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Cingular Launches Push to Talk

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Kodiak PTT is a Phone Call!

bigbee

Dec 5, 2005, 9:23 AM
There is something very important about Kodiak PTT that everyone needs to keep in mind: a Kodiak PTT call is a phone call on a standard voice circuit. It's actually a voice call to the Kodiak RTX platform (which may or may not be located in local switching facility).

So if you think about it, Cingular is charging PTT users $9.99 per month for the privilege of placing a half-duplex (one side muted) phone call to people whom they can already call (full duplex) for free.

Granted that presence (done via SMS, just like an IM application) and group call are not otherwise available, but those features are of limited value. Presence has no value for people who leave their phone on all the time, and very few people even set up groups muc...
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disturbed1

Dec 5, 2005, 3:28 PM
You do realize of course that all PTT solutions outside the business market (the only place PTT's really useful) are really just a way to charge for M2M minutes that would otherwise be free.

Otherwise known as a MARKETING GIMMICK!!!
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AshDizzle

Dec 5, 2005, 5:07 PM
Maybe you don't realize how much money Cingular had to put in to implementing the system for the network. That cost needs to be recovered somehow. Cingular doesn't have the magic money tree, like, you know, Verizon does, since they are so badass.

And so what if it is still a standard voice call? Are you saying they should have chosen a different system just so they could make their 9.99 fee more reasonable to customers who actually care? It doesn't even matter. It is a competitive price and as long as they make good phones for it and market it properly, people will pay it.
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CamelTowing

Dec 5, 2005, 6:43 PM
bigbee said:
There is something very important about Kodiak PTT that everyone needs to keep in mind: a Kodiak PTT call is a phone call on a standard voice circuit. It's actually a voice call to the Kodiak RTX platform (which may or may not be located in local switching facility).

So if you think about it, Cingular is charging PTT users $9.99 per month for the privilege of placing a half-duplex (one side muted) phone call to people whom they can already call (full duplex) for free.

Granted that presence (done via SMS, just like an IM application) and group call are not otherwise available, but those features are of limited value. Presence has no value for people who leave their phone on all the time, and very
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tropicalhaven

Dec 5, 2005, 6:58 PM
Out of curiosity, how would you make a mobile-to-mobile call to 20 different people at the same time?
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bigbee

Dec 5, 2005, 10:56 PM
I addressed this twice in my original post. Group calling is rarely used in the PTT world. Some people value this function and will gladly part with their 10 bucks each month.

If others who won't use group call want to pay more each month for less functionality, that is their choice. If they understood what they were getting for the money, I doubt that any would pay it.

Keep in mind that the UI to place the half-duplex PTT call is different as well. Voice dialing through a Bluetooth headset won't work. Neither will turbo dial by pressing one numeric key.

Everyone arguing that "they now have a PTT service" and deserve to make money at it are correct from the operators perspective. Should an informed consumer pay more for a crippled U...
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tropicalhaven

Dec 6, 2005, 7:01 AM
I was emphasizing the difference that not all customers are the same.

What makes the other PTT solutions so much better?
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Bartonic

Dec 8, 2005, 4:54 PM
Really isn't all PTT a half duplex phone call? I really don't get your point. You sound like Nextel 18's clone.
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bigbee

Dec 8, 2005, 5:46 PM
Kodiak PTT is a half-duplex phone call in that it is a standard phone call placed over a standard voice channel (with the associated setup time) with one side of the call muted. Other PTT solutions do not utilize radio resources on both links simultaneously in this way.

My point is this: as a PTT subscriber you will be paying $9.99 per month to have a new (less convenient) UI on your phone to place phone calls that will have the same setup time as a standard call and have half duplex audio and the associated switchover times. All of this to call someone that you can call full duplex today for free.

As I've indicated before, other than group calling, what about this sounds attractive to you once you understand it?

Next time, take the...
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tropicalhaven

Dec 8, 2005, 7:11 PM
I have to agree with Bartonic. The user sees a service. Would it make a difference whether the phone call was half duplex standard time or whether it was some other form of PTT. Would it really matter if your bank was running COBOL or FORTRAN? Would you know the difference as a consumer?
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bigbee

Dec 8, 2005, 11:11 PM
Of course the consumer does not care about the underlying technology. All they notice is performance and value. Since the service provides less practical value than a phone call, costs more, and has connection times that are at best equal to placing a phone call, they might end up concluding that this service is not worth the money.

Without a genuine value proposition, the novelty will fade and the service will ultimately fail to generate a significant user base. Some people will appreciate presence or group call, but in general people don't spend money just to spend money.
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Bartonic

Dec 12, 2005, 11:13 PM
I'm not sure if you understand who the target market is for this feature. Its going after the corp & govt market space. There are a lot of organizations that won't leave Nextel unless they can have PTT. The agency may not even use it, but they feel they must have PTT even if they don't like the coverage, voice quality or billing with Nextel. So if Cingular can provide an option that allows instant (more or less) communication to a group of users then it will serve its purpose of gaining some of Nextel's 18 million business and government customers. I'm sorry you don't like the feature, you don't have to use it.
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