Does Tech Progress Destroy Quality?

‘We are witnessing the destruction of the voice phone system as we know it’ The current fever of innovation in the telephony world has brought us some wonderful tech developments. My favorite is the Bluetooth-equipped cellphones. In cars so equipped you can voice-dial calls directly through your cellphone’s directory and get calls through the car’s sound system—without ever removing the phone from your pocket. This works best if the phone directory can be synchronized and updated through your computer (as with devices with Palm-compatible interfaces). Then there are the videophone calls, which may finally become a reality with a Voice over IP (VoIP) set-up.But looking at the trend of technology more broadly, I’m saddened. We are witnessing nothing less than the destruction of the voice phone system as we know it—the simple call on a nine-button box. It rings anywhere in the world, a person picks up, and you are connected—and emotionally connected, as well. Here are the symptoms: 1. Cellphones have destroyed the phone book. Half the people you can call cannot be found in a phone book. 2.Cellphones have made communication through voicemail unreliable. Is the customer in range to get the voicemail icon lit up? The delay for this can sometimes run into hours or days. Can the cellphone owner notice the voicemail icon when he or she already has another dozen microscopic icons? Nothing beats the big blinking red light on the Nortel 350 phones. 3. Going even further back in history, we have the pre-voicemail days, when people actually answered their phones. When you called someone, the phone rang until someone picked up, and you had a positive confirmation whether or not you reached the party you wanted. 4. The simple analog phone always works. Remember the big blackout—no lights, no cooking, no showers, no elevators, no cellphones (tower power was first to go), no computers, no Internet connection. But I could call my mother in Toronto on an old-style non-cordless phone for hours and keep her spirits up. That is where the Ma Bell system shines. Proliferation of Hydro-dependent VoIP phones will take away cost effectiveness of maintaining in operation the reliable line-powered PSTN. 5.IP toll bypass and VoIP phones have made long distance phone calls so poor in quality that talk is often incomprehensible—never mind the cost and complexity of the terminal equipment. We may be pumping megabits but we sure are not getting 3 KHz bandwidth. 6.VoIP phone systems are only good if they have links to PSTN gateway dial capability. Most are only selectively reliable, depending where you are calling. The new features and capacities are attractive. But most people still expect uninterrupted availability of service (no ice-storm excuses, no drop-offs), comprehensibility of speech, and location-based 911 ("I am alive, track me!") Lawrence HerczC-Com Satellite Systems Flash, Mobility and Cost Are in CommandFor a long time I felt very much the same way as Lawrence does. In particular, I bemoaned the poor quality that people were prepared to accept on cellphone and VoIP systems, presumably because being cool is more important than quality. But I have noticed an ever more dismaying thing: Older people are quickly marginalized in today’s fast-paced consumer technology world. It doesn’t matter what we think, what we know, what we’ve experienced. The tide rides on youth and their spending power: Instant Messaging, iPods, computer games, cellphones, free 60-minute long distance conversations with friends all over the world. My dad, who was definitely not well off, used to wear made-to-measure suits. How many men’s tailors do you think exist today in Montreal? He used to shine his shoes every Saturday morning. How many young people today even know what leather shoes are? The same can be said for most generations. My parents couldn’t understand why I adored the Beatles, why it was so important for me to carry a transistor radio with me everywhere I went and, when cellphones were invented, why I even needed one! The name of the game today is flash, mobility and pay-less-get-more. Quality is not an issue. Gary BernsteinMcGill University Gary Bernstein is a member of the Telemanagement Advisory Board. A Last Word Gary, the even newer members of the X-generation do not want cellphone, pager, or PDA. They just want Internet and voicemail. ("I will connect once I finish my meditation.")Lawrence HerczShare your telecom experiences and opinions with Telemanagement readers. Email correspondence to jriddell@decima.com. If you do not wish your letter to be published, or if you wish your name withheld, please say so clearly. Letters become the property of Telemanagement and may be edited for publication.

Does Tech Progress Destroy Quality?

News | May 26, 2005

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