the NHL. Now, even Donn (or I could do it and I did-reading some very interesting emails from some very interesting hockey people---but my lips are sealed) That led us to buy one for the GM's executive assistant, and as a result I somehow became the go to guy for all things micro computing vs. the mini's that were handled by an IT consultant.

I share this story because the idea of a laptop/portable computer back in the 1980's was something very strange. Men didn't usually touch anything with a keyboard unless they were in the PR or media. (Some PR people wrote longhand and had their secretary type the release--YUK) bit today, these Netbooks are to me what the luggable PC's were almost 30 years ago. The shape of things to come. Along the way I've owned NEC Multispeed portables, the first Mac portable and a host of laptops with a Dell Inspiron back in the 90s being the PC that changed my lfe. With the arrival of Mac laptops I went back to Macs this decade, but now find with more and more things cloud oriented, that Mac or Windows (or even linux) the OS doesn't matter. It's the lightweight that does.

I use my Netbook more and more, and now that I can watch iTunes videos on it, and the battery life is better than my MacBook Pro, I find the myself using it more for lightweight computing tasks when on the go.

So the dilemma I see for Apple is really one of simply saying, we can make the best Netbook, not simply dismissing what's there today, but really changing the game once again.

Early adopters are agents of change. We shape the future and waste lots of money along the way. But that investment in an Osbourne was just that. I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing today, without having spent that money as "tuition" so many years ago.