A web guy and a telecom guy talk about net neutrality

It was a nondescript bar in the American Midwest, the sort of place where working men drop in at the end of the day to unwind before they head home. You wouldn't expect to find two senior business executives there, and as I sat in the empty bar at midday I wondered if maybe my contact had given me a bad lead. But then the door opened and a general manager from one of the leading web companies walked in, followed by a senior VP from one of the US's biggest mobile network operators. I hunched down in the shadows of a corner booth and typed notes quietly as they settled in at the bar.

Bartender: What'll you have?

Telecom executive: Michelob Light.

Web executive: I'll have a Sierra Nevada Kellerweis.

Bartender: Keller-what?

Web executive: Um, Michelob Light.

Telecom executive: Thanks for coming. Did you have any trouble finding the place?

Web executive: All I can say is thank God for GPS. I've never even been on the ground before between Denver and New York.

Telecom executive: I wanted to find someplace nondescript, so we wouldn't be seen together. The pressure from the FCC is bad enough already, without someone accusing us of colluding.

Web executive: No worries, my staff thinks I'm paragliding in Mexico this weekend. What's your cover story?

Telecom executive: Sailboat off Montauk.

Web executive: Sweet. So, you wanted to talk about this data capacity problem you have on your network...

Telecom executive: No, it's a data capacity problem we all have. Your websites are flooding our network with trivia. The world's wireless infrastructure is on the verge of collapse because your users have nothing better to do all day than watch videos of a drunk guy buying beer.

Web executive: Welcome to the Internet. The people rule. If you didn't want to play, you shouldn't have run the ads. Remember the promises you made? "Instantly download files. Browse the Web just like at home. Stream HD videos. Laugh at an online video or movie trailer while travelling in the family car."

Telecom executive: That was our marketing guys. They don't always talk to the capacity planners. Besides, who could have known that the marketing campaign would actually work?

Web executive: Don't look at me. I've never done a marketing campaign in my life. I think you should just blame it on A--

Telecom executive: You promised, no using the A-word.

Web executive: Sorry. But I still don't see why this is a problem. Just add some more towers and servers and stuff.

Telecom executive: It's not that simple. The network isn't designed to handle this sort of data, and especially not at these volumes. Right now our biggest problem is backhaul capacity -- the traffic coming from the cell towers to our central servers. But when we fix that, the cell towers themselves will get saturated. Fix the towers and the servers will fall over somewhere. It's like squeezing a balloon. We have to rebuild the whole network. It's incredibly expensive.

Web executive: So? That's what your users pay you for.

Telecom executive: But most of them are on fixed-rate data plans. So when we add capacity, we don't necessarily get additional revenue. It's all expense and no profit. At some point in the not-too-distant future, we'll end up losing money on mobile data.

Web executive: Bummer.

Telecom executive: More like mortal threat. Fortunately, we've figured out how to solve the problem. The top five percent of our users produce about 50% of the network's total traffic. So we're just going to cap their accounts and charge more when they go over.

Web executive: Woah! Hold on, those are our most important customers you're talking about. You can't just shut them down.

Telecom executive: The hell we can't. They're leeches using up the network capacity that everyone else needs.

Web executive: Consumers will never let you impose caps. You told them they had unlimited data plans, that's the expectation you set. You can't go back now and tell them that their plans are limited. They won't understand -- and they won't forgive you.

Telecom executive: First of all, the plans were never really unlimited in the first place. There's always been fine print.

Web executive: Which no one read.

Telecom executive: Off the record, you may have a point. On the record, the fact is that you can retrain users. Look, you grew up in California, right?

Web executive: What does that have to do with anything?

Telecom executive: Once upon a time, there weren't any water meters in California. Now most of the major cities have them, and they'll be required everywhere in a couple of years. Something that was once unlimited became limited, and people learned to conserve.

Web executive: The difference is, I can read my water meter. You make a ton of money when people exceed their minutes or message limits, and you don't warn them before they do it. If you play the same game with Internet traffic, it'll scare people away from using the mobile web -- or worse yet you'll invite in the government. Look what happened with roaming charges in Europe.

Telecom executive: Jeez, don't even think about that. Okay, so we'll need to add some sort of traffic meter so people will know how much data they're using when they load a page.

Web executive: Great, that'll discourage people from using Yahoo.

Telecom executive: Huh?

Web executive: Oops, did I say that out loud?

Telecom executive: Then there's the issue of dealing with websites and apps that misuse the network.

Web executive: Not this again.

Telecom executive: I'm not talking about completely blocking anything, just prioritizing the traffic a little. Surely you agree that 911 calls should get top priority on the network, right?

Web executive: Of course.

Telecom executive: And that voice calls should take priority over data?

Web executive: I don't know about that.

Telecom executive: Oh come on, what good is a telecom network if you can't make calls on it?

Web executive: (sighs) Yeah, okay.

Telecom executive: So then what's wrong with us prioritizing, say, e-mail delivery over video?

Web executive: Because when you start arbitrarily throttling traffic, I can't manage the user experience. My website will work great on Vodafone's network but not on yours, or my site will work fine on some days and not on others. How do you think the customers will feel about that?

Telecom executive: Not as angry as they will be if the entire network falls over. Listen, we're already installing the software to prioritize different sorts of data packets. We could be throttling traffic today and you wouldn't even know it.

Web executive: But people will eventually figure it out. They'll compare notes on which networks work best and they'll migrate to the ones that don't mess with their applications. Heck, we'll help them figure it out. And if that's not enough, there's always the regulatory option. The Republicans are out of office. They can't protect you on net neutrality any more.

Telecom executive: You think you're better at lobbying the government than we are? We've been doing it for 100 years, pal. Besides, we have a right to protect our network.

Web executive: You mean to protect your own services from competition!

Telecom executive: Parasite!

Web executive: Monopolist!

Telecom executive: That's it! It's go time!

They both stood. The telecom guy grabbed a beer bottle and broke it against the bar, while the web guy raised a bar stool over his head. Then the bartender pulled out a shotgun and pointed it at both of them.

Bartender: Enough! I'm sick of listening to you two. Telecom guy, you're crazy if you think people will put up with someone telling them what they can and can't do on the Internet. The Chinese government can't make that stick, and unlike them you have competitors.

Web executive: See? I told you!

Bartender: Shut up, web guy! You keep pretending that the wireless network is infinite when you know it isn't. If you really think user experience is important, you need to start taking the capabilities of the network into account when you design your apps.

Web executive: Hey, he started it.

Telecom executive: I did not!

Bartender: I don't care who started it! Telecom guy, you need to expose some APIs that will let a website know how much capacity is available at a particular moment, so they can adjust their products. And web guy, you need to participate in those standards and use them. Plus you both need to agree on ways to communicate to a user how much bandwidth they're using, so they can make their own decisions on which apps they want to use. That plus tiered pricing will solve your whole problem.

Telecom executive: Signaling capacity too. Don't forget signaling.

Bartender: That's exactly the sort of detail you shouldn't confuse users with. Work it out between yourselves and figure out a simple way to communicate it to users. Okay?

Web executive: I guess.

Telecom executive: Yeah, okay.

Bartender. Good. Now sit down and start over by talking about something you can cooperate on.

Telecom executive: All right. Hey, what's that guy doing in the corner? Is that a netbook?

Web executive: He's a blogger!

Bartender: There's no blogging allowed in here!

Telecom executive and web executive: Get him!

I ran. Fortunately, the bar had a back door. Even more fortunately, the web guy and the telecom guy got into an argument over who would go through the door first, and I was able to make my escape.

So I don't know how the conversation ended. But I do know that I wish that bartender was running the FCC.

Rodeo Drive Walk of Style honors Grace Kelly and Cartier

Once upon a time, Rodeo Drive, first class shopping, glamour and beauty were synonymous. Well, as I see it, the Rodeo Drive's Walk of Style committee actually did a brilliant job these past few years, reconnecting the present with the past and hopefully bringing the standards up to par again (http://www.rodeodrive-bh.com/index1.html) via the future...

On October 23, 2009, Prince Albert II of Monaco accepted the coveted Rodeo Drive Walk of Style award on his mother's behalf last evening. Grace Kelly's most treasured piece of jewelry was her engagement ring that was created by Cartier.

Demi Moore was dripping in Cartier jewels. I mean she brought on the bling bling - Diamond and onyx hoops, three white gold and diamond link bracelets, and two white and gold diamond Laniere bracelets AND a pave diamond ring! Honey, Demi Moore wore the jewels and the jewels were wearing Demi - both doing each other justice...

As you well know, Grace Kelly was an eloquent woman that brightened up a room when she entered it.

Grace Kelly lived a fairytale life, and placed the thought in so many women's minds that if you dream big, anything is possible - giving them hope.

She was truly an American icon...

After the presentation of the award, the crowd walked over to the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel to enjoy a nosh at THE BLVD - the shrimp tempura is to die for. Women were wearing their beautiful Cartier jewels and all things sans Cartier.

Cartier Trivia:

Did you know that Cartier was the first designer to have black women walk the catwalk of Paris, France? He even created the two black Panthers insignia, which even later graced his vintage fragrance bottle, Panthère de Cartier, in tribute to the black woman. Yep. Cartier said that black women were so eloquent and lovely on the catwalk. You see, even Cartier knew back then that glamour and beauty crosses every race/creed and color...

The next time you're in Beverly Hills, please make sure you stop by the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel on Wilshire Blvd. It's the hotel that the movie 'Pretty Woman' was based on and filmed in...C

http://www.fourseasons.com/beverlywilshire/

Fashion Week LA Continues

The Lauren Elaine-Black Label Spring 2010 was eloquent and beautiful.

When I tell you that the fabrics were rich and beautiful lightly beaded, chiffon gowns in different textures and colors, I am speaking the truth!

Theme: Fashion for all seasons. Silks and metallic brocades reminded me the time when fine silks and romance were in Vogue – sort of 1940’s meets the 1960's– I so love those two periods of time in fashion!

My favorites:
Elise Soiree Gown – Taffeta and chiffon gown with ruffle detailing.
The Nightingale Gown – Silk and silk chiffon gown with authentic peacock feathers and extensive braid detailing.
Aphrodite Gown – Silk and silk chiffon gown with Swarovski crystal embellishment, ostrich feathering, and braid detailing.
Serena Gown – Tiered crinkled taffeta gown with Swarovski crystal embellishment, ostrich feathering, and braid detailing.

This designer deserves to be highlighted. She's an amazing visionary with serious talent.
WWW.LAUREN-ELAINEDESIGNS.COM

Fashion Week LA 2009 Continues

Honey, even the rain couldn't keep all of the Fashionistas away from showing up at all of the many runways located all over Los Angeles for FASHIONWEEK LA.

The Nicholas Clements-Lindsey 2010 Spring/Summer collection, The Criminal, showcased at Smashbox Studios in Culver City, CA., and all of the seats were taken.

Stephanie La Rue hosted the event and she was remarkable. She was so brave to discuss the fact that she is in stage 4 of breast cancer. When she walked the cat-walk, she was fierce!

The Spring/Fall 2010 Fashion theme:

Women - Always remember to look/feel/walk/talk confident. The look was sexy alluring and feminine.

Men - Whether you are short, tall, big or small, step like you OWN IT!
The look was get ready for an afternoon in Boston/New York/San Francisco.
Nicholas Clements-Lindsey's Inspiration: Edith Head, Valentino Garavani and Oscar de la Renta , Alberta Ferretti and André Leon Talley, and

Hubert de Givenchy http://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/2008/03/givenchy.
This man stands alone on the mountain top!
Enough said - okay?

...There was a man sitting one isle over and up from me and I heard him say to the man sitting across from him, "Man, good to see you - hell, those shoes rock!" I glanced over to see who he was referring to just to discover that it was Jheri Walker Jr., http://www.myspace.com/datsjheri who was on American Idol '07, and is busy with his own clothing line and currently sponsored by Kashi - gear that kicks http://kashikicks.com/ ...

The models in the this show were Stunning - just to name a few - Spanky, Jessica De Soto and Justin Shaw - you all were VOGUE!

Nicholas Clements- Lindsey - http://www.nclcouture.com/ - Hats off to you for a job well done!

Tomorrow's featured Designer - Lauren Elaine - Black Label, Spring 2010 - 100% handmade in the USA - www.LAUREN-ELAINEDESIGNS.COM

Reminder to all: October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

C

Fashion Week LA - October 12-20 2009

Okay all of you Fashionistas it's Fashion Week in
Los Angeles!

Yes, it's time to get your PDA's out and connect the dots.

Go to www.fashionweekla.com to find out the details...

I was so exited to get invited to some of the hottest shows that are planned for the week! You'll get a chance to see what's hot for the Spring 2010 Collections.

October 12, 2009
FASHION GROUP INTERNATIONAL of Los Angeles is getting things started! They are having an event that starts at 6:30pm VIP admission. 7:30pm general admission. Fashion Week kick-off reception with designers and their celebrity muses. It's a kick off party A fundraiser for the Fashion Group International of LA Foundation’s Scholarship Fund. It's at the Standard Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles.

Ticket information at www.fgila.org or 323.687.4131

October 13, 2009

EMERGING DESIGNERS & FASHION ANGELS AWARDS @ 5pm. Winners Phong Hong, Fernanda Carniero, Jacquetta O’Dell & Leslie Henry. Presented by the Department of Cultural Affairs of the City of Los Angeles.Tickets $15. www.downtownlafashionweek.com

JULIA Y RENATA. Spring 2010. Downtown LA Fashion Week.7:30pm. Invite only. www.downtownlafashionweek.com
HOT RIOT LA. Multeepurpose, Livity Outernational and Clementiny Clothing Spring 2010 Collections. 9pm (8pm doors open). Ticketed. www.hotriot.la
LOUVER Collection by designer LOUIS VERDAD. Downtown LA Fashion Week.9pm. Invite only. www.louisverdaddesigner.com
HitWEEK through Oct 18 Italian pop culture festival - Ticketed event. http://www.hitweek.it

October 14, 2009

CUSTO BARCELONA. Spring 2010. Downtown LA Fashion Week.7pm. Invite only. www.custo-barcelona.com
DAVID ALEXANDER Love me if you Dare Summer 2010 Collection.7pm. LA Fashion on Broadway. www.davidalexanderfashion.com
EM & CO and Kimberly Cole Present UP NEXT: EMERGING LA DESIGNERS.7pm-11pm. Featuring Queenie4ever and Venti Due.www.emandco.com
YOTAM SOLOMON. Meet & Greet & Presentation. Downtown LA Fashion Week.7-10pm. Invite only. www.yotamsolomon.com
NICHOLAS CLEMENTS-LINDSEY. Criminal Spring/Summer 2010.8pm. Invite only. www.NCLCouture.com

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Actress Maria Bello is receiving The Los Angeles Spirit Award at the Vintage Valentino Runway Show - DOWNTOWN LA FASHION WEEK

The Paper Bag Princess, Founded by Elizabth Mason www.thepaperbagprincess.com and underwritten by 1stdibs.com - the closing night gala runway show for Downtown LA Fashion Week, taking place at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA on Thursday, October 15. Tickets are still available.

Los Angeles is the Fashion capital of the world. Come back and see what's new!

C

Alfred Nobel - Creavit et promovit - "He created and promoted."

This morning President Obama found out that he was a Nobel Prize Laureate. 1 of over 800 since 1901. In 1895, Alfred Nobel wrote his last will, leaving the vast majority of his wealth to the establishment of the Nobel Prize.

A historical perspective of Mr. Alfred Nobel

Mr. Alfred Nobel, was born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1833 into a family of engineers. He descended from none other than Olof Rudbeck, the best-known technical genius of Sweden's 17th century era as a Great Power in Northern Europe. Alfred's Mother, Andriette (maiden name, Ahlsell) Nobel was the daughter of an accountant.

It made no difference because the same year that Alfred was born, his father, Immanuel Nobel, went bankrupt for the first time, in 1833. Four years later, Immanuel Nobel, established a mechanical workshop in St. Petersburg, Russia, leaving his family behind in Sweden. Alfred was four years old, but Immanuel Nobel needed to provide funds to support his family of six.
Immanuel Nobel's company flourished for a while during The Crimean War (1853 - 1856). Then war ended and the Russian military cancelled their orders, thus causing his father, Immanuel Nobel's company to go belly up, thus the second time that his father went bankrupt.

By then, Alfred was twenty years old. Alfred had studied abroad. He was smart and truly trying to figure out how to save the family. He and his brothers spoke five different languages fluently, having studied in Italy, Germany, France and the United States and were determined to survive and thrive.

Well, Alfred desperately sought out new products to sell in order to make it do what it do.

During those rough times, Alfred's chemistry Professor, Nikolai Zinin, reminds him of the Italian student of Pelouze, Ascanio Sobrero, who had discovered a new explosive called pyroglycerine(nitroglycerine). Now, according to a memorial address by Tore Frängsmyr (The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, 26 March 1996), Professor Zinin poured a few drops of the fluid on an anvil, then hit it with a hammer, producing a loud bang. The only problem was that the hammer exploded too! They soon realized that the explosive was too difficult to control - but Alfred and his crew eventually worked it out.

That put the Nobel family back on the block again!

In 1863, Nobel got patents for nitroglycerin(blasting oil) and a detonator (blasting cap). With the help of his father and his brother, after many explosions, got a patent for datomaceous earth - dynamite.
At one point, Alfred's father, Immanuel Nobel became a bit delusional and wanted to take credit for all of Alfred's accomplishments with nitroglycerin, but got a rude awakening when Alfred wrote to his father, letting him know that he'd better wake up and smell the coffee - You see, Alfred Nobel was not the one! He told his father to cut that none sense out, especially since his father's track history had shown that he was famous for bad timing and losing the family fortune, despite the fact that Andriette Nobel kicked in to help the family out. This woman, Alfred's Mom, was a gifted woman, even taking it upon herself to run a milk and vegetable shop while taking care of the children during those rough days. Well, need less to say, Immanuel Nobel had the nerve to imply that he was the one to spear head the nitroglycerine experiments, trying to take the credit for Alfred's hard work. Oh, Alfred wrote one stern letter to his father, Immanuel. And guess what? Immanuel Nobel saw the light and corrected his errors and got with Alfred's program. Unfortunately, his brother Emil and four other people got blown up in one of their experiments.
Ironically, orders started rolling in for the explosives. I mean, everybody wanted some of what blew up the laboratory because, hey, they knew that it worked!

The Nobels' opens labs in Stockholm, Sweden, Hamburg, Germany, United States, Scotland, UK and Paris, France. Mr. Nobel and his family, like the American television show from the 1970's, The Jeffersons, the Nobels' "moved on up!" Again. As the song goes, "Beans don't burn in the kitchen..." You know the rest of the song...Oh, Alfred Nobel was so happy - he bought a lovely home smack dead in the middle of Paris with his new found wealth! He also purchased a home in San Remo, Italy and his native land, Stockholm, Sweden.

The Senior Nobels' got a chance to reap the benefits of having their sons study mathematics, chemistry and foreign languages. Immanuel passed at the ripe age of seventy-one. Alfred loved his Mother, always returning to Stockholm, Sweden for her birthday - never missing one birthday. Ms. Andriette lived to the grand age of eighty-five.

Alfred Nobel was a scientist, inventor, entrepreneur, author and pacifist. But he also knew the value of the Kronor (or in our case, the mighty dollar) and learned how to roll with the punches that life had dealt him. As a result, he invested his money wisely and made sure that every Kronor counted.

Let's fast forward.

Alfred Nobel's health started to fail him and the reason was two fold; he didn't trust anyone to run his business, but at the same time, couldn't be in all places at one time. Let's face it, Alfred Nobel was always putting out fires and cleaning up laboratories that had experienced accidental explosions - all a part of the nature of the business that he was in - seemed like all the time. Right?
So, he writes his will, changing it a few times, but ultimately ended up bequeathing sums of money to his relatives and other people close to him, leaving the vast majority of his wealth to "...those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind." Alfred Nobel died peacefully on December 10, 1896, at the age of 63, in San Remo, Italy.

Continuing down to this very day, President Barack Obama is attempting to put America, the beautiful, back on track, one day at a time, thus making " the greatest benefit to mankind."
(researched from http://nobelprize.org/)

Celebrating 250 years of Wedgwood @ GEARYS Beverly Hills, Oct. 7, 2009

This evening there were so many people gathered to celebrate Wedgwood's 250th anniversary - an English Classic established by Josiah Wedgwood, in 1759.
It was a wonderful opportunity to enjoy a rare appearance by Lord Piers Wedgwood, Brand Ambassador - http://www.wedgwoodusa.com/about/events.asp - partake in the hospitality of GEARYS Beverly Hills and support Childrens Hospital Los Angeles - www.childrenshospitalla.org - all in one fabulous evening.

There is nothing more exciting then shopping for an excellent cause.
Just imagine walking through the doors of GEARYS Beverly Hills - www.gearys.com - and everywhere you look there is the most luxurious crystal, china, silver and fine jewelry in the world. Yes Darling, I said fine jewelry...

Let's stay focused - tonight was dedicated to fine China.

GEARYS Beverly Hills donated 10% of the proceeds to Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.
Childrens Hospital Los Angeles performs nearly 14,100 pediatric surgeries a year, including more complex surgical procedures than any other hospital in Southern California and operates one of the largest dedicated neonatal/pediatric transport programs in the nation; it annually triages more than 3,000 patients.

Their Mission: To make a world of difference in the lives of children, adolescents and their families by integrating medical care, education and research to provide the highest quality care and service to our diverse community.

If you can, pop on over to GEARYS Beverly Hills tomorrow, Wednesday, October 7, 2009, from 1pm - 4pm and pick up something lovely - for a great cause!

Yes, Lord Piers Wedgwood, Brand Ambassador, GEARYS Beverly Hills and Childrens Hospital Los Angeles all feel the need to help others. They have all taken the route of "starting with the man in the mirror..." to make a difference, everyday.
Will you join them?