Microsoft makes overtures to rural market

Orlando. Microsoft’s general manager of the communications sector at Microsoft, Harry Patz, addressed approximately 600 members of the rural service provider community today at the OPASTCO Winter Meeting with a singular message: We want to partner with you.

After presenting how Microsoft’s Connected Services Framework can help these providers bring services to market that would set them apart from their competition and highlighting some of the applications that support those services, Patz had to admit, “We don’t have a great model today to work with you folks.”

However, Patz was there to explore how to best change that. Currently, Patz said, its partner, Alcatel, is the lead interface between the two for services such as Microsoft TV.

“The traditional telecom infrastructure converging with the Web infrastructure means lots of opportunity for us to work together,” Patz said.

Like the approximate number of attendees, Microsoft’s Communications Sector has 600 people hoping to make the most of that opportunity.

Pointing to the 1.1 billion landline subscribers, 1.4 billion broadband and data subscribers and 1.8 billion mobile subscribers around the world, and the “mash up” of the communications sector with the e-commerce, digital media and social networking trends of the Web and entertainment sectors, Patz said it further demonstrated the growing opportunity for both Microsoft and the service provider community.

“The end game for service providers is being an integrated communications, entertainment and information service provider,” Patz said. He said Microsoft is at the ready to help.

Microsoft grew up on partnerships and is now looking for new kinds of partners. “Service providers are the next wave of partners for Microsoft,” Patz said.

He suggested the industry embrace the principals of Web 2.0 and said partnering with telcos is the beginning of an initiative within Microsoft called Telco 2.0.

Saying TV was a big bet for Microsoft and included X-box in that bet, Patz said the system was not yet profitable and it too depends on ubiquitous broadband. “We’re betting on the come [line] that that’s going to be there,” he said.

Patz said Microsoft TV could be the answer to problems rural telcos are having with headends and access to content. Asked about the economics of small telcos using Microsoft to deliver TV services, Pants said Microsoft has a tiered service plan, but isn’t quite ready to deliver. However, it is ready to talk.