The fact that many companies are adopting Voice over Intenet Protocol (VoIP) also means that there are many VoIP services fighting over the market. This has led to various protocols, packages, and services that are sometimes incompatible with each other. This issue had been a major concern for small businesses. While they may want to adopt VoIP for their communication needs, due to their cheaper costs, these compatibility issues hinder them from fully entrusting their operations to such a service.

Late last month the MIT Media Lab hosted a party for the launch of the Global iNames Registry. The system is one of several aiming to create a long-term way of identifying individuals and organizations across different contexts.

Curious about what it all meant, I knew of no one better to ask than Identity Woman, Kaliya Hamlin. She told me that the identity standards landscape is forming quickly, with the participation of organizations large and small, and that it's important for nonprofits to engage in the process now instead of struggling to change policies and technologies later.