If you’ve ever attended SXSW in Austin, TX… you know that there is a great amount of diversity in the panels submitted and presented. We felt like voice was an area that had been lacking and submitted a few panels this year. If any jump out to you, please follow the link and take a minute or two to submit a vote. Thanks for your support!

We Messed Up – Why Telecom Is All Wrong - click to vote

Users and carriers battling it out over dropped calls and bad service while networks explode all around us. What would the telecom world look like if everyone simply got along? In many ways we’ve moved backwards. All this technology should be better than it is, but why are there still such problems? It’s a strange thing because the technology is here now. What stands in its way is an archaic method of business that has everyone unhappy. Let’s move past today and into the future of all things phone. In this panel you’ll hear from leading innovators in the field of telecom where they’ll explore a world in which customers are happy with their carriers, telephony apps abound and networks are stable. They’ll describe what that looks like and why it’s still possible.

Endurance and Entrepreneurship - click to vote

Where does mental motivation meet physical motivation in the life of an entrepreneur? The qualities best suited for running a company are often the same as any physical fitness training – hard work, dedication, competitive spirit and an all-or-nothing attitude. How does living a healthy, proactive lifestyle make you a better founder, CEO and leader? In this panel we’ll speak with some of today’s most fit CEOs about how physical challenges to their mind and body translate into their company culture and workplace. And more importantly, how being physically and mentally fit is the best way to win out over the competition.

Speak to Me: Plugging Voice into Your Apps - click to vote

Voice apps are exploding and developing at a record pace. The world of tomorrow will mean you interacting with your phone more as a concierge than simply a way to communicate. With invention in areas such as telephony apps, dial tones and whisper technology, come hear what’s next. This panel of leading experts and innovators will take you behind the red curtain to explore the mind-boggling labs and phone projects in development today that you didn’t think were possible. Targeted at a more technical developer crowd, the panel will show examples of apps that are plugged-in to the latest in voice APIs.

You Can’t Do Dat! Innovating Under FCC Regulation - click to vote

Starting up is hard enough already, but what if you are setting up shop in a heavily regulated industry? These can be some of the most lucrative and the most tricky ventures. So, how can entrepreneurs and their technology-based innovation deal with a rulebook constantly getting in their way? In this panel, we’ll explore real-world stories about how startups and innovators succeeded in an environment that was heavily regulated by the FCC. Experts from the telecom and VoIP world will share their advice on how your startup and your technology can handle the red tape and even use it to your advantage. Are you under-innovating because of a fear of regulation? When it seems like all is against you, it may simply be the final hurdle before success.

A Dumb Guy & Smart Guy Explain the Cloud - click to vote

A “dumb” marketing guy and a “smart” technology guy explain the cloud and what it means to you. Two dramatically different points of view help everyone to understand why many apps we use are moving towards the cloud and how it impacts us. Sarcasm will be included.

We decided to take some time this week to introduce one of the newest members of the Bandwidth team, Brian Dally. As our VP of Product Strategy and Mobile Solutions, Brian spends the majority of his time planning Bandwidth’s delivery of the next generation of services and solutions. Previously, he served communications in a variety of global product management and operational roles at high growth technology companies, including Motricity, Openwave and broadband pioneer Excite@Home. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a JD from Harvard Law School. With “Mobile Solutions” in this title, we decided to grill him about Bandwidth’s mobile aspirations.

Sean Rivers - Why would a business voice service provider like Bandwidth be interested in mobile phone service?

Brian Dally - Mobile phones have become critical productivity tools for owners and employees of the small- and medium-sized businesses that Bandwidth serves. We see significant opportunities to help these companies achieve gains in productivity combined with significant cost savings while minimizing the hassle. All of this while enabling businesses to communicate on-the-go.

SR - How do small and medium business take advantage of the mobile technology previously only available to larger corporations?

BD - Smartphones are rapidly becoming the exception that swallows the rule! Just look at the volume of phone calls, emails and web traffic flowing through mobile phones today versus our desktop phones and computers. Fortune 500 companies can afford to integrate solutions into their telecom and IT infrastructure, but for smaller companies, each mobile phone is an island unto itself.  Bandwidth wants to fix that.

SR - With your vast mobility experience, why Bandwidth.com?

BD - I started off my career in mobile by building early generations of embedded micro-web browsers for feature phones, such as Sprint’s LG5350. Back then, mobile was about voice, but as screen sizes and resolutions increased, input methods improved and phones became more powerful - the game changed. Now, it’s all about data - to the point that even voice service is moving that way! Bandwidth is perfectly positioned to create enormous customer value in this market.

SR - What is next for the business mobility industry?

BD - The past several years have yielded an incredible amount of mass adoption of core mobile data technologies. At the same time, some interesting new possibilities have developed for VoIP technology in the mobile context. Just as the [mobile] industry did with mobile email, web browsing and applications, it’s time to separate the mobile VoIP (voice over IP) science projects from the customer-relevant innovations.

SR - What is next for Bandwidth.com?

BD - Suffice to say, @Phonebooth has some really worthwhile mobile tricks up its sleeve.  Stay tuned!

Photo credit: Milica Sekulic

David Morken, Bandwidth.com Co-founder, President and CEO, takes 5 and tells the story of why Bandwidth.com built a nationwide, all IP voice network. David’s interview outlines what a nationwide network means for the company and its thousands of business customers and why it is distinctly modern as compared to legacy networks.

After months of planning and intense training, Team Bandwidth took the country by two wheels this last June on their Race Across America (RAAM). Not only did the team finish the 3,004 mile event in 6 days and 3 hours, they also ended up winning the event (4 person team category).

I went along for the ride in the media vehicle and from the footage gathered, I put together an 8-part video series called “Capacity”. The movie is a mixture of story, scenery and intense cycling footage that outlines the highs and lows of crew and riders as they struggle to stay in the front of the pack.

We congratulate riders and crew on their amazing race from Oceanside, California to Annapolis, Maryland, and commemorate the experience through film and photography. See it for yourself….

Capacity - Team Bandwidth’s Race Across America (YouTube)

We recently held a “Getting Started with Phonebooth Free” Webinar with Sean Rivers, Director of Product Marketing. Thank you to everyone who registered and attended! If you missed it or would like to refer back to the presentation, the recording is below.

Please be sure to check out our online help tools:

• Get helpful hints and answers to FAQs at Support.Phonebooth.com
• Check out the resources on our blog at Phonebooth.com/blog
• Give feedback and make suggestions at Feedback.Bandwidth.com
• Contact us on Twitter at @Phonebooth

[Photo Credit]

Team Bandwidth.com is rocking the Race Across America course. They have already cleared the Rocky Mountains and have a little over 2,000 miles left to go. We know you want all the details you can get, so here are all the ways you can keep up with the cycling action:

• Bandwidth.com Facebook Page - This is the hub for all things Team Bandwidth. From here you can see the team’s location via Spot GPS, see Sledge’s awesome camera shots and get updates from the RAAM Crew.

• Bandwidth on Twitter - You can learn about the adventure on @Bandwidth Twitter account, as well. The official hashtag for our team is #BandwidthRAAM. Also a quick search for #RAAM2010 will give you a live feed of everything people are saying about this year’s Race Across America.

• Bandwidth on Flickr - View all of Sledge’s camera handiwork. Here you can see all his great images that he shot to document the RAAM journey.

• Bandwidth.com on Youtube - Watch action-packed videos of all the excitement on YouTube. The clips are also available through Facebook.com/Bandwidth.

• Bandwidth.com over the Phone - That’s right, we called in a favor from @Phonebooth. Fans can call 919-442-8920 to hear updates from the riders as they peddle their way across the country towards the finish line in Maryland.

• Bandwidth.com’s RAAM Challenge - We are literaly racing our RAAM team across the country. On the Intranet, you can view the total miles accumulated by Bandwidth’s RAAM Team as compared to the Home Team. Also, Bandwidth Home Team, don’t forget to fill out your workouts. The first team to accumulate 3,004 miles gets Friday, July 2nd off!

Go Team Bandwidth.com!!!!!

David Morken and Joe Parke warmed up for Race Across America by taking on the 37th Annual Assault on Mt. Mitchell. With over 11,000 feet of elevation change, the course has 1,500 riders start in Spartanburg, S.C., and finish at the highest point of elevation on the East Coast - the top of Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina. I went along for the ride and got footage of the event. Visibility of the riders on the course was limited by race organizers to 3 “SAG” points, making filming opportunities limited.

David Morken ended up finishing 5th overall in a time of 05:28:39. Joe Parke finished 66th in a time of 06:07:52 (*Joe had a flat tire on mile 45, setting him back significantly from the leaders).

In honor of National Small Business Week (May 23-29, 2010), we would like to celebrate our 6,000-plus small business customers.

Small businesses drive the economy by spearheading innovation, creating jobs and setting up shop in the competitive marketplace. These entrepreneurs make business decisions to simplify their lives and others. As a whole, the small business community advances businesses of all sizes toward bigger and brighter fiscal years. It’s a great time for the estimated 27 million U.S. small businesses to be steering the wheel.

We, here at Bandwidth.com, would like to do our part to help make sure your needs are met. Please take a moment to participate in our short poll. As a small business, we want to know what you consider to be your biggest communication challenge.

Image by Pixel Addict

The Phonebooth Auto Attendant is a flexible way to create an interactive flow for callers. The following tutorial takes an alternative look at using Auto Attendants beyond the “press 1 for sales” stereotype. Namely, let’s look at using Phonebooth as a marketing channel for real estate agents.

Joe Winston, Team Bandwidth.com RAAM Technology Support Lead (and CEO of NET Device Corp.) demonstrates the UP-inspired, cutting edge sky cam system that will be following Team Bandwidth across the country.  Flash mob coverage will never be the same.