Letter from the Editor

By: Tim Young

“Excitement is impossible where there is no contest.”
—Henry Cabot Lodge

You know, I’m not a guy who thinks that competition for competition’s sake makes everything better. Take competitive cooking shows, for example. I’m a sucker for Top Chef, but even I don’t seriously believe that any chef is at his or her best when faced with the prospect of turning a box of cheese crackers and a can of tuna into a three-course meal while adrift on an ice floe. That kind of manufactured competitive pressure? Meaningless.

But good old-fashioned competition sure helps make my average Saturday-night restaurant experience much better than it would be otherwise. Ever eaten in a town with just one restaurant? It wouldn’t be my first choice. The food might not be bad, but where’s the restaurant’s incentive to take chances and aim for excellence?

Some telecom providers are still stuck in an era when they were the sole establishment in a one-restaurant town. The food was pretty good and pretty consistent, but even if it wasn’t, where else were people going to eat? Now that those days are long gone in most markets, new challenges arise for all parties involved, including consumers who are faced with the need for more information about options and alternatives. In the end not everyone wins, but there sure is a lot more incentive for providers to innovate and deliver.

In this issue of Pipeline we explore the competitive landscape of modern communications and entertainment technology (COMET). We examine the current M&A environment and how the underlying technology is evolving through competitive pressure, and we talk with CSG International about ways the customer experience can be a key differentiator. We look at different kinds of connectivity and how providers can differentiate in new ways and we check out the influence of Microsoft's on the landscape now and  take a look a bit further down the road. We also explore how providers are going global in their quests for new opportunities, and how over-the-top services are continuing to push traditional carriers to deliver more for less. We’ll also give you a recap of  Pipeline's 2013  Innovation Awards, which were presented at a gala reception on the French Riviera on May 13.

Enjoy!

Tim Young
Editor-in-Chief