By
Tim Young
As I write this, the TM Forum’s Management World Americas event is just a few weeks away from getting underway (and, indeed, may be in progress by the time you read this). Though very much the Forum’s “junior” event, after its flagship show in Nice, Management World Americas will be an interesting event to watch unfold. Last year’s numbers were a step down from the show’s heyday in Dallas and elsewhere, but in an era in which the trade show is being buffered by the economy, the Forum’s events retain a level of cachet that few in the segment can match.
We wanted to take a moment to look at some of the highlights those of you who plan on attending the show can expect.
Keynotes
The event has an interesting slate of keynotes planned, based around the overall conference theme, which is “Surviving to Thriving: New Business Models, New Services, New Profits.” Neil Cox, Executive VP from Qwest, will tackle that issue directly, and Fari Ebrahimi, SVP & CIO from Verizon Service Operations, will take on the issue of revenue generation and cost-cutting in his address on “Driving the Bottom Line”.
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The keynote lineup reflects the shifting business models we’re all seeing, everyday. |
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epitomizes the growth and change of the Forum. Manuel N. Hermosilla, Chief of the Operational Support Systems (OSS) Division, US Department of Defense (DoD)Tom Lam, Advisor to the Secretary of Defense on NetOps, OASD (NII) US Department of Defense (DoD) CIO, will be speaking about on Network Assurance for the Global Information Grid a retrospective of what has been done since he nominally launched the Defense Interest Group. Defense has been a growing part of the TM Forum's events, with a notable defense presence beginning to emerge at last year's Management World Americas.
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The keynote lineup also directly reflects the shifting business models we’re all seeing, everyday. In addition to speakers from communications service providers, the lineup includes Lucy Hood, Executive Director, CTM, & former President Fox Mobile Entertainment, who will be speaking on the power associated with digital content. In addition, Jim Donio, President of the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) will be addressing the new challenges and opportunities around Digital Media.
While these speakers embody the outreach that the Forum has done in the past few years to incorporate thought leadership from across the value chain, one speaker especially
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Back in the more traditional CSP realm, there are a number of interesting panel discussions taking place including some noted thought leaders in the industry.
Albert Hitchcock and Ricardo Santoro (CIO's of Vodafone Group and Claro Brasil, respectively) will come together to talk about the future of mobile communications. Given the wide scope of opportunities for growth in the mobile market, from increase breadth of coverage through prepaid, low-cost service, to expanded depth of coverage with emerging 4G and increasingly-ubiquitous mobile data, there's no shortage of possible discussion topics there.
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