Carrier Ethernet World Congress 2012 Review
I just got back from the Carrier Ethernet World Congress 2012 in Barcelona. Attending this congress was a great experience that enabled me to gain perspective on the key issues specific to the Carrier Ethernet marketplace, such as mobile backhaul, cloud and carrier Ethernet services and the infrastructure options for implementing them.
I believe Ethernet services have started to evolve. In the past the discussion revolved around topologies and different types of services, but is now focused on how you are serving customers. It comes down to performance and monitoring, and seeing Ethernet in the context of the bigger picture. Indeed, in alignment with our company strategy, our T&M approach has been focused on delivering QoS within the different phases of the whole network lifecycle: deployment, turn-up, monitoring and troubleshooting.
Of course, the CEWC was a great occasion to meet many of our service-provider and network-equipment-manufacturer customers from around the world. It also proved to be an ideal forum for sharing experiences and outlooks on the communications industry with different vendors and network operators.
For the EXFO team, one of the highlights of the event was winning the 2012 IIR Carrier Ethernet EMEA Award in the Best Carrier Ethernet Test and Measurement Solution category with our FTB-880 NetBlazer, chosen for its comprehensive set of automated, advanced test functionalities. This award is the latest market distinction for this product, which since its launch in 2011 has been selected by 10 of the world's 15 largest network operators. Without a doubt, this award is testament to the fact that EXFO continues to innovate in a market situation that demands more attention than ever to its customers.
Lastly, but definitely not least, the Congress was punctuated by interesting debates about Carrier Ethernet technology in general and its progress with regard to integration with CDN and Cloud, in addition to discussions on whether MPLS should be used all the way to the access.
Overall, the CEWC’s focus on Ethernet made it a very unique experience, and in that context many of the attendees were key people that we were interested in meeting and speaking with.
