COMPTEL last week hosted more than 2,000 attendees during the COMPTEL PLUS Fall 2012 Convention & EXPO at the Gaylord Texan in Dallas. The annual fall event, featuring educational sessions and networking in a sold-out exhibit hall, attracted attendees from all 50 states and eight countries.

"COMPTEL PLUS has again proven to provide valuable prospects for networking and education for all those who attend," said COMPTEL CEO Jerry James. "From the energy in the exhibit hall, deal center and meeting rooms, to the interest in new business models, cloud solutions and policies shaping our industry, it is clear that those who attended our show are embracing the change that is constant in our sector and seeking new opportunities to differentiate themselves and serve businesses and consumers around the country with innovative broadband services."

Highlights of the show included:

• Keynote address by Larissa L. Herda, chairman, CEO and president of tw telecom inc. During her remarks, Herda showcased the importance of innovation and called for the Federal Communications Commission to embrace smart, forward-looking competitive telecom policy with price and service quality rules where incumbents have market power, regardless of technology used."
• A sold-out EXPO featuring more than 100 exhibitors - including 21 that were exhibiting at COMPTEL PLUS for the first time.
• An invitation-only CEO Breakfast, during which 60 C-level executives heard featured speaker Royce Holland, chairman of the board of Masergy Communications, share his perspective on the market and discuss strategies for managing companies at various stages of a company's lifecycle.

In addition, interest in a variety of key topics of importance to the industry - IP-to-IP interconnection, universal service reform, last-mile access to copper and fiber, and the explosion of cloud solutions - drew significant attention to the educational sessions at COMPTEL PLUS. The convention featured three concurrent tracks - "The Road Map Ahead: Changing Business Opportunities," "The Cloud Market: What's the Forecast," and "Policy Perspectives: Washington Impact" - that addressed business, regulatory and technology trends and issues that are shaping the communications industry. There also was a half-day workshop, entitled "A Three-Hour Tour of the New Universal Service Fund: Rough Seas or Smooth Sailing?," hosted by Davis Wright Tremaine LLP.

Networking at its Finest
Throughout the COMPTEL PLUS show, more than 860 attendees used the Business PLANner deal center in the EXPO hall, and participated in almost 300 meetings with prospective and current customers.

All the News
News from the COMPTEL PLUS Fall 2012 Convention & EXPO can be found online in the COMPTEL PLUS Show Daily. For news from Monday, October 8 and Tuesday, October 9, visit the  COMPTEL PLUS archives.
 

The 124th NARUC Annual Meeting is taking place in Baltimore November 10-14 and COMPTEL is again planning its popular Competitors' Reception. If your company is interested in sponsoring this event, please e-mail Karen Reidy or call 202-296-6650.

Sunesys, LLC was the lucky winner of a free full conference registration for a future COMPTEL PLUS convention, after filling out our recent member survey.

The survey was sent to all members and is designed to expand information in the COMPTEL member database.  With more robust data about our members, we can better serve your needs, as well as provide greater networking and new business opportunities. The survey enables members to better define their businesses and showcase their offerings to prospective partners and customers. With that information in our database, members can do more granular searches to find the solutions best suited for their needs. The information provided also will help COMPTEL become more informed about its membership, making us a stronger advocate on your behalf.

If you haven't completed the survey yet, there's still time. Please  e-mail Kevin Morris or call 202-296-6650 for more information.

Three COMPTEL PLUS attendees were lucky winners of American Express gift cards during our EXPO hall drawing. Pictured here (left to right) are John Martinez, ADVA Optical Networking ($500); Donna Rice, USA Digital Communications ($1,500) and Joanna Guerra, Outsourcing Services International ($1,000).  Sponsors of the EXPO hall drawing were CSF Corporation, DDR Broadband, GENBAND, GeoResults, Overture Networks, Sales Tax Associates, Transition Networks Inc. and Verify Systems.

Despite temperatures in the 50s on the Cowboys Golf Course, more than 50 attendees braved the cold. The winning team, which shot a 61, included Jeff Flowers, Barry Good and Jason Stehling (pictured above with COMPTEL CEO Jerry James). Second place was won by the trio of Scott Cousins, Duwain Dean and Marty Ouverson. Trailing the 14-team field was the quartet of Jerry Cady, Tim Koxlien, Tim Loaptofsky and Natalie Verette. "Closest to the Pin" winners were Kim Richling and Geoff Warta, and Cousins and Lisa Vedovelli were awarded for the "Longest Drive." The tournament was sponsored by Broadvox. Telmar Network Technology sponsored the golf beverages and Level 3 Communications was a golf hole sponsor.

All COMPTEL Committee meetings are held at the Association's headquarters, 900 17th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, D.C. 20006, unless otherwise noted.  All times listed are Eastern. For more information, call 202-296-6650.

October 16       Regulatory/Legislative Committee Meeting
2 p.m.              Contact Karen Reidy

October 23      Regulatory/Legislative Committee Meeting
2 p.m.              Contact Karen Reidy