Pipeline Publishing, Volume 3, Issue 2

	This Month's Issue:
	Time for a Check Up

Connecting the World to the World Cup

Pipeline’s Q and A with Dr. Tom Porter of Avaya

Every four years, the majority of the planet is united to witness a sporting event that has few equals. This event serves as not just a tournament, but a showcase for national pride, personal triumph, and collaborative victory. It is a massive event, spanning several weeks and an entire nation. It is the FIFA World Cup.

The 2006 World Cup is well underway, and the event is being attended by millions and followed by billions. And while it is soccer (or football, if you please) that is bringing the world to Germany for the Cup, it is the job of telecommunications providers to bring the Cup to the world. In honor of this massive event, Pipeline took a moment to speak with Dr. Tom Porter of Avaya, which has partnered with FIFA to provide the event’s converged communication solution.

We took a moment to speak with Dr. Porter while he was onsite at the games.

Pipeline: First of all, tell us a little about your role in this event.

Porter: I’m part of a team of 267 people responsible for running and securing the FIFA event network, which is the largest converged communications network in the world at the world’s largest sporting event.

I started off with a doctorate in genetics about ten years ago, and the way I got to what I’m doing is still amazing to me. I took on the challenge of the event network because it’s a very hard network to secure, for both technical and political reasons. We have a team that speaks a variety of languages from a variety of backgrounds, and we have a network that is extremely dynamic in terms of its organization. Parts of the network are instantiated on day one and possibly come down on day 30, whereas other parts are instantiated on day 10 and come down on day 40. We have 70 locations, which include hotels, bus stops, and train stations. Both the timing of the locations going up and down and their dispersed geography make it fairly interesting in terms of protecting the network from malicious people, both outside and inside.

Pipeline: How does that compare to last world cup?

Porter: It’s one third larger, in terms of the number of IP addresses. These things have a tendancy to grow. On this network we have roughly 200,000 security clearances. There are around 30,000 network devices and 45,000 network connections. We will run, over the course of the event, between 15 and 20 terabytes of information over the network. I’ve heard that’s roughly as much information as is contained in the Library of Congress.

Pipeline: How did Avaya secure the deal?

Porter: In 2001 we signed a contract with FIFA for several events to be a major partner and be responsible for infrastructure along with DeutscheTelecom. We were involved in the 2002 World Cup, the 2004 Women’s World Cup, and the 2005 Confederations Cup.

"Porter: I’m part of a team of 267 people responsible for running and securing the FIFA event network, which is the largest converged communications network in the world at the world’s largest sporting event. "

Pipeline: Do you have plans for involvement in the next World Cup?

Porter: It’s not yet clear what our involvement will be in 2010. From a technical point of view we are talking about it. We’ve been talking about network connectivity in South Africa and how we would handle it, and whether we would be doing IPV6 or not. But the people who make these decisions are in talks.

Pipeline: What are some complications this project has encountered?

Porter: The biggest would be the volatile nature of the network. Security people like things that sit still so that they can be characterized. On this network nothing sits still. For example, we’re already deinstalling Leipzig and Nuremberg because there are no more games there. There has to be very clear coordination as we pull security monitoring and network monitoring devices out of there in time with the physical equipment coming out of the building. The requirements make it tough, as well. Security usually consists of a three part triangle, known as the ‘CIA Triad’. It revolves around confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Most security people in the enterprise are most interested in the confidentiality portion. In this network, availability is the key metric. The network has to stay up because we carry real-time data, not only conversational data, but also data that feeds the World Cup website, which is how most Americans get their information about the cup, since the games are generally played while they are at work. We also feed companies that provide real-time statistics during the matches. This need for availability makes us have to make compromises when we are designing security into this thing. The network has to stay up. There are times when security concerns and availability concerns are not coincidental. Another thing that makes it difficult is that we work with DT, European Global Sports, and FIFA directly, as well as other players. In addition to speaking different languages, there are also different backgrounds and different sensitivities to risk.

Pipeline: In general, why do you feel that the World Cup is an important event?

Porter: Well, from a cosmic point of view, it’s just a game. But it’s the biggest game in the world. About a third of the people in the world are watching the games. In terms of size, it’s undeniably important. It’s something that the whole world shares. The world is nuts about soccer.

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