Postcard from SUPERCOMM

Telecommunications Americas, July-August, 2004 by Sue O'Keefe

Just flew in from SUPERCOMM 2004, and boy are my arms tired! The good news: My antiquated joke was one of only a few things to groan about at SUPERCOMM this year. The mood was elevated significantly over last year, and more than one company told our editors that they were signing deals at the show--something unheard of the past few years. The big service providers seemed to be once again sending some of their top guns, even if they weren't giving keynotes. A few musings from the show:

* Note to show organizers: Get a draft of the keynote speeches at least a month in advance and then insist the speakers do some forward thinking. I almost think I'd rather have listened to John Chambers for the umpteenth time (I think his SUPERCOMM rotation is coming up again soon) than some of these yawners. Great to have a keynoter from the cable industry, but if he doesn't actually say anything, was he really there?

* Quick, what was the big news from the show? If you're coming up blank, or even had to struggle for a few seconds, you're not alone. Members of the media were left with that same empty feeling as many companies decided to pre-announce news in the few weeks before the show to avoid the rush. There was, however, relief that what could constitute as the news from SUPERCOMM came from carriers, not vendors: Sprint's EVDO announcements and news from Verizon and SBC on their packet plans. It's also a relief to hear the service providers start to talk less about their networks and more about the services they're offering over them--a subtle but significant change.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

* I ate their popcorn, drank their beer (well, a sip or two anyway; it wasn't terrific beer) and picked up two purple leis, but still had to ask around and finally go to their web sites to see what line of business Hula Networks (the hula dancers and lei tchotchkes) and Wilhagan Ventures (free beer and popcorn) are in. Turns out both are resellers of new and used telecom equipment. A lesson for all companies: Never let your marketing gimmicks overshadow what you're selling.

* It's good to see a new round of buzzwords arrive to replace "convergence" and "next-gen." Kudos to all those companies that have "migrated" to "evolution" and "renaissance."

See you next year, Chicago!

Editor in Chief