Over 200 Professionals Attend "Tech it Out"

Last week's "Tech it Out" event held at the Cable Center by the Communications Technology Professions (CTP) and Women in Communications and Telecommunications (WICT)" was a great success with over 200 industry professionals attending.   Panel members included Maria Popo of Ubee Interactive, Balan Nair of Liberty Global, Cynthia Carpenter of Integrated Broadband Services, Tony Werner of Comcast, Leslie Ellis of Ellis Edits, Kathy Timko of Canoe Ventures, and CTP President, Josh Holmberg of Broadsoft.  

A lively discussion took place on how mobile devices were becoming a primary form of communication and means to access information.  There were also 'cutting the cord' demos of GoogleTV, AppleTV, and Roku.  According to the panelists, companies who can make the ultimate user experience exciting, innovative user-friendly will win because consumers don't care what device they're using to get information as long as it's easy to use.  Kids, in particular, are becoming more accustomed to watching videos on PCs and mobile devices as opposed to TVs - a whole dynamic which will affect the cable industry.  

Ironically, lunch speaker Nicholas Carr argued how the ubiquity of the Internet is affecting our ability to focus and think deeply.  Revisiting history, Carr gave examples of how previous new technologies such as clocks and books changed our lifestyle.  Where do we go from here?  Is the Internet giving us the ultimate convenience of info at our fingertips but overwhelming our ability to concentrate?  

Let us know your thoughts.  

Leslie Deniken

Net Neutrality Likely On Hold For Two More Years

The 2010 election is now history and I for one couldn’t be happier.  Instead of answering political robo-calls and fending off armies of doorknockers, we can now reflect on important issues like the implications of the new Republican House of Representatives on net neutrality. 

Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) is working hard to position himself as the next Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee – the committee responsible for passing Net Neutrality legislation.  Upton has long opposed Net Neutrality and was not a supporter of current Chairman Henry Waxman’s (D-Calif.) compromise proposal offered in September. 

The current proposal would have granted temporary authority to the FCC to regulate net neutrality on the Internet but not on wireless networks.  This proposal seemed dead in the water even before the election due to lack of Republican support.  It is most assuredly dead now.

Upton is much more inclined to let market forces drive behaviors rather than government regulation.  As quoted in Politico, Upton said, “You shouldn't have an overbearing FCC. Let the market work itself.  By allowing companies to compete in an unregulated forum, you're going to allow the faster deployment of new services and new equipment consumers are going to want.”

This should be music to the ears Colorado broadband providers such as Comcast that provide last mile broadband connectivity.  Upton’s position also aligns with Jim Crowe, CEO of Level 3 Communications who said at an analyst conference in 2007,

“…it is the traditional Telcos, though, that really have the power if [the net neutrality issue] moves to the FCC.  They’ve got 100 years of experience.  I've participated in a reasonable fraction of that period, competing with the RBOCs, and I can tell you, they have plenty of lawyers, plenty of lobbyists, and if you want to move to their turf, you want to give them an unfair advantage, let the FCC start to arbitrate net neutrality.

Far better to let the market sort through the issue, far better to let customer preference decide the issue. Today it’s becoming increasingly clear that it is socially unacceptable to differentiate between packets; let’s hope that remains the case. But if not, far better to have recourse to the anti-trust courts than to the FCC.”

This doesn’t mean that net neutrality is dead but it seems unlikely that it will be an issue Congress will want to take on during the next two years.  Don’t worry though.  There are only 727 days until the next election.  You’ll know net neutrality will be back on the table when the robo-calls start.

- Howard Zonder

John Scarano to Leave Zayo

Zayo announced on November 2^nd that John Scarano, President and COO of Zayo Bandwidth, will be departing the company as of November 19^th.  Scarano, who co-founded the company with Dan Caruso in 2006, had a four-year agreement with the company that was fulfilled last month.  In a memo to the Zayo team, Scarano explained, “I personally enjoy building or fixing companies then leading them through the necessary changes where the future is uncertain.  Given our current position of strength, this is an ideal time to step aside and have another take my place.” 

According to Dan Caruso, President and CEO of Zayo, Scarano was, “integral in the acquisitions that became the foundation of the Zayo Bandwidth segment.”  Scarano has had a long-standing partnershp with Dan Caruso with whom he has worked since 1995 at MFS, Level 3, ICG and Zayo. 

Zayo, which employees approximately 350 people is ranked in the top 10% of ColoradoBiz Magazine’s list of the Top 250 Private Companies in the State of Colorado at number 23.

According to the press release, Scarano’s responsibilities will be distributed to existing members of the leadership team including Mr. Caruso.  Caruso and Zayo’s Board will evaluate options to replace Scarano or permanently redistribute his duties.  Scarano remains a major equity owner in Zayo.

- Howard Zonder