PTC weathers the storm: PTC 2002, Hawaii - 13-17 January - Conference Watch

Telecommunications International, Feb, 2002 by Stephen McClelland

Are e-commerce models different in Asia-Pacific, and if so, why? What is the likely future for the international operations of some Asia-Pacific carriers? (*)

If you want to ask and answer questions like these, the annual PTC conference is probably your best bet. These are the sort of questions that were asked this year (although you would have had to dig deep to find answers) and are indicative of an event that has consistently grown in stature, not merely to be the only one of its kind serving Asia-Pacific, but, increasingly, global telecoms.

Events like these tend to depend on the sheer extent of their programme, and also on the networking opportunities that they offer. Whilst critics argue against the idea of an across-the-board telecoms conference without specific interests, PTC does offer the sort of mixed bag that could probably appeal to everyone who makes some effort. True, the attractions of Hawaii in January make it a desirable location to discuss anything, but a relaxed aloha atmosphere probably contributes more than ever to enabling easy access to senior industry figures. And that is something it is difficult to put a price tag on.

More recently it has become a bellwether for the health of the industry. The degree and nature of the sponsorship and, what must be admitted, are lavish opening and closing reception events, show who is in vogue (and even occasionally who might be going out of business). PTC over the years has seen the upsurge and downswing of everything from mobile satellites and the explosion of submarine telecoms infrastructure (it was the public launch point of FLAG a decade ago) to the vagaries of the bandwidth trading community.

In the global downturn, these various sectors have all hit a rocky patch, and even with the continued emergence of new operators in less developed regions of the world, it is not hard to see that money has become tighter than ever. Post-Enron, the bandwidth traders seem to have all disappeared, at least for the time being. The infamous events of 9-11 have also made their mark, with otherwise healthy conferences around the world seeing attendees and speakers evaporate like morning dew. It therefore says something that the PTC event this year merely saw numbers drop by only 16 per cent compared with last year, according to PTC Executive Director Hoyt Zia.

In the downswing, it is likely that PTC will become more reflective, and the

downturn will provide opportunities for more examination of trends and models -- and of its own way of doing things. Against all of this there are global events of a more progressive nature taking place too. China's accession to the WTO has many telecom ramifications, not least the prospect of foreign service providers eventually taking substantial stakes in Chinese operators.

PTC 2002 was able to reflect these issues too; the rarely seen (at least outside China) Minister Wu presented a keynote speech for the conference. China on the move is not just significant for China, but of course potentially for the economics of the whole region. One speaker pointed out that for many players, China and North Asia in economic terms represented a 'sucking sound' in the way the NAFTA agreements were thought to create a few years back for jobs and opportunities. This is a trend there is no going back on. And it is one of a number of trends that future PTC conferences will no doubt mark.

*Shorthand answers to these questions are that South Korea's broadband deployment seems to be creating and generating a particular emphasis for B2C commerce, whereas Hong Kong, Singapore and even Taiwan seem to emphasise B2B commerce. There is also substantial speculation that a number of small- and medium-sized incumbent carrier operations will get out of international operations entirely.