Light Reading Podcasts

This episode features Rachel Mukai Stark, smart cities program manager for the city of Charlotte, North Carolina; and Bruce Clark, executive director for the Center for Digital Equity at Queen's University of Charlotte. We discuss how broadband access in Charlotte has changed over the years, what's causing the digital divide and the city's roadmap to closing it, the importance of connecting communities with opportunities for digital training and more.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Omdia Principal Analyst Pablo Tomasi returns to the podcast with an update on the industry's progress in deploying private 5G networks. He explains why there's a land grab for logos and how the rush to identify partners in this space could present new challenges in the future."You need to ensure your long-term view and the long-term view of your partners is well aligned," Tomasi says. "At the moment, everyone wants an ecosystem and as many partners as they can get, and that could present a bit of a challenge going forward."In addition, Tomasi shares where service providers and enterprises are finding success in the private network market, and why Verizon chose to partner with private-wireless startup Celona as part of its private network strategy.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Changes to the competitive landscape for private 5G networks (01:25)Identifying experts and partners in a crowded market (03:21)Setting realistic expectations for private networks (08:15)Service provider case studies for success in the market (11:10)Most successful verticals deploying private networks so far (14:23)Replicating private network deployments (18:30)Related stories and links:MWC 2022 wrap-up: Exploring key developments and implicationsOmdia's Pablo Tomasi: Why 2022 won't be the year of 5G private networksCSPs got it all to prove with private 5G networks – OmdiaSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Mike Dano joins the podcast to discuss recent pricing changes by T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T. Dano explains why some service providers are increasing the price of mobile and fixed wireless services while others are announcing new deals for consumers, and what this means for the broader industry.Related posts:T-Mobile ports 'uncarrier' playbook to FWAAT&T's price increase could send customers to VerizonSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode features John Putnam, director of UniCity – the smart city division at Cincinnati Bell, now known as Altafiber. We discuss UniCity's 3,000 public Wi-Fi hotspots and how the division engages partners on providing connectivity and digital training services across its service areas in Northern Kentucky, and Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Jeff Baumgartner joins the podcast with a recap of the NAB show in Las Vegas. During the show, Jeff says there were discussions around the ATSC 3.0 standard for broadcast TV, latency concerns for live TV and streaming services, and he was able to attend an 8K video demo.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yellowstone Fiber, a nonprofit open access fiber network, broke ground in March to deliver fiber throughout the city of Bozeman, Montana. Formerly known as Bozeman Fiber, Yellowstone Fiber is now operating in partnership with Utopia Fiber, an open access network based in Utah. Greg Metzger, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber, and Kim McKinley, CMO and deputy director of Utopia Fiber, join the podcast to discuss their partnership in Bozeman, and where the open access model works best in the US.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Iain Morris joins the podcast to discuss Elon Musk's offer to buy Twitter for $43 billion. Morris explains Musk's potential motives behind purchasing Twitter, what it might look like if he goes through with taking ownership of the social media outlet, and what impact that could have on Twitter's future revenues and profits.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we hear from Sam Pratt, CEO of Render Networks, a provider of geospatial network construction technology. Founded in Australia, Render is primarily focused on building networks in the US and is currently active across 12 states. We discuss Render's recent announcement that its network construction technology has helped connect over 1 million premises to fiber – and what that milestone says about the industry's evolution on using digital tools in the field. We also get into funding initiatives and how the US federal effort to close the digital divide differs from Australia's.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Mike Dano joins the podcast to discuss his trip to the Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) show, why T-Mobile had a presence at a show typically attended by Tier 2 operators and why smaller carriers are investing in 5G. He also explains what these smaller service providers have planned for funding from the federal government's infrastructure deal, and why they're showing a growing interest in utilizing public clouds.Related posts:Small US carriers march toward 5GTelecom's lobbying associations shift attention to the statesFraud could drag down Biden's broadband ambitions – reportSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Basil Alwan, CEO of Tarana Wireless, joins the podcast to discuss Tarana's approach to fixed wireless access (FWA) and why its technology is unique. Alwan, a startup veteran who most recently ran Nokia's IP/Optical business, also weighs in on how Tarana's gear can help lessen the digital divide and why some of the company's customers are having WTF moments about FWA.In our conversation, we cover how and why Alwan became CEO at Tarana, a company that has been around since 2009, but only really started turning heads in the broader telecom market about a year ago. Alwan discusses how Tarana transitioned from handling small cell backhaul to building a novel broadband solution for service providers of all sizes, Tarana's G1 platform.He goes on to talk about the costs that service providers should consider when deploying traditional fixed wireless and line-of-sight cellular technologies. Finally, he reveals how Tarana Wireless is working with service providers and other channel partners and how the company's latest funding round has changed things.In March, Tarana announced that it had closed a $170 million round at a $1 billion valuation and was on track to "deliver over $100 million of revenue in 2022, from a customer base that has exploded to more than 120 service providers."Here's how the conversation unfolded:How Basil Alwan became CEO of Tarana Wireless (01:26)Tarana Wireless's work in the small cell market (04:55)Market opportunities for FWA and line-of-sight technologies (07:06)Key regions where FWA can lessen the digital divide and the cost to service providers for homes passed (09:18)Digging into Tarana's latest funding round and growth prospects (12:03)How Tarana is going to market and how service providers are stepping up (13:24)A real WTF moment for one of Tarana's customers (21:33)What changes when your company becomes a unicorn? (29:25)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Juniper Networks CEO Rami Rahim catches up with Light Reading just a couple of months following Juniper's acquisition of WiteSand, a pioneer of cloud-native, zero-trust network access control solutions. In the podcast, we discuss what that string of buzzwords means and why the acquisition fits in nicely with Mist Systems, which brought a wireless LAN to Juniper, along with the ability to use AI to make network operations easier.Here are a few things covered in this podcast episode:Juniper's acquisition strategy and how it's paying off (01:44)What Juniper looks for in an acquisition target (07:17)Juniper's focus on enterprise customers (11:29)Why Juniper loves the O-RAN opportunity (15:46)Can Juniper make the right bets while so much is changing in the network? (20:26)Moving service providers to "experience first" networking (23:46)Data is precious but coffee is better (26:05)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we hear from Matt Polka, CEO of ACA Connects, a trade association representing small and midsize independent service providers since 1993. We discuss broadband access in the service areas represented by ACA Connects, as well as a recent letter Polka sent to the NTIA's Alan Davidson regarding the final rules for the NTIA's $42.45 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (or BEAD) grant program.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we hear from Rhode Island State Representative Deborah Ruggiero. Rep. Ruggiero made some news when Cox Communications announced that it would invest $120 million to build fiber and expand its network in the state – prompting the representative and her colleagues to release a statement about the incumbent's years of underinvestment. She joins the podcast to discuss the state of broadband access in the state of Rhode Island, what's holding up progress and why she is fighting to pass a bill that would establish a broadband council at the state level.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Robert Blumofe, EVP and CTO at Akamai, said his company's recent acquisition of Linode, combined with Akamai's content delivery and security capabilities, "creates a full spectrum of compute capabilities that modern applications really depend on." That full spectrum includes an array of services "from edge computing, to core cloud computing and everything in between, because it's not a one size fits all," he said.Akamai's mission is to move computing to where the data is, not the other way around, said Blumofe. "Data sometimes lives at the edge, and sometimes it lives in the core. Depends on what you're doing and whether it's really stored data that is data at rest or whether it's data in motion," he explained. "Data in motion? Go to the edge. Data at rest? That's great in the core, you know, in the cloud."That computing flexibility lines up with the needs of enterprises these days, Blumofe said. The pandemic changed the enterprise computing architecture and how enterprises can both distribute and protect data. Years ago, he said, the enterprise computing model was akin to a castle with moats and walls. You were either inside the castle, protected, or you were outside.Now, there are no castles and "all access is remote access," Blumofe explained. "So the way I access an application from home, versus the way I access an application from the office building is exactly the same."In February, Akamai agreed to buy Linode for about $900 million, adding about 250 employees to its 9,000-strong workforce. In September 2021, Akamai spent $600 million on Tel Aviv, Israel-based Guardicore, a cybersecurity company that specializes in zero-trust, distributed security products for the enterprise.Related stories and links:Akamai To Acquire Linode (press release)Why 5G is uniquely ill-equipped to support the metaverseFastly customers have learned to stop worrying and love the cloudAkamai acquires Asavie for mobile and IoT securityLight Reading Podcast news, analysis and opinionSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Globalstar's Vice President of IoT, David Haight, discusses Globalstar's ambitions for IoT growth and more productive partnerships with telecom service providers around the world. Haight talks about why partnerships with carriers makes sense – there is a lot of overlap in the customers each industry is chasing – and the timing for new two-way IoT modules that can allow for customers to get more data and feedback about their assets in the field, especially in areas with poor cellular coverage or damaged terrestrial infrastructure.This interview was recorded at the Satellite 2022 in Washington on March 22.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In January, the island state Tonga's Internet connection went dark for five weeks. The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai undersea volcano cut Tonga's only international cable, its main domestic inter-island link.Brian Lavallée, senior director of submarine network solutions for Ciena, joins the podcast to explain why this particular severing of an undersea cable had such an impact on Tonga's network, how satellite connectivity provided a temporary backup for the island state and advancements being made in submarine network services."If you can have both – meaning you have a business case to either get satellite or submarine – you always go with submarine because the sheer magnitude of capacity you can run through a submarine cable is astonishing," said Lavallée. "You'll never get that capacity over a satellite network for the foreseeable future."Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:How Tonga's undersea cable was disconnected (1:45)Age and length of Tonga's submarine cable (05:24)New submarine cable technology compared with Tonga's cable (06:23)Fiber capacity of new and existing submarine cables (07:40)How damaged undersea cables are repaired (09:06)How satellite technology compares to undersea access (12:24)The business case for backup submarine cables (15:33)Examples of cable "faults" or disrupted service (17:39)Knocking on the door of the Shannon limit (21:10)Lifespan of submarine cables (24:29)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Before it was torn down and transformed into yet another Starbucks, an Alcatel-Lucent lab in midtown Raleigh, North Carolina, was where Nokia's David Eckard and his team worked on the initial iterations of broadband, PON and fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) technologies. Eckard's team was relegated to the loading dock while peers in the main building focused on DSL. But as is the case in the telecom and tech industries, quite a few great ideas have grown out of garages.Eckard, Nokia's VP of strategy and technology for North America, sat down with Light Reading after he and his colleagues – Leopold Diouf, VP and general manager of broadband device unit, and Suresh Chandrasekaran, fixed NW customer engineer – provided a tour of the equipment maker's "new" broadband lab in Raleigh (located near Crabtree Valley Mall for those familiar with the Raleigh area). Eckard joined Nokia after more than a decade with Alcatel-Lucent, which was acquired by Nokia in 2016.In the podcast Eckard discusses Nokia's approach to 25G PON, beacon devices for mesh Wi-Fi home networks, fixed wireless access (FWA) technologies and more. Nokia has over 150 FWA customer trials with more than two dozen operators deploying 5G FWA platform around the world, he says.Here are highlights covered in this podcast episode:Short history on Alcatel-Lucent lab and FTTH developments (1:54)Overview of software and product development of Nokia's lab (04:23)Nokia's transition to deploying virtualization and software-defined access networks (06:16)Customer demos at the lab to test PON and access networks (07:40)Challenge in working with customers on both legacy and new equipment (09:47)The future of PON technology (11:07)Use cases for FWA (13:54)Nokia's plans for use of the US infrastructure fund (18:35)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cheri Beranek, CEO of Clearfield – a provider of optical fiber management and connectivity platforms for ISPs – returns to the show to discuss the state of the fiber industry and the supply chain's impact on broadband deployments. We also discuss why Clearfield supports heterogeneous networks, forthcoming federal funding and the company's efforts in workforce training.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Igino Cafiero, CEO of Bear Flag Robotics, which John Deere acquired in 2021, joins the podcast to discuss how the companies have come together to develop and deploy autonomous tractor technologies.Bear Flag Robotics got its start operating autonomous tractors as-a-service to farmers by installing their cameras, sensors and on-board computers on John Deere tractors. "That connectivity part is super crucial to understand not only what’s going on real-time on that tractor, but offline afterwards as well, getting the data and agronomic information that tractor has gleaned from the operation to the farmer to make better decisions about how to farm in the future," said Cafiero.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Background on startup Bear Flag Robotics (0:58)Sensors and data gathered on autonomous tractors (02:00)Data analytics for future farming operations (03:25)Tractors’ level of autonomy (04:58)Connected farm: Applying technological advancements from autonomous tractors to other farming operations (07:58)Other connected equipment on farms (10:22)Connectivity needs and constraints on connected farms (12:33)How connected farming can inform decisions around environmental sustainability (15:27)Cellular connectivity to autonomous farming devices (18:54)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This sponsored episode of the Executive Spotlight Q&A features Keith Habberfield, executive VP of sales and marketing at Precision Optical Transceivers (OT). In this interview, he talks about Precision OT as a company and how it continues to consistently develop new technologies in integrated photonics, electronics and software.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Juliet Fink Yates, digital inclusion manager at the Office of Innovation and Technology for the city of Philadelphia, joins the show to discuss what's causing the digital divide in Philadelphia and which programs are making the biggest differences. We also discuss the city's new Digital Equity Plan and what Philly needs from public and private partners to achieve its goals.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Mike Dano joins the podcast to explain what the "splinternet" is, the upsides and downsides to a splinternet, the geopolitical implications and what it means for the broader industry.Related stories:Preparing for the splinternetSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

ICYMI – OFC 2022As OFC 2022 wraps up, Heavy Reading's Sterling Perrin weighs in on IP-over-DWDM and why it's really working this time. We also discuss market components upstart EFFECT Photonics and its noteworthy deal with Viasat. This interview was recorded on March 9 in San Diego at OFC 2022.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

ICYMI from OFC 2022Omdia analysts Julie Kunstler and Jaimie Lenderman discuss the growth of fiber access, new operator concerns about power consumption and the glut of fiber funding that's just around the corner.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

ICYMI from OFC 2022:Andrew Schmitt, founder and directing analyst at Cignal AI, discusses how advanced computing requirements from machine learning and AI are driving the need for co-packaged optics. He also talks about the possibility that the 400ZR market is suddenly becoming fragmented and why there was not a singularly huge, market-moving announcement at OFC this year. This interview was recorded on March 9 at OFC 2022 in San Diego.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rob Shore, Infinera's SVP of marketing, discusses three announcements covering Infinera's most recent technology and market moves in optical transport, pluggable optics and a partnership that will unlock private networking and edge computing deployments for a major US service provider.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anthony Yu, VP of computing and wired infrastructure at GlobalFoundries (GF), joins the Light Reading podcast on the show floor at OFC to discuss his company's GF Fotonix announcement, the partners involved and the timing of the markets it is addressing with silicon photonics.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Jeff Baumgartner joins the podcast to discuss why some streaming services are now offering ad-supported versions, what the future of DOCSIS looks like and what cable operators think about growth in the fixed wireless access market.For more from Baumgartner on these topics, check out his in-depth analysis here:Disney sizing up ad-supported version of Disney+ – reportCable One makes its case for DOCSIS 4.0 upgradesFixed wireless an 'inferior product,' Comcast CEO saysSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode features John Badal, founder and CEO of Sacred Wind Communications (SWC): a privately owned telecommunications company focused on bridging the digital divide for tribal lands in rural New Mexico. Founded in 2006, Sacred Wind has brought high-speed wireless and fiber broadband access to Navajo lands that previously lacked basic phone services.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Iain Morris joins the podcast to share highlights from last week's Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona. He discusses how attendance compared to pre-COVID-19 times, themes that emerged such as the metaverse, his thoughts on the slowest 5G-powered barman on Earth, whether robot dogs can be trusted and more.Morris also provides updates on drama that unfolded outside the walls of the Fira as telecom companies halted business in Russia, and Ericsson had to answer why the company "initially kept quiet about the possibility it may have paid Islamic State to use Iraqi roads."For more MWC coverage from Light Reading, check out the MWC Resource Center.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading's Mike Dano joins the podcast to share his experience touring a Dish 5G cell tower in Las Vegas. He recounts making a successful call on the new cloud-native network and discusses why that's more significant than it seems. Dano also explains what he learned about Dish's network and when it will be commercially launched.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Virginia Lam Abrams, co-founder and SVP of government affairs and strategic advancement at Starry, returns to the podcast with an update on the fixed wireless provider's Starry Connect program – which provides low-cost broadband to affordable and public housing developments – and how federal subsidies are helping some Starry customers get broadband at no cost.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alan Breznick, cable/video practice leader for Light Reading, joins the podcast to discuss the upcoming Cable Next-Gen Technologies & Strategies conference, a free digital event on Tuesday, March 15 and Wednesday, March 16.This is the event's 15th consecutive year, and its third year in an all-digital format. Cable Next-Gen will focus on a range of cable tech topics, including 10G, DOCSIS 4.0, XGS-PON, Distributed Access Architecture, 5G, network virtualization, Wi-Fi 6, smart homes, edge computing and related technologies, platforms and services, as well as COVID-19's impact on the broadband landscape. A variety of top tech execs will speak at the event, including executives from Comcast, Charter, CableLabs, Cox Communications, Consumer Technology Association, Cogeco, Midco, Schurz Communications and SCTE.More details on how to register for this free digital conference can be found here.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ankit Agarwal, managing director at STL (aka, Sterlite Technologies Limited), joins the podcast to discuss STL's perspective on the digital divide based on its work delivering network solutions in over 100 countries. We get into the central connectivity challenges in communities worldwide and where government efforts are making a difference. We also discuss the role of fiber in bridging the divide in India, and how the supply chain is impacting STL's work to accelerate digital network delivery.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Parm Sandhu, VP of enterprise 5G products and services for NTT; and Warren Small, global head of security and innovation for NTT, join the Light Reading podcast to discuss NTT's approach to delivering private 5G networks to enterprise customers.Sandhu shares insights from a recent study by NTT and Economist Impact, Private 5G Here and Now, which revealed that 90% of executives expect that private 5G will become the standard network choice."Nearly a quarter of the companies that we interviewed are already piloting private 5G networks. About one-third of those have already deployed at least the network as operational, meaning it's really moving data as part of their operations mission," explains Sandhu.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:What's driving interest in private 5G networks from enterprise customers (01:52)How private 5G networks address security concerns (03:40)Challenges enterprises face that private 5G can address (06:20)NTT's use cases in working with customers on private 5G networks (13:00)More on security aspects of private 5G; NTT partnership with ServiceNow (16:30)Related stories and links:Omdia's Private Networks Intelligence ServicePrivate 5G Here and NowNTT VP Parm Sandhu on the data and security draw of private 5G networksPodcast: Digital twinning the Tour de FranceSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cory Davis, director of public safety operations for Verizon, returns to the podcast while on site at Verizon's network-monitoring command center in SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles, California. Davis and the Verizon Frontline team are gearing up for Super Bowl LVI; the service provider has been preparing for two years for this Super Bowl, investing $119 million in and around SoFi Stadium."We look at the [command center] like a football team, we have an offense, defense and special teams," says Davis. "The goal is to keep our network at 100% to the best of our ability and respond very quickly to anything that happens."Verizon has an on-call team on site working with federal, state and local agencies to boost network capacity if needed.Davis also provides a tour of Verizon's Tactical Humanitarian Operations Response (THOR) unit, which is a 5G disaster response prototype vehicle. For more on THOR, check out this previous podcast with Davis.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Overview of Verizon's network-monitoring command center (00:39)Tour of the command center (02:25)Monitoring network performance (03:00)Verizon's preparations for the Super Bowl (04:27)Connectivity challenges at SoFi Stadium (05:36)Interactive fan experience and data usage (08:14)THOR vehicle tour (09:53)Recent THOR deployments (11:55)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Peter Vetter, president of Bell Labs Core Research for Nokia Bell Labs, joins the podcast to discuss the industry's preparations for 6G and how it will differ from previous cellular generations. Vetter has been with Nokia for over 20 years and has a background in optical communications, FTTH, radio access and network infrastructure research."What 5G has done is connect humans and machines. In 6G, we expect a much richer connectivity of machines and the physical world, the human world, with the digital world – so, the fusion of the digital worlds with physical worlds," explains Vetter. "And that's enabled by massive scale deployment of sensors that in real time capture the state of the physical world."Commercial deployments of 6G will begin in 2030 but will take ten years to prepare, he adds.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:How 6G will differ from previous generations and when it will emerge (02:51)Digital twinning and simulating the physical environment in a digital space (04:37)Use cases for digital twinning such as traffic, retail and healthcare management (08:17)"AI comes to the rescue" for network automation (09:18)Paving the way for 6G (09:48)6G radios learning from each other (11:40)6G for emergency response, energy management and public safety (12:53)Ensuring security is built-in for 6G (15:10)Critical network infrastructure for 6G (16:38)One global 6G standard but national and regional requirements (18:36)When 6G applications and specifications will emerge (20:25)6G will "unleash human possibilities … putting humans back at the center," says Vetter. (23:18)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aparna Khurjekar, SVP and president for Verizon Business Markets, joins the podcast to explain how the service provider works with small and midsized businesses (SMBs) to assess and address their security needs. Khurjekar works with businesses with ten to 1,000 full-time employees on delivering communications, security and "other above the network services."In addition, she shares insights from Verizon's Small Business Recovery Survey covering 600 business owners. "About 50% of small/medium businesses that we talked to said they have upgraded or they're planning to upgrade within the next six months a lot of their software solutions for security," she said.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Security concerns revealed in Verizon's Small Business Recovery Survey (02:25)Different approaches to security among small/midsized businesses (04:09)Security priorities according to verticals (07:28)Unique security challenges for small businesses (09:35)Applying security learnings from enterprises to smaller businesses (12:49)Hackers shifting to organized crime (15:31)Advice for smaller businesses on their overall security strategy (17:02)Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Philpott, research director at Omdia, joins the podcast to discuss Omdia's 2021 Global Fiber Development Index, including where fiber is being deployed the fastest and why speed inequalities are growing as countries work toward closing their connectivity divides.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris McReynolds, VP of product management, cloud and data services at Lumen Technologies, joins the podcast to discuss Lumen's approach to edge computing and what's driving edge use cases among enterprise customers."We have a lot of distributed physical locations where we can deploy edge computing nodes, we have a lot of fiber connectivity to manufacturing locations, logistics and sorting centers – the types of locations where these edge and IoT use cases make a lot of sense and add a lot of business value," said McReynolds.In addition to building out edge computing locations to "cover 95% of enterprises in North America," Lumen has invested in its network and compute layers and "automated a lot of the network over the past three or four years for an SDN-enabled network," said McReynolds. He emphasized Lumen's efforts to focus both on the physical and virtual infrastructure to support edge computing use cases.Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Lumen's strategy and approach to edge computing (01:36)Deploying edge computing sites to improve latency (04:58)Enterprise use cases for edge computing (07:37)Partnerships with T-Mobile and other service providers and vendors (10:24)Lumen's Edge Private Cloud, Edge Gateway and Edge Bare Metal (12:46)Related stories and links:Mapping out edge computing: How dense is it?Lumen's Mike Benjamin: An old RAT with new tricksLumen pairs edge computing with private cloudLight Reading Podcast news, analysis and opinionSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we're talking with Mike Dano about T-Mobile's efforts to purchase 2.5GHz spectrum licenses, why it's trying to purchase those licenses now, who the competition is and what it means for the industry at large.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Samir Marwaha, chief strategy officer for Sandvine, joins the Light Reading podcast to share insights into the consumption of Internet data from Sandvine's Global Internet Phenomena Report.For this report, Sandvine surveyed about 160 fixed, mobile and satellite service providers to gain a better understanding of Internet data usage, applications, security and more."In the pandemic, we have a lot more 'power users' and the definition of power users continues to change. We have a lot more terabyte users, people using terabytes a month, which was inconceivable a few years ago. In North America, about 30% of networks have people using about 3TB a month," says Marwaha.Power users' in-application usage of Zoom, games, videos and more averages five hours a day, he adds, which "is a huge increase in terms of amount of hours spent in applications."Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:Report methodology and respondents' demographics (01:36)Data usage behavior of "power users" (02:48)Impact of video usage on fixed and mobile networks (06:44)Impact of Big 6 tech companies on service providers' networks (08:59)Application complexity (12:35)Responsibility of measuring traffic (15:55)Related stories and links:The Global Internet Phenomena Report January 2022Sandvine report reveals app complexity and video everywhereHere's why the telecom industry is taking aim at Big TechLight Reading Podcast news, analysis and opinionSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Phil McKinney, president and CEO of CableLabs, joins the Light Reading podcast to discuss where the cable industry is on the path to 10G and how CableLabs is stoking interest and innovation with its 10G Challenge."The path to the ultimate vision for 10G – 10 gigabits and beyond – is a long road. We're talking multi-gigabit symmetrical coming soon and then getting into the higher speeds. But, again, 10G is not just about DOCSIS," McKinney told podcast hosts Phil Harvey and Kelsey Ziser. "We also have a lot of work going on in fiber and then there are other elements – low latency, improved security, improved privacy and all of those elements. We made great progress in 2021. And in 2022, a lot of the focus is on the next step in speed and performance."Here are just a few things covered in this podcast episode:The CableLabs 10G challenge (04:10)The kinds of applications that would really need ultra-low latency (6:25)How CableLabs is working to help companies find their way in the metaverse (09:46)Adaptive route control, application privacy and why apps don't need to always know your location (14:29)Does IPA beer taste like grass clippings? (20:56)FARMSIS – the funny name and serious effort to connect rural America (22:02)Related stories and links:Will the metaverse lead cable's '10G Challenge'?Cable network set to become 'predictive and more proactive,' Cox CTO saysNeed for mobile convergence forced cable to 'think differently,' CableLabs CEO saysCableLabs targets rural broadband with new 'FARMSIS' fixed wireless specsKiller Innovations with Phil McKinney (Podcast website)Light Reading Podcast news, analysis and opinionSign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tim Emoff, vice president of the telecom division at Sales Outsource Solutions, joins the podcast to discuss the digital divide in Canada, where an estimated 45.5% of the population can't access high-speed Internet, and a new project called FibreONE that seeks to tackle that. A consortium of companies – including Prysmian Group, Clearfield, Dura-Line, MacLean Network Solutions, Primex Technologies and Oldcastle Infrastructure – FibreONE is an effort to help deliver a fiber backbone across rural Canada. We discuss the challenges facing rural Canadian communities when it comes to the digital divide, and how the partners involved in FibreONE are collaborating to expedite the delivery of high-speed broadband.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greg Garten, CTO for NTT Security, joins the podcast to discuss security concerns that arise as service providers and enterprises move their business operations to the cloud, and how NTT Security is cleaning up "dirty networks" for small and mid-sized business customers.Garten says there's a misconception in the industry that traditional approaches to security can be applied easily to the cloud. In addition, Garten explains how NTT Security has applied security learnings from enterprises to assist small and mid-sized customers, and vice versa.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ciena's Gina Nienaber joins the podcast to explain what IP/optical convergence is and how it fits in with service providers' strategies to automate their networks. Light Reading's research group Heavy Reading recently partnered with Ciena to survey 220 service provider executives about IP/optical convergence. In the survey, "61% [of respondents] defined IP/optical convergence as the streamlining of operations across IP and optical functions. To me, that involves multi-layer intelligent software control and automation," said Nienaber, director of marketing for the routing and switching portfolio at Ciena.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John Gedmark, CEO of Astranis – a microGEO satellite company based in San Francisco – joins the podcast to discuss the company's small satellite technology and its upcoming deployment in partnership with Peruvian mobile provider Grupo Andesat to deliver 4G broadband to millions of people in Peru.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andreas Olah, senior analyst of Digital Enterprise Services for Omdia, joins the podcast to discuss his recent research on 5G, IoT and edge services trends for 2022 and beyond.Olah explains how service providers can deliver AR/VR, edge computing, IoT and intelligent automation capabilities as-a-service to enterprise customers, and how both parties can benefit from the as-a-service delivery model.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Verizon's Cory Davis joins the podcast to discuss how the service provider is addressing challenges first responders face, such as interdepartmental communication between public safety agencies and across different networks, and gives a preview of new tactical response tools such as "THOR." More on THOR later, but first, Davis, director of public safety operations for Verizon, provides insight into Verizon's Public Safety Communications Survey, and what the results reveal about how new devices and networking technologies can better assist first responders in the field.In addition, Davis explains why the Verizon Response Team (VRT) launched THOR, the Tactical Humanitarian Operations Response, which is a prototype response vehicle with mobile 4G/5G connectivity and radios. THOR also includes a tethered drone for aerial views, a rear command center, a camera, a six-seat cabin and an exterior touchscreen display.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Light Reading Senior Editor Jeff Baumgartner joins the podcast to provide an update on Astound Broadband and Atlantic Broadband's rebranding efforts. Baumgartner explains why the cable companies are choosing a new moniker, what it means for customers and what to expect next.Sign up today for the Light Reading newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.