Light Reading Podcasts

Lou Borrelli, CEO of the National Content & Technology Cooperative (NCTC), joins the Light Reading Podcast to reflect on the recently concluded The Independent Show in Florida, and reactions to the new name of the organization, which kept the NCTC designation but dropped the "cable" and "television" labels. Borrelli, who joined the podcast from his boat moored in Martha's Vineyard, also provided a few updates on the organization's major, new initiatives, including a "Connectivity Exchange" and a plan to offer mobile options to the NCTC membership by the fourth quarter of 2022. This year's show, which returned as an in-person event after 2021's all-digital confab, was marked by "pent up energy, for wanting to reconnect," Borrelli recalled. "The Independent Show is really the last standing old school cable show. It's the only one that combines programming and technology, just like the good ol' days. And it had that feel to it." And what about that name change? "I think a lot of people felt like it was overdue," Borrelli said. "I haven't had any negative feedback about the name. I think the fact that we kept the acronym the same, to me, was important." Borrelli said the NCTC is on track to have multiple mobile options available to its membership of 700-plus operators. "The deal that we're contemplating is flexible. From the members' perspective, they can choose how much or how little they want to actually take on for themselves," he said. You can download a lightly edited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here's a sampling of topics discussed during this podcast:Reflections on The Independent Show returning to an in-person event, and a recap from the event for those who didn't make the trip to Florida (00:57)Reaction to the recent name change from the National Cable Television Cooperative to the National Content & Technology Cooperative. (09:00) How and why the NCTC shifted to focus on its collective broadband base rather than its historical focus on collective video subscribers. (11:00) On the opportunity and challenge to get hundreds of independent operators – big, medium and small – focused on similar projects and goals. (13:41) How mobile became a priority at the NCTC and updates on the organization's plan to have multiple mobile service options available to members by the fourth quarter of 2022. (18:45)An anticipated timeline on when NCTC members will be able to take advantage of a new "Connectivity Exchange" that will enable independent operators to participate in national RFPs for last-mile connectivity. (25:30) Borrelli participated in the podcast from his sailboat. How does he stay connected from the water? (30:30) —Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light ReadingSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

DENVER – MEF Annual Members Event – Orange Business Services VP Franck Morales returns to the podcast to share how the service provider is utilizing MEF's Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) APIs.In addition to working to further automate transactions with other service providers and enterprise customers via the APIs, Morales said his role as a member of MEF's board provides him with the opportunity to help develop SD-WAN and SASE standards.You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here are a few more things covered in this interview:Orange's use of the MEF LSO APIs (00:23)Development of SD-WAN and SASE standards (03:17)New Integrated Trust Network (ITN) and blockchain groups (04:25)How use of APIs improves automation of business functions (11:00)New MEF security standard (16:27)Standardized definition of SASE (17:20)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode, we're joined by Jonathan Chambers, a partner with Conexon; and Herschel Arant, senior vice president of energy supply and external services at Central Georgia EMC, a rural electric cooperative serving parts of 14 counties in central Georgia. We discuss their partnership to build out a fiber broadband network to an unserved region of the state and how their collaboration led to the creation of Conexon's ISP arm, Connect. We also get into why electric cooperatives are especially well placed to close the digital divide in the rural US and Chambers' view that they should receive the bulk of federal broadband funding.Read an unedited episode transcript here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this podcast, Verizon's Mark Paff described in detail the service provider's role in emergency response scenarios and explained that Verizon's efforts are "all done in close coordination with the local responders that are setting up that incident command center after the event."Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many industries are feeling the squeeze of supply chain challenges, and the open RAN and semiconductor businesses are no exception.Despite the flexibility that open RAN promises from an equipment and technology standpoint, supply chain speed bumps plus geopolitical factors are presenting new challenges to that market, Light Reading's Iain Morris explained on the podcast."Open RAN for people who aren't that familiar with it is really just a set of interfaces that allow you to mix and match components and software from different companies," said Morris. "But the idea is that because you don't need an end-to-end portfolio, it's a lot easier then for smaller companies and specialists to come into the mix and kind of compete."Morris recently reported on one of the most prominent players in the open RAN game, Parallel Wireless, which had to lay off employees."They've had to let go of a lot of their staff," he said. "It depends on what reports you read how many have gone, but there are some saying it's up to 80%, which sounds pretty disastrous, really, for a company to lose that many."In addition to discussing open RAN woes, Morris explained why a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan could have a major impact on the semiconductor market.You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

DENVER – MEF Annual Members Event – Lumen's sights are set on developing a customer experience where connectivity service orders are placed through a portal or API for a more digital, automated experience, Andrew Dugan, CTO of Lumen Technologies, told Light Reading.Accomplishing that goal requires automation of Lumen's infrastructure via the use of APIs, said Dugan. He added that the service provider is currently partnering with an enterprise customer on testing and deploying MEF's Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) APIs.In addition to explaining how Lumen is utilizing the LSO APIs, Dugan shared updates on developments of MEF's standards for SD-WAN and SASE.You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here are a few more things covered in this interview:Lumen's experience implementing LSO APIs for automation of business functions (00:34)Impact of MEF's efforts to standardize SD-WAN and SASE on how operators deploy those services (02:55)Importance of a SASE definition to clear up confusion in the industry (05:00)Impact of hybrid workforce trend on SD-WAN and SASE deployments (06:20)MEF passes W128 security standard for LSO APIs (08:00)Differences between zero trust and zero trust network access (08:36)Future developments of APIs (09:52)Use of blockchain for managing transactions between service providers and enterprise customers (11:17)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we're joined by David Zumwalt, president and CEO of the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA), a trade organization that represents the fixed wireless industry. Zumwalt assumed his role roughly two months ago, in June 2022, after former CEO Claude Aiken stepped down from his post at the organization in April. We discuss what he learned about the digital divide from his prior role at an ISP in the US Virgin Islands, and his vision for WISPA as the federal government prepares to hand down tens of billions in grants for states to eradicate their broadband gaps. We also get into the important role that WISPs play in closing the digital divide, and why he likens them to "first responders."Read a full transcript of this episode here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There's no shortage of change and disruption being meted out by the streaming market. Netflix, which benefits from a sizable chunk of TV viewing time, is pursuing an ad-supported option to help restoke customer growth. Meanwhile, sports rights are rapidly gravitating to deep-pocketed streaming platforms and the world of Big Tech. Even the NFL is getting into that act with a new "NFL+" premium streaming service for superfans as the league negotiates a new deal for its coveted Sunday Ticket package, with Apple rumored to be in the lead to land it. Beneath all of that, the traditional pay-TV bundle continues to struggle as customers flee from fat bundles paired with high prices and continue to see the best shows and TV series get funneled to direct-to-consumer (DTC) services that aren't inherently part of those bundles. Brett Sappington, a long-time industry analyst who leads the video and entertainment research practice at Interpret, recently joined the Light Reading Podcast to sift through and make sense of some of these trends, how they impact pay-TV and what the pay-TV players can do to stay relevant and perhaps benefit from those trends. You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here's a snapshot of topics discussed during this podcast: Sappington's reaction to Netflix's Q2 earnings, which saw better-than-expected subscriber losses and initiatives focused on clamping down on account sharing. (1:20) How Netflix's sizable and growing share of TV viewing time could play a role in the success of the streamer's new ad play. (11:25) As major programmers and studios continue to strip-mine their best content for direct-to-consumer services and alter the traditional availability windows of new shows and movies, what will that mean for the already-struggling pay-TV bundle? (14:00) How new streaming deals for live sports, long viewed as the glue holding the pay-TV bundle together, stand to further disrupt the video marketplace. (18:08) The role the National Football League's new NFL+ premium streaming service for superfans could play in the streaming market. (23:31) As more entertainment content and live sports shift to streaming and direct-to-consumer offerings, what is the future role of the pay-TV package as consumers create their own bundles? How can pay-TV distributors stay relevant as the market amplifies its focus on streaming and the direct-to-consumer sales model? (28:24) Is streaming ushering in a "Great Rebundling" that can provide lower prices, or is this merely a shift toward an aggregation model in which consumers are forming "collections" of streaming services devoid of discount benefits? (31:42) — Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

DENVER – MEF Annual Members Event – Service providers have long been working toward automated networks. One way service providers are reducing manual processes is by adopting MEF's Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) Sonata APIs. Currently, 22 service providers are in production with the APIs, which automate inter-carrier transactions of connectivity services such as Carrier Ethernet.Stan Hubbard, principal analyst for MEF, said an additional 90 service providers are now tracked in the LSO Sonata adoption lifecycle – from interest through to implementation. Of those 90 operators, 41 are committed to using the APIs."We launched our LSO framework about five or six years ago," said Hubbard. Service providers that utilize the LSO APIs can improve their service delivery, accelerate time to revenue and improve the customer experience, he added."Service providers had to deal with lots of manual processes up until now," said Hubbard. " … We're saying, 'Invest in the APIs, standardize APIs one time, and be able to use that with your partners on the buy and sell side. It has huge potential to save time in the long run'."You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here are a few more things covered in this interview:Background on MEF's Annual Members Meeting (00:33)Update on MEF's new Technology Advisory Board (TAB) (01:28)Service provider adoption of LSO Sonata APIs to manage and automate transactions of business functions (02:16)How the use of APIs moves the needle on network automation (04:30)Initiatives to develop standards for SD-WAN and SASE services (08:45)Educating enterprise customers on SASE (09:52)Using blockchain to verify billing and settlement (12:40)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John Roese, the global CTO at Dell Technologies, said the influx of federal funding to help alleviate the digital divide should be used to solve broadband coverage gaps as efficiently as possible. He said that those efforts could be hampered if federal and state agencies let legacy networking requirements limit the number of potential technology suppliers. For new broadband builds, Roese said, a new 5G standalone network is a great solution and could be provided by a wide range of companies: Dell (of course), Amazon, Microsoft and Google, plus the traditional telecom providers."There's no reason to have 4G, 3G, 2G – there's no reason to have a voice service on it," Roese said. "And yet, our general tendency is, every time we talk about broadband, we talk about all generations of broadband, all the legacy, all possible permutations," Roese said.There are plenty of cases where 3G or 4G or fiber would be required, but some new unserved or underserved areas "might actually look like legacy-free environments," Roese said. "They might start with no technical debt, no legacy hangover, and we have to be just very deliberate about what problem we are solving."You can download an unedited transcript of the podcast here. If you want to skip around and listen, here are a few more things covered in this interview:Do enterprises see the need for private 5G? (09:30)What is the competitive dynamic between cloud providers, telcos and others working to build private 5G networks? (13:50)How Dell views the edge and why it's a big growth area. (17:14)Keeping edge workloads separate from edge infrastructure. (23:39)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.