Mark Hukill
PTC’18 Program Advisor
Conference program planning for PTC’18 is well underway. It is exciting to be a part of developing a program that befits the extraordinary milestone of the 40th anniversary. Having been a part of PTC for 35 of those 40 years myself, it is a privilege to participate in the most unique, meaningful, and delightful telecoms forum in the world. We are grateful to all of the members of the PTC’18 program committee and many PTC members including members of the BG and AC for their insights and suggestions for the program.
The secretariat and program committee are currently in the process of developing an agenda with invited key highlight and plenary speakers suggested by members and specially selected for the 40th anniversary conference.
As has been the practice over the past 40 years, a large proportion of the conference program for PTC’18 will be formed from accepted proposals through the Call for Participation (CFP). The CFP has been developed by the program committee and is in response to significant and forward-looking topics of interest to PTC attendees. You can submit a proposal now.
New for PTC’18 as a proposal category is Product Demonstrations. Venue space and a specific time slot is being set aside specifically for individuals and companies to showcase their products and services through a direct demonstration.[1] The program committee is looking for proposals that provide very practical demonstrations that can be shared in a short time frame and are related directly to areas of relevance to the conference and topics. These demonstrations are envisioned to be informative, creative, and eye-opening to showcase new developments and significant products that are addressing current and future needs.
Topics for PTC’18 include:
5G – Keen interest is in the area of new wireless technologies with broad implications across multiple industries. What can we make of developments and implementations already running well ahead of standardization?
IoT – Sometimes described as the greatest new area of development in telecoms and ICTs in this decade, the Internet of Things has spawned a vast array of both conceptual and practical ideas that are already having deep impacts on systems and services. Is this the new telecoms nirvana or is a more tempered approach needed?
Network architectures continue to evolve with various forms of automation and intelligence being rapidly introduced. Are networks becoming nothing more than software? Where does this leave the physical infrastructure and its needed capitalization?
Satellites and submarine cable strategic initiatives are at the forefront of broad-based developments in the telecom industries. Core constituencies at PTC are already planning a series of their highly popular sessions and welcome new proposals.
PTC’18 will also focus on:
Data centers – Are these becoming our networking brains? How literal could this become in the future?
Edge / fog / cloud computing – Impacts of these technological developments continue as key drivers of systems and services for both consumers and enterprises. What should we really know about these developments that have rapidly evolved to a high level of sophistication and why do they matter?
Big data analytics – The digital revolution has spawned an unprecedented level of data availability. But seriously, what can we make of it?
AI, robotics and virtual reality – Don’t look now, but just when you might be getting used to OTT and disruption writ large, you ain’t seen nothing yet!
Video – What are the implications for the development of networks with video already the primary content today and into the future? Viewers are increasingly demanding a vast a la carte menu of both recorded and live video and television at commodity pricing at best for the content they want, when and where they want it. Is online “individual-casting”, as opposed to traditional broadcasting and cable, becoming the real driver of every other development in telecoms?
PTC’s mission also attracts many with topical interests in:
Policy and regulation – What do technological developments and anticipated changes to regulation mean for consumers and industries? What policies are really needed? What is the right balance to ensure both a robust industry environment and consumer protection?
Opportunities in emerging markets – Including significantly for PTC, the pacific island nations, along with the larger Asia-Pacific region. How can we connect half the world’s population that remains unconnected? What works and what does not?
Security, privacy and data protection – What can be done to protect against privacy intrusion and security threats? What are the best strategies to counter cyber-threats? How are all of these threats affecting us as people, and as businesses?
The program committee is also seeking proposals that can encapsulate the past and future of telecommunications as a capstone to the 40th anniversary of the PTC Annual Conference. Have we learned anything from the past 40 years of telecommunications technology and business model innovation that will help us predict the next 40?
These are all topic areas where the conference is seeking proposals. However, they are not exclusive and proposals on other relevant topics are welcome. We also encourage proposals with audience engaging formats.
Everyone is highly encouraged to propose speakers and topics through the Call for Participation. This ensures that proposed speakers are given full consideration with the opportunity to provide a complete abstract. The secretariat and program committee along with independent reviewers ensure that all quality proposals can be given proper consideration for placement.
As has been the case with every PTC Annual Conference, a large majority of the conference program, including industry and academic participation, has been developed from acceptance of proposals submitted through a Call for Participation. We anticipate this to continue with PTC’18. The remainder of the program is primarily top-level invited speakers by the committee along with the highly acclaimed workshops and managed sessions developed by PTC members, organizations, and partners.
The deadline for PTC’18 proposal submissions is Wednesday, 26 July 2017. Don’t miss out on your opportunity to participate at this extraordinary event.
[1] Direct sales at the demonstration venue is not allowed.
