Did you IP today?

I don't know about you, but I'm in the middle of the trade show and company visit circuit. First it was Comdex, then PC Expo, CES, ComNet and now CTIA. Woe is me-I missed PBX 2000 and the Computer Telephony show.

I've also been briefed on significant strategic developments by no fewer than a half-dozen major information technology vendors in the past two months. AT&T even gave a lucky few of us industry analysts a "deep dive" on its future network architecture before new CEO C. Michael Armstrong played "Truth or Consequences" with the financial analysts.

Don't get me wrong. I enjoy shows, and in-depth vendor visits are core to how I stay a learning organization, as the management gurus like to say. What has been bothering me is that we who write and talk about the industry have run out of a concise macro paradigm-the infamous elevator conversation-to describe what is going on.

The tired phrases include "any time, anywhere communications," "network computing," "branded, bonded and bundled" and "the computer is the network."

We need a new conceptual framework.

I keep thinking maybe the data networking guys have it figured out. I've read Cisco's white paper on multiservices networking numerous times, figuring that company should have a good shorthand for this if anyone does. While I understand what Cisco is saying, using the word "services" to describe access as well as switching/routing of multiple and blended media types across all types of data networks strikes me the wrong way. I thought I knew the difference between services, media and applications. Now I'm confused.

So I'd like to cut a deal with you. For everyone who gives private and public speeches, I'd like to propose a new way to frame your talks about the next phase of the information age.

With alliteration and onomatopoeia being key to today's marketing, how about substituting the four IPs (Internet protocol, intellectual property, interactive profiles and intelligent people) for things like the three B's-branded, bonded and bundled?

Before you write this off, think about it.

Internet protocol. This is clearly the most significant communications development of the 1990s and the platform from which interactive multimedia communications will be spawned in the next millennium. And for anyone who does not believe it, IP telephony is ready for prime time, especially when scalable platforms for carriers are made available at the end of this year. It will progress faster than anyone is projecting because people love to save money.

Intellectual property. Who can argue that the value of software doesn't increase exponentially almost daily and won't be ultimately a core-if not the most important-part of future competitive product and service differentiation?

Interactive profiles. There is going to be me and a virtual me-my "profile" (the electronic embodiment of my constantly changing volition) in the ether that people and their electronic agents interact with. Who ends up controlling the profile-where it predominantly resides, the policies by which it interacts with the rest of the world, its synchronization, the ubiquity of its accessibility, its ease of use, privacy and security-ultimately will be the big winner in the information age.

Intelligent people. These are a necessity in a lot of spheres. Your company needs them at the end of intelligent devices that interact with networks. You will need them as a vendor and from your vendors providing support so that technology is seamless.

There is one more piece to this puzzle, and again I need your help because I can't find the right IP formulation to describe it. The "it" is the notion of ubiquity-constant availability of a reliable, "every media," totally synchronized, high-performance network. Infinite processing just doesn't sound right. Any help would be greatly appreciated and appropriately acknowledged. I need you to IP today.

Stay tuned. True IP telephony looks like it is going to be fun.