Rumor from SFGate is it that Skype bought Qik for $100 million. Qik's smartphone video streaming service has grown to 5 million users. That doesn't mean revenue though - and Skype should know, right? Only 6% of its 124 million users contribute to the bottom line.

Meanwhile, GENBAND bought Cedar Point, a provider of integrated packet-based voice and multimedia switching technologies to the cable industry, which is the industry that GENBAND wants to dominate. GENBAND is banking that cable voice will grow along with cable broadband sales (at the expense of ILEC DSL).

In non-acquisition news, LightEdge was named to Gartner's Visionaries list for UC as a Service. "The LightEdge Connected Office suite includes: hosted PBX voice services, hosted e-mail (Microsoft Exchange), hosted instant messaging and presence (Microsoft Office Communicator), hosted desktop faxing, and voice/web conferencing." The fact that Iowa-based LightEdge melds email and OCS with the other voice stuff makes it different. Only a few providers do that - Alteva in Phillie.

Please note my one point is that these Hosted PBX companies are getting crazy with the marketing terms: Converged Comm in Cloud, Converged Comm AAS, UCaaS, blah, blah. Do you think any of your prospects is shopping for that? I'm in this Industry and can barely keep up with the term of the week that your PR firm made up. How about developing a real USP / Value statement / elevator pitch / brand statement?