ADVA Optical Networking and Leading Experts Explore the Operational Impact of NFV/SDN

• Panelists: Niall Robinson, VP, global business development, ADVA Optical Networking; Stephen Alexander, SVP & CTO, Ciena; Robert Keys, CTO & SVP, product management, BTI Systems; Joe Weinman (moderator), author, Cloudonomics and Digital Disciplines
• Topic: Implications of SDN/NFV for Cloud and Network Service Providers
• When: Tuesday, January 19, 2016, 2:00-3:15 p.m.
• Where: South Pacific Ballroom 1, Hilton Village, Waikiki Beach, Hawaii, USA

As SDN and NFV move from demonstration to deployment, it looks certain that networking is about to undergo the most significant change in more than a decade. Getting the practical details right will now be critical. There’s a lot of value in SDN at Layer 1 but is the necessary infrastructure in place? How quickly will big carriers be able to adapt their well-established operations? And do optical networks currently have the path diversity they need to take full advantage of a software-based approach?

This roundtable discussion will examine whether SDN and NFV can live up to the hype. The speakers will debate how this seismic shift in telecommunications is likely to impact on business and when we should expect to see SDN/NFV branch out into other areas of the IT space. Other topic areas may include the push for NFV in the consumer premises world. Discussions are also likely to cover the importance of an open multi-vendor approach to NFV-based networking and how the question of who’s responsible for the end solution might be answered.