OFC 2019 to Spotlight Latest Optical Innovations for 5G Networks

With the exponential increase in connected devices anticipated in the
coming decades, optical innovations to support the infrastructure for 5G
networks are vital. The current prediction, according to Statista,
is 75.4 billion connected devices by 2025 including both Internet of
Things (IoT) and mobile devices.

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The exponential increase in connected devices means 5G networks are becoming vital. Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Leading business and technical experts and exhibiting companies at OFC
2019, 3-7 March 2019 in San Diego, California, U.S.A., will discuss
and demonstrate how the optical communications supply chain is ready for
this demand.

“With the potential of 5G to bring about new markets, applications and
verticals, one question on the minds of many as we head into OFC this
year is, ‘how must optical networks adapt and change to meet the
capacity and performance requirements of 5G?’,” said Laurent Schares, IBM
Research, Yorktown Heights, NY, U.S.A., OFC general
co-chair. “OFC’s unique blend of business and technical sessions and
leading exhibitors creates the ideal atmosphere to discuss and debate
solutions for the communications network’s most dynamic challenges.”

Plenary speaker Alex
Jinsung Choi, SVP Strategy & Technology Innovation, T-Laboratories
Innovation, Deutsche Telekom AG will discuss open innovation in 5G on
Tuesday, 5 March. His talk “Towards Open Innovation in 5G” will address
how more radical approaches are required by network operators to keep
network rollout costs under control. This includes the move away from a
classical black box approach to disaggregation, to Open Source Software
and Open Hardware, and opening up the closed optical ecosystem.

Business-focused Sessions

This year’s MarketWatch,
a three-day series of sessions on the latest application topics and
business issues, includes a “Market Projections for Wireline and
Wireless Technologies to Support 5G” session. The panel, featuring
speakers from Cisco Systems, Corning Incorporated, ECI Telecom, Huawei,
Intel Corp., MEF Forum and NGS Advanced Technologies, will discuss both
wired and wireless 5G technologies, their respective ecosystems and
market projections.

Speakers from leading-edge operators around the world, including British
Telecom, Deutsche Telekom, Verizon Communications and Zayo will
participate in a panel on “5G Applications and Networks: Real-world
Operator Case Studies” during the Network Operator Summit, Wednesday, 6
March. During the session, operators that are conducting trials and
commercializing the first 5G applications and services regions will
share their plans, perspectives and lessons learned.

Symposia

5G will be at the center of a special Symposia
- 5G Trials, Pilots, and Demonstrations – on Monday, 4 March. The
symposia, including speakers from AT&T, C-DOT, COSMOS-PAWR., Ericsson,
Google, Nokia, NTT DoCoMo, Toyota InfoTechnology Center, University of
Bristol, University of Edinburgh, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo
and ZTE, will provide an update on the latest progress of 5G trials,
pilots and demonstrations. Participants will also present use-case
scenarios involving a wide range of relevant vertical sectors, e.g.,
mobile broadband access, connected transport, digital health, smart
cities/venues and creative media.

Exhibitors

More than 700
companies will exhibit at OFC 2019, many of them showcasing
innovations that directly address developments targeting 5G and future
mobile communication networks.

Technical Sessions

A variety of technical sessions will also focus on 5G innovations.
Topics ranging from 5G trial service in 28 GHz millimeter wave to
cloud-based 5G fronthaul to solutions for traffic prediction for 5G
transport Network, will be discussed during the conference. Register here
for OFC’s premier technical conference.

ATTENDEE REGISTRATION: Attendees may register by visiting
ofcconference.org. Register for the Full Conference or
Exhibits Pass Plus, which provides free admittance to the Plenary
Session and the Exhibit Hall. Learn
more.

MEDIA REGISTRATION: Media/analyst registration for OFC 2019
can be accessed online.
Further information is available on the event website at OFC,
including travel details.

About OFC

The Optical Fiber Conference and Exhibition (OFC) is
the largest global conference and exhibition for optical communications
and networking professionals. For more than 40 years, OFC has drawn
attendees from all corners of the globe to meet and greet, teach and
learn, make connections and move business forward.

OFC includes dynamic business programming, an exhibition of more than
700 companies, and high impact peer-reviewed research that, combined,
showcase the trends and pulse of the entire optical networking and
communications industry. OFC is managed by The Optical Society (OSA) and
co-sponsored by OSA, the IEEE Communications Society (IEEE/ComSoc), and
the IEEE Photonics Society. OFC 2019 will be held from 3-7 March 2019 at
the San Diego Convention Center, California, USA. Follow @OFCConference,
learn more at OFC
Community LinkedIn, and watch highlights on OFC
YouTube.

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