CONTENTS:	December 2006
• PTC’07 “Beyond Telecom” • Birds of a Feather • Election Results • Annual Member’s Meeting, Board of Governors and Advisory Council Meetings • Focus on Issues (I) & Voice: Service or Activity? • PTC Hawaii Foundation (PTC-HF) Sponsors 10 Students at PTC’07	• Focus on Issues (II) Telecoms and ICT for Development • Members’ Hot Box: PTC Members in the News • Welcome! New PTC Members • Industry Events • Industry Publications • Contacting Us

PTC’07: Beyond Telecom

Register today for PTC’07: Beyond Telecom.  It’s your last chance to beat the 15 December discount registration deadline.

An outstanding line-up of featured speakers will ensure a conference you cannot afford to miss!

Featured Speakers:

Colin Anderson Senior Consultant, Submarine Networks Division, NEC Corporation, Japan	Helmut Angst Sr Executive VP & Head of Int'l Carrier Sales & Solutions Division, Deutsche Telekom AG, Germany	Bill Barney President and CEO, Asia Netcom, Hong Kong SAR, China
Tony Bates Sr VP & General Manager, Cisco Systems, Inc. USA	Fiona Beck President and Chief Executive Officer, Southern Cross Cable Network Bermuda	Shin Cho Senior VP & Head of Strategy & Planning Group, SK Telecom, Republic of Korea
Anthony D. Christie Chief Marketing Officer & Exec. VP, Global Crossing, USA	Mark S. Fedor CTO, SunRocket, Inc., USA	Stanley Fertig Senior VP, HBO International, USA
Ofer Gneezy President & CEO, iBasis, USA	Michel Guyot President, Global Voice Services, Teleglobe / VSNL International	Halim Bin Shafie Chairman, Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, Malaysia
Ronny Haraldsvik VP, Marketing, QUALCOMM, USA	Gregory W. Harper President, Cerberus Corp. and Co-founder of Gadgettoff.com, USA	Steve Heap CTO, Arbinet, USA
John Hibbard Chief Executive Officer, Hibbard Consulting Pty Ltd., Australia	Kingsley Hill VP - Strategic Federations, XConnect, USA	Larry Keeley President, Doblin, Inc., USA
Raymond Krommenacker Senior Counselor, WTO, Switzerland	Jean-Yves Le Gall CEO, Arianespace, France	Dan Lovatt CEO, PCCW Global, Hong Kong SAR, China
Thomas W. Mazzone VP, Industry Relations Telcordia Technologies Inc., USA	Srinath Narasimhan Executive Director, VSNL India, India	Claire Paponneau Executive VP, International Wholesale Solutions, France Telecom, France
Chris Rice Executive Vice President, Network Planning & Engineering AT&T, Inc., USA	Jim Simpson Vice President, Business Development, Boeing Satellite Systems International Inc., USA	William So Deputy Managing Director, China Network Communications Group Corp, People's Republic of China
Michael Tribolet President, Vonage America, USA	Mark Winther Group Vice President & General Manager, Worldwide Telecommunications, IDC, USA	Yutaka Yasuda VP, General Manager of Corporate Technology Sector KDDI, Japan
Masaki Yoshikawa President & CEO NTT DoCoMo USA, Inc., Japan
Other Featured Speakers: Please visit the PTC’07 online program at www.ptc07.org/program/prog_schedule.html for a complete list of plenary and keynote speakers to date.

Why Attend PTC'07 Beyond Telecom?

Explore the technology, business and policy issues created by the accelerated and continued convergence of communication and entertainment services on IP.
Access four days of cutting-edge content, as dynamic international business leaders share their knowledge of today's key issues.
Establish and deepen real business relationships with senior industry executives.

Hotel reservations at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort and Spa

Sponsorships and Advertising.  Here is your opportunity to make a splash at PTC’07

Exhibits in the Mid-Pacific Marketplace. Place your products and services at the forefront of conference participants.

High profile Conference Meeting Room Cubicles are available in the Mid-Pacific Marketplace (MPM) exhibition hall.  These 10’x10’ hard-wall cubicle rooms come with table and 8 chairs and are labeled with your company name and logo.  An attractive package of benefits is available for cubicles reserved for the entire conference.  One-day and half-day bookings can also be made. Reserve space for your business meetings during PTC’07. Click here for the order form.

Corporate Partners  Your organization as a key supporter of PTC.

Register for PTC’07 today and SAVE!

Birds of a Feather

Want to discuss an issue important to you during the conference?  Gather together similarly interested conference participants for a discussion at one of the Birds of a Feather topic tables.  Several topic table discussions are being scheduled at each of the following times:
           

Sunday 14 January 2007, 1230-1330
Monday 15 January 2007, 1230-1330
Tuesday 16 Januar 2007, 1230-1330

Propose a topic for a discussion table by contacting mark@ptc.org

Election Results

Chris Vonwiller and Tim Logue, SPC co-chairs thank all PTC members who voted in the election for the leadership positions on the Board of Governors and Advisory Council.  Your decision on the selection of the people who have offered their considerable time and talent in service to PTC is very much appreciated.  There are many opportunities and challenges for our organization and these fine people will join with the continuing members of the Board of Governors and Advisory Council in leading the way.

A separate message was sent to all the PTC members on 15 November announcing the election results.   In case you missed it, here are the results:

Congratulations to these elected members:

   Board of Governors (2-year terms Jan 2007 - Jan 2009)

These 7 newly elected members will join the seven continuing members to comprise the full 14 member Board of Governors.  The continuing members (terms expiring January 2008) are:  Yoshikazu Kobayashi, William Lin, Richard Nickelson, Kenji Saga, Richard Taylor, Robert Walp, and Wee Way Kiat.

   Advisory Council (4-year terms Jan 2007 - Jan 2011)

These newly elected Advisory Council members will join those whose terms continue to January 2009:  Ichiro Shoji, Noburu Ubayama, Anjian Zhao, John Janowiak, Louis Fox, Jey K. Jeyapalan, Tim Logue, Maui Sanford, Robert Frieden, Jay Gillette, Eiji Hayashi, Mark Hukill and KaiYuan Zhen.

Six appointed members to the AC also continue with terms to January 2009 including: David Bross, Thomas Cooper, Heather Hudson, Hunter Newby, Ed Simnett and Lily Zhang.
                       
A very big MAHALO! (Thank you) to all outgoing members for their service and contributions to PTC over the past several years:

Outgoing Board of Governors: 
Rick Cho, Tony Gardiner, Bob Mao, and Tim Shea.

Outgoing Advisory Council:             
Sallye Clark, Wha Joon Cho, Kousuke Dobashi, Shizuo Endo, Ellen Day Hoff, Norio Nemoto, Jagadish Rao, John Pricken, Chris Vonwiller, Makoto Yamazaki.  Gregg Daffner and John Hibbard also leave the Advisory Council in favor of being elected to the Board of Governors.

Annual Members Meeting, Board of Governors and Advisory Council Meetings

Notification of PTC Meetings: 

Annual PTC Members Meeting and Open PTC’08 Planning Meeting - Wednesday, 17 January 2007, 1300-1430

All PTC members are encouraged to attend the annual meeting. 

Board of Governors Meeting (I) – Saturday, 13 January 2007, 1400-1800 (All Outgoing, Continuing and Newly Elected BG members)

Advisory Council Meeting – Sunday, 14 January 2007, 1030-1330. (Newly Elected and Continuing AC members)

Board of Governors Meeting (II) – Wednesday, 17 January 2007, 1430-1800 (Newly Elected and Continuing BG members)

Board of Governors and Advisory Council members are encouraged to make travel arrangements accordingly.  Voice teleconference arrangements may be made for those who cannot attend in person. Details forthcoming.

PTC members may also attend AC and BG meetings (except for BG agenda items discussed in “executive session.”)

All meetings will be held at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort and Spa, Honolulu, HI, USA. Rooms to be announced.

Focus on Issues (I)

Voice: Service or Activity?  by: Mark Hukill, Member – PTC Advisory Council

“What’s happening with IP-enabled voice applications reflects the need for retail carriers to think ‘beyond telecom’ and embrace a broader identity as integrated service providers enabling multiple functionalities with multiple revenue streams.”  - Dr. Richard Taylor, Professor, Institute for Information Policy, Pennsylvania State University.

Here’s the deal.  People engage in activities. Talking to someone else is an activity.  We talk with others either in person or at a distance. 

The main part of talking at a distance, or telecommunications, has been dominated by network service providers since the beginning of the use of electrical and electronic means. That is because a dedicated service network had to be connected in order for two or more people to talk.  Network operators control connectivity at a distance.  You want to talk?  Pay the controller.  And all is well.  Or, at least accepted.

Now here comes the part that makes the situation uncomfortable.  There is a complete reversal of controllable services in the making.  The Internet is not a network that has to be connected in the sense of a circuit dedicated to your call or a specific network to get from here to there.  Your voice is just another bunch of packets dashing about the Internet to its appointed destination.  What matters is that the activity of voice, and any other such activity for that matter, is becoming unbundled from traditional network operator intervention and hence (revenue) control.  We may continue to pay to connect to the Internet, as providing access is still controllable - - for a while longer perhaps.  But once connected, one does not pay for use because that is not, for the most part, controllable.  

We have already seen the "death of distance" (though not completely yet) and are beginning to witness the "termination of time" (a bit slower to die) as revenue mechanisms of network control.  And the reason is simple.  As more of the activity of talking or any other electronic communication activity takes place across IP networks, the need for network operator intervention, and hence control, is lessened. 

But, if we look carefully, something else is happening as well.  Services offered by network operators are beginning to give way to activities conducted by users.  This is a subtle and not so easily explained evolution, as it seems to beg a chicken-and-egg type of question.  Can you conduct a network activity without a service or does a service need to exist in order for you to engage in an activity? And the operator’s version of that activity as well?

Voice services are therefore a key example.  For the most part, voice connectivity is still an offered service and we conduct the activity of talking at a distance under the mechanisms and control constraints of the service provider.  Mobile phone operators, landline operators, cable TV operators, etc. are all focused on controlling network connectivity in order for you to talk to someone else at a distance. They not only charge you to connect to their network, they also make you pay to use it based on some sort of per use formula.  So in order to engage in the activity of talk at a distance, one has to pay for their service. 

So now, here comes VoIP!  Doesn't that change everything?  Not so fast.  Not yet.  VoIP is primarily being conceived and introduced as a service.  VoIP providers are basically proposing an alternative means to connect with someone else at a distance. They are charging you for the service of connecting and are also trying to get away with charging for the quality of service, if not for the time or distance of connection.   And, in order to gain greater flexibility in use from the customer's perspective, many implementations to-date also have the not so subtle objective of doing all this without any traditional PBX and PSTN connectivity. 

So, as more IP network implementations are completed end-to-end, more of voice is becoming a computer network functionality instead of a dedicated voice network service, be it wired or wireless.

And therein lies the point.  When voice becomes a computer network functionality, the need for a service begins to disappear.  Who needs a separate phone? Who needs a service?  When both are embedded in a chip, itself embedded almost anywhere in any device or object - - games, click-to-talk, messaging, even operating systems for example - -  you conduct your activity at will.  And because such connectivity will explode beyond current ISP access, the cost of connecting to the Internet itself may also eventually come down to next to nothing for just about any amount of needed bandwidth on demand.

All this may not happen very quickly, though, as retail carriers still have some leverage.  “Deep packet sniffing” technology, for example, allows one to determine whether packets are voice, video or text.  Differential use charges may be levied as a result.  Charges may be higher for high-traffic sites as well, which is fueling the current net neutrality debate.  Carriers may still get away with charging at both ends of the communication transaction for a while longer.  However, they certainly are beginning to understand that profits are not in moving packets.  So carriers are now strategizing to become media companies, not transport companies. 

The essential evolution away from chargeable service provision for the activity of communicating at a distance is what is carrying us "beyond telecom".  Those that create the enabling functionality will be the new winners because users will latch onto that which enables them to conduct the activity of voice (and any other exchange of bits of information) at a distance. Users just may not pay for a separate service to engage in that activity much longer.

The views expressed reflect those of the author only and not necessarily PTC as an organization. Comments?   Send to:  mark@ptc.org

PTC Hawaii Foundation (PTC-HF) Sponsors 10 Students at PTC’07

The Hawaii chapter of PTC has generously offered registration sponsorships to 10 undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Hawaii to attend PTC’07.

Both locally based and international students were selected on the basis of their Asia/Pacific focus of study and research as well as their willingness to generate follow-up analysis and reports of the event.  They will provide coverage of PTC’07 in print and electronic form.

PTC-HF President, Richard Barber, and Treasurer, Dan Wedemeyer, the organizers of these sponsorships, have continuously supported PTC in various leadership roles since the inception of the organization in 1978. 

Thanks to PTC-HF for this positive contribution toward the development of these young people who will be the future of the telecom and ICT community. The conference is certainly enriched with their bright minds.

Focus on Issues (II)

Telecoms and ICT for Development.  by: Mark Hukill, Member – PTC Advisory Council

So shift has happened and now we look on beyond telecom.  Everything is going on IP, however, is IP even remotely accessible by everyone?

Internet access is too expensive for most people on this planet. 

The inability to gain access is yet another block to development. To be affordable to those without, it has been suggested that the Internet needs to be viewed as a necessary public infrastructure.  That means governments providing free or very affordable public access. That also means more entrepreneurial approaches to development assistance.  In more developed countries, such access is provided free through public libraries and other community centers. To those who can afford it, Internet cafes abound, especially in more populated centers.  However, for villages and remote rural areas in lesser-developed countries, there is no access at all.  Therefore, there is also a suggestion that a more bottom-up or micro-level approach – as opposed to macro-level, top-down approaches -- may be more useful to providing the means for individuals and communities to bring about access for themselves.

Macro-level, top-down approaches:
One macro-level international response has been the recent formation of the United Nations Group on Information Society (UNGIS) with representatives from 22 UN agencies.  The group is to serve as an inter-agency coordinating mechanism within the UN system to implement the outcomes of the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS). The UNGIS work plan will "concentrate each year on one or two cross-cutting themes, and on selected countries" (ITU News, Vol. 7 Sept 2006). This is but one approach, often characterized as top-down. 

The high cost for many countries to access the Internet "backbone" also remains a key issue.  The ITU through various Study Groups and the Internet Governance Forum have announced they will examine this over the next year or two.  Key to any success in bringing better, more affordable access will be government's placing a higher priority on the issue and prioritizing accessibility as an important aspect to development.

These efforts might have some merits: however, such approaches rarely if ever result in direct benefits where they are most needed for the simple reason that most of the resources are directed at the organization, travel, and study of issues by those far removed from the actual conditions.

Micro-level, bottom-up approaches:
Today, the issue of ICT for development has now evolved to include finding more micro-level solutions as macro-level advances seem hard to come by, given geo-political realities.  A bottom-up approach includes providing access points for villages on a smaller scale through tele-centers and similar formulations.  This is a level of funding for access that local governments can provide.  Finding even more micro-level entrepreneurial solutions can go a long way toward reaching goals of universal service and access.  Business development cases that start on the local level with individual entrepreneurs can also provide immediate benefit to an area completely without access.  It can also provide a means of sustaining social balance when local communities agree on how to do things on their own terms.

PTC as an organization also has the opportunity to re-invigorate its commitment to the development of telecoms across the Pacific hemisphere and especially in lesser developed areas.  In addition to the Kotaka Fund - which has provided assistance to those from developing countries to attend the annual conference - - PTC could look toward being a substantial force for positive development in fulfillment of its stated mission. This includes, “ … to use the power of information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve the quality of life in the Pacific Hemisphere.”  To achieve this, our mission statement specifically includes that we will:

"Encourage the research, development, and application of technologies, services and policies through our constituency of educators, governments, commercial organizations, non-profit entities and user communities, especially to overcome uneven development and competency divides."

Since we are a non-governmental, not-for-profit organization, one way we might become a positive influence is to direct interest toward specific projects at a micro-level and perhaps in cooperation with other organizations.  There have been plenty of studies and much is known about the means and successful results of micro-level bottom-up approaches to development.  What is required now is a plan of action and the strong desire to fulfill it so as to bring meaning to our stated mission.

Birds of a Feather:
Robert Walp, PTC Vice-President & Executive Secretary, will be spearheading an effort at PTC’07 to give direction and action to PTC’s contribution to telecom and ICT development in the Pacific region.  Two “Birds of a Feather” discussion sessions are scheduled:

            Monday  15 January 1230-1330:  PTC Action for Telecom Development
            Tuesday 16 January 1230-1330:  GAP: Global Access Plan

Of course PTC is not the answer to all the world's problems.  But, maybe we can provide at least one solution to one important challenge.  What will your connections at PTC'07 do to advance a better world with all the communication resources at your command? 

The views expressed reflect those of the author only and not necessarily PTC as an organization. Comments?   Send to: mark@ptc.org

Members’ Hot Box

Meheroo Jussawalla Honored

Meheroo Jussawalla, Ph.D., Senior Fellow Emerita at the East-West Center in Honolulu and long-time PTC member and contributor, was recently honored by Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle and Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann for her contributions to Hawaii’s high-tech industry.

The commendation signed by the Governor and Lt. Governor James “Duke” Aiona read, “…you have demonstrated a strong commitment to making a significant and positive impact on the technology industry in our island community.”

Meheroo is recognized internationally as an expert in her field of high-tech communications. She serves on the editorial boards of Telecommunications Policy  and the Journal of Information Economics and Policy.  She also served on the former Board of Trustees of PTC.  Many members know Meheroo for her numerous outstanding presentations throughout the years on the leading edge of policy, technology, economics, regulation and development at PTC conferences and seminars.

Congratulations Meheroo!

Welcome! New PTC Members

Individual Members:

Yale Braunstein

Corporate Members:

Name: EMATEL Communications Inc.
Joined PTC: December 05, 2006
Website: www.ematel.com

Name: Kasenna
Joined PTC: December 05, 2006
Website: www.kasenna.com
Company Overview: Kasenna-The IPTV Company-is a leading provider of video-on-demand (VOD) content and MPEG-4 ready IPTV applications for triple play services over broadband networks.  Kasenna PortalTV is a fully-integrated IPTV solution that enables telecom service providers, cable operators and others to generate additional revenue, increase profits and raise customer satisfaction by delivering advanced television services.  Through its subsidiary ViewNow, Lasenna offers the industry's only turnkey IPTV solution that includes scalable IP video infrastructure, subscriber applications, and VOD programming.  Kasenna ia privately-held company with headquarters in Sunnyvale, CA and office locations worldwide.

Name: SKC Communications Inc.
Joined PTC: December 05, 2006
Company Overview: SKC Communications, Inc. is a consulting firm that provides a wide scope of services, including billing and route software, and project management support from small-scale projects to large-scale endeavors.  In addition, the company is experienced in the design, installation and support of
 voice and data networks, involving Cisco, Quintum, Excel, and Emergent.

Industry Events
Look for exclusive member discounts

MEMBERS ONLY: Log in here to view full descriptions of industry events and publications including exclusive member discount codes.

ChinaTel Summit & VC Forum 2007
13-14 January 2007; Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
PTC members receive a 15% discount on registration (discount code is ptc412, all lower cases)

Top Seven Intelligent Community Forum announce in PTC’07
14-17 January 2007; Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

WCA 2007 Symposium
16-19 January 2007; San Jose, CA
PTC members qualify for the WCA member discounted early bird rate of $545 for the full WCA symposium —up to a $450 savings—by entering the code wca07 in the field marked "Promotional Code".  To attend just the exhibits for free enter the code wca01. 

Black Hat Briefings & Training USA 2007
29 July – 9 Aug 2007; Las Vagas, Nevada, USA
PTC members receive a $100 Briefings discount by inserting BH06USAASSOC into the box marked “Coupon Codes” on the web registration page, with the discounted price shown on the final invoice.

Click here for complete list of industry events

Industry Publications
Look for exclusive member discounts

MEMBERS ONLY: Log in here to view full descriptions of industry events and publications including exclusive member discount codes.

Connect-World
50% discount on the subscription fee for both printed and online magazines

Federal Buyers Guide, Inc. (FBG)
Receive free printed issues of Federal Buyers Guide, Department of Defense Buyers Guide, and Homeland Security Buyers Guide for members in the USA and Canada

Interfax China IT & Telecom Report
15% discount on all annual subscriptions, or complimentary four week trial subscription free of charge

Philippine IT-Enabled Services Industry Perspective (ITES)
10% discount on purchase price of publication
Why is the Philippines a cost-effective outsourcing location (pdf, 64kb)

Satnews - 2007 International Satellite Directory
25% discount

The TelecomDirectory.com
one (1) month of FREE SEO Services and three (3) FREE months listing on TheTelecomDirector

www.SubCableNews.com
Save €180 on a 14-month subscription

Business Monitor International Newsletter
25% telecommunications newsletter discount

Contacting Us

PTC’s online and email bulletin to members is distributed once a month. You should receive your next copy on, or soon after, 26 January 2007

For more information on PTC, visit our website at www.ptc.org. Please send your questions or suggestions to Odessa Kawai at odessa@ptc.org.

If you or your company representatives wish to continue informing other PTC members of new or improved products, or of individual achievements via the Members’ Bulletin, please express your wishes to Odessa Kawai at odessa@ptc.org

Please note that for news and headlines, we will only publish items that include a link to the cited article. This service is for PTC members only.