TIA Member Connect, November 2015

TIA Member Connect is a monthly online newsletter for members of the Telecommunications Industry Association.

Message from TIA CEO Scott Belcher

For more than 50 years, TIA has been the trusted source for expertise and policy advocacy on leading-edge communications technology. At this month’s TIA Board of Directors meeting, held at our headquarters in Arlington, VA, we had the opportunity to recognize those who had a hand in TIA’s distinguished history, as well as look towards the future with a display of innovations that are driving change within our industry.

We were privileged to honor Paul Vishy, legal counsel and long-time friend of TIA, for his nearly 40 years of service. We were also honored to recognize Fred Lucas, President of FAL Associates, for his over four decades of leadership in standards development.

In addition, TIA Board members had the opportunity to hear from Global Actionable Innovation, a company that connects early-stage technology companies looking to scale with global corporations looking for disruptive innovation solutions.

And, in between, the Board of Directors continued to drive TIA’s success with these accomplishments:

Approval of a 2016 budget and endorsement of a strategic plan and operating plan;
Endorsement of an excellent slate of new Board members;
Approval of substantive bylaws amendments;
Approval of seven new member companies; and
Guidance and consensus support for the TIA NFV lab.

As we gear up for the many exciting opportunities that lie ahead, we urge you to take full advantage of your TIA membership! Participate in our policy working groups or standards development committees, join the TIA NFV Lab, book a TIA NOW on-camera interview, and speak at or attend a TIA networking or educational event – including the TIA 2016 annual conference.

To learn more about your membership benefits, contact Ancilla Brady at abrady@tiaonline.org or 703.907.7713.

Upcoming TIA Events

December 8, 2015: Joint TIA-ITU Vehicle Communications Workshop
June 6-9, 2016: TIA 2016 Network of the Future Conference, Dallas, TX

Please consult the TIA Standards Calendar for meetings of the Engineering Committees. For policy events, see the Washington Weekly Advance, sent by email to TIA members.

TIA Member Download

A bulletin board for TIA membership news. To submit an item, please contact April Ward at award @tiaonline.org

Welcome New Members of the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors unanimously endorsed the nominees for open positions selected by the Governance and Nominating Committee and approved by the Executive Committee. Absent additional nominees, these candidates are deemed elected and will assume office in January 2016:

Joyce Mullen, Dell
Trevor Putrah, KGP Logistics
Jennifer Pentecost Sims, Power and Telephone Supply Company
Jeff Campbell, Cisco
Vicky Obenshain, Panasonic
David Heard, Heard Consulting
Betty Manetta, Argent Associates
Gary Niederpruem, Emerson Power
Dan Pigott, Henkels & McCoy
Charlie Vogt, Imagine Communications
Fred Yentz, Telit IoT Platforms

The Board also approved two new senior advisors: Anil Kripilani and Jake MacLeod.

TIA Brings on Seven New Member Companies

The TIA Board of Directors recently approved the addition of seven new member companies. TIA’s newest members represent various components of the communications industry from a software company supporting the tower industry to service line, mobile broadband, data center, and tower design consultants, and the manufacturers and suppliers building out our nation’s mobile broadband infrastructure. TIA is pleased to welcome the following companies to the association:

AW Solutions
Capitoline
Eagle Commercial Services
Forge Services
Iowa Statewide Interoperable Communications System Board
Premcell
Tower Numerics Inc

TIA Outlines Strategic Plan and Operating Budget to Better Align with the Needs of its Members and the Industry

In 2015, TIA worked to advance its presence and give the organization a stronger voice in the policy, business and technology debates taking place in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry. This included the hiring of a number of key executives following the appointment of Scott Belcher as CEO in November 2014, and the addition of 34 new members including AT&T, Comcast, Brocade, Fujitsu, Infinera and Emerson.

To continue to better align TIA with the needs of its membership and the ICT industry, the Board of Directors recently endorsed an assertive strategic plan and a realistic operating plan that will enable TIA to better represent and service the changing needs of our members by:

Enhancing TIA’s advocacy voice;
Building TIA’s technology focus;
Creating a North American industry conference; and
Developing focused market data.

In addition, the TIA Board of Directors approved a 2016 budget that aligns with the operating plan and sets the stage for positive cash flow in 2017.

The budget and operating plan, as well as the strategic plan, confirm TIA’s focus on enhancing member value by accelerating our members’ business growth through policy, technology, innovation enablement and business connections.

Board of Directors Continues Bylaws Update

The Board of Directors also continued its review and update of the TIA Bylaws by unanimously approving key changes to Articles I – IV, VII and XI recommended by the Governance and Nominating Committee: make notice and written communications provisions consistent; modify the name of the member category from “General Service Provider and Enterprise Membership” to “Carrier and Enterprise Membership;” clarify process for review of new member applications; clarify basis for termination of membership and modify prohibition on TIA endorsements of products or services; amend member voting process to allow electronic ballot voting process for or against a slate of candidates for the Board of Directors proposed by the Governance and Nominating Committee; clarify that not all open positions on the Board of Directors need be filled at all times; and clarify process for issuance of certificates of membership. The Governance and Nominating Committee will continue its detailed review process and present additional recommended changes at the March 2016 meeting of the Board of Directors.

TIA Recognizes Retiring Leaders

Fred Lucas, President of FAL Associates, stepped down as a Chair of TIA’s User Premises Equipment Division. He was also Chair of the TIA TR-30 Engineering Committee. His history with the Committee extends back to before TIA was formed, when the standards initiatives were housed at the Electronics Industry Association.

Jim Hjartarson, Chairman of Regulus Solutions, who served on the TIA Board from 2003 – 2008 and then again from 2010 to the present, and Anil Kripilani, President of WireFreeCom Inc., who served on the Board since 2009, both retired from the TIA Board of Directors.

TIA thanked each for their invaluable service to the association and the industry at the recent Board of Directors meeting at TIA’s headquarters.

Paul Vishny, a Founding Father of TIA, Honored at the TIA Board of Directors Meeting

A luncheon was held in honor of Paul Vishny on November 10 at TIA’s headquarters in Arlington, VA. Paul previously served as TIA General Counsel and was recognized for nearly four decades of commitment to TIA and the industry.

Several of Paul’s longtime colleagues attended, including Dan Bart, former Senior Vice President of TIA Standards and Chief Technology Officer; Susan Hoyler, former Director of TIA Standards; and Eric Schimmel, former Vice President of TIA Standards. Amy Marasco, General Manager for Standards Strategy of Microsoft, also shared highlights of Paul’s invaluable contributions.

Technology Startup Companies Present Innovative Telecom Solutions at TIA Board Meeting

Global Actionable Innovation (GAI) is a company that offers a full scaling package for early-stage technology companies that includes networking, experts, consulting services and venture capital funding to technology businesses worldwide. This scaling package and venture capital funding helps technology businesses access global corporations. Adarsh Radia, GAI co-founder, introduced the company and its platform at TIA's recent Board of Directors Meeting. Four finalists of GAI's international telecom startup competition also presented their technologies.

Watch a TIA NOW interview with GAI at this link. Watch a TIA Now interview with the startup companies at this link.

TIA Holds Get Smart, Get Dense: DAS and Small Cell Workshop

On November 17, TIA held the Get Smart, Get Dense: DAS and Small Cell Workshop. The workshop proved in its own right to be an event densely filled with in-depth information about the state of DAS and Small Cell development today. The day began with a technical overview in which Dr. Rikkin Thakker provided attendees a thorough understanding of the two technologies, when best to use them, assets and limitations to each, and their technical evolution.

This was followed by three panels in which Corning, Henkels & McCoy, EXFO, PCTel, Telecom Infrastructure Corp., Widelity, Vertix Consulting, Zenfi, Bird Technologies and Fierce Wireless, contributed boots-on-the-ground experience of what it really takes to deploy these networks, trends in network design, new approaches, and overall the state of in-building wireless connectivity.

A highly informative day was had by all. And even better, the videos of the three sessions will be available online shortly so keep an eye out for them on TIAonline.org. If you did not manage to attend in person, you can still get the information you need.

Watch a TIA NOW interview with EXFO at this link - and watch an interview with Henkels & McCoy at this link.

For more information, contact Florence Sumaray, 703.907.7471.

TIA 2016 Call for Speakers and Product Demonstrations Now Open

TIA is excited to announce it has opened the Call for Speakers and Product Demonstrations for its annual TIA 2016: The Network of the Future Conference, which will take place in Dallas, Texas from June 6-9, 2016.

You are the thought leaders developing solutions for the Network of the Future. We want to hear from you! This coming year at TIA 2016, the Network of the Future will focus on four themes:

The revolution of 5G wireless networks
Scalability, security and interoperability of the Internet of Things
Network virtualization and
Cybersecurity and network security

If your company works in these industry sectors, or is reliant on them, we invite you to share your insights, best practices, technological innovations, new business models, and much more with your colleagues and prospective clients. Apply Today!

Sen. Gary Peters to Speak at TIA Vehicle Connectivity Workshop - December 8 at TIA

On December 8, TIA, the Association of Global Automakers and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will co-host an event on vehicle connectivity. The day-long workshop will feature keynotes from industry and policymakers, including U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-Mich.). Other notable speakers include experts from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), industry leaders from GM, Cisco, Qualcomm and Panasonic and researchers from Virginia Tech, Texas A&M and University of Michigan, among others. Several panel discussions will be held that address critical issues facing the future of intelligent transportation – including connectivity and network issues, automotive cybersecurity, the role of transportation in smart cities and more.

TIA NOW Speaks with NFV and IoT Leaders in Silicon Valley - from Chipmakers to Operators

TIA NOW produced a series of Red Hat sponsored video webinars in Silicon Valley, all focused on open source for NFV technologies. TIA NOW highlighted the most debated issues around virtual networking from open source for Telcos and enterprise, to debating what carrier grade networks mean, and finally the hot topic of the trip, Linux container technology for NFV networks.

While in the Valley, TIA NOW rounded out their coverage of one of TIA’s upcoming Network of the Future documentary episodes, “The Virtualization Revolution: SDN and NFV Unleashed.” Interviews included Sandra Rivera, Vice President of the Network Platforms Group at Intel, Margaret Chiosi, Network Architect with AT&T and President of OPNFV and Chris Wright, Chief Technologist with Red Hat, to name a few.

Continue to check TIANOW.org for these soon-to-be-released videos.

Also to be released soon is TIA’s documentary episode titled, “The Internet of Things: Connecting It All.” TIA NOW’s Valley trip included interviews with Cisco’s Vice President of IoT Business, Tony Shakib, SAP’s Vice President of Customer Engagement, Nayaki Nayyar and the Vice President and General Manager of Cloud and Virtualization at Cisco, Gee Rittenhouse. Watch preview interview here.

For additional information on how you can be a part of TIA NOW’s Network of the Future Documentary Series, contact Abe Nejad, 703.907.7004.

TIA Policy Update

FCC Incorporates TIA-Led Industry-Consumer Advocates Consensus Approach in Proposed Rules for Wireless Hearing Aid Compatibility (HAC)

TIA, CTIA – The Wireless Association®, Competitive Carriers Association (CCA), Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TDI), and National Association of the Deaf (NAD) together submitted a consensus proposal to the FCC that would enhance benchmarks for wireless hearing aid compatibility (HAC) regulations.

The new proposal outlines a phased approach to increase HAC benchmarks for wireless handset manufacturers and carriers over the next eight years. At the FCC’s November open meeting, the agency unanimously voted on a notice for proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would be based on the consensus approach.

United States Information Technology Office (USITO) Marked its 20th Anniversary

USITO is an independent, non-profit, membership-based trade association, representing the US information communication technologies (ICT) industry in China. TIA is a founding member of the organization.

U.S. Ambassador to China, Max Baucus (pictured left), addressed more than 100 attendees at a reception in Beijing, China in honor of USITO’s two decades of service to the industry.

Prior to the reception, the USITO Executive Committee attended a private meeting with the Ambassador and his staff to address critical US-China ICT issues. TIA CEO Scott Belcher represented TIA at the meeting.

Full Text of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Trade Agreement Released

On November 5, the full text of the trade accord with 11 Pacific Rim nations was made public after five years of negotiations. TPP contains provisions on telecommunications, removing technical barriers to trade, cross-border trade in services, electronic commerce, and other important rules to promote digital trade.

While TIA is still reviewing the full document, it does appear that some of the pressing concerns about forced localization of certain data had been addressed. Under a law adopted earlier this year, Congress cannot amend the agreement. Lawmakers will take an up or down vote on the TPP in 2016.

TIA Technology Update

TIA Announces it will Launch Neutral Testing Lab for Network Virtualization Technology

Expected to launch in early 2016, the TIA NFV Lab will be North America’s first vendor-neutral test bed for network functions virtualization (NFV) technology. The TIA NFV Lab will fill an increasingly vital need of service providers: ensuring that software and applications running on the network are able to perform as designed and work seamlessly together with other software and applications.

TIA’s Chief Technology Officer, Franklin Flint, spoke with TIA NOW about how the NFV lab will function and ultimately lead the industry for NFV interoperability testing. Watch the video here.

RCR Wireless News covered the announcement: “The Telecommunications Industry Association is throwing its might behind the growing network functions virtualization space, announcing plans to launch a NFV interoperability testing laboratory. TIA said the lab is expected to launch early next year and is to be the first vendor-neutral test bed for NFV technology in North America. The site is set to leverage standards work being conducted by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute NFV Industry Specification Group…” Other press coverage of the TIA NFV Lab included a FierceTelecom article.

For more information on how your company can join the TIA NFV Lab, click here.

Look on the Shelves for This Logo!

To assist the amplified telephone industry on acoustic performance parameters, TIA’s Engineering Committee on Performance and Accessibility for Communications Products (TR-41) developed the industry standard “Amplified Telephone Measurement Procedures and Performance Requirements” (TIA-4953). The standard includes requirements for the acoustic performance of a telephone to meet the needs of individuals with hearing loss. Users of amplified phones who have mild, moderate and severe hearing loss may start seeing products on shelves displaying TIA’s 4953 license logos.

TIA and Capitoline Announces a Licensing Agreement on Data Center Standards Training

The agreement allows Capitoline, a data center design, audit and training organization, to build and conduct international certified training courses for the TIA-942, Telecommunications Infrastructure Standards for Data Centers. TIA-942, one of TIA’s most popular ICT standards, is deployed around the world and encompasses data cabling, cabling management, grounding and bonding and much more. For more information about TIA licenses for training and certification programs, click here.

TIA Engineering Committee Aims to Bolster Security of Network Communications for the Smart Grid

TIA’s Smart Utility Networks Engineering Committee (TR-51) began its work on revisions to a series of industry standards for the network communications that enables Smart Grid technology. The smart utility networks standards, ANSI/TIA-4957, were originally published in 2012 and serve as a complete solution to the data transport problem of connecting an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) to the utility infrastructure.

Specifically, the standards define the Physical, Data Link, Network and Transport communication protocol layers required to support smart utility network (SUN) applications - from small Home Area Network deployments through to large scale Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) networks and Distribution Automation (DA) networks. The standards provide the flexibility needed to enable systems to be optimized for particular applications and regulatory domains.

The revision work, initiated by TR-51’s Network Layer Working Group in July, and lead by Don Sturek of Silver Springs Network, will add support for additional regional frequencies and data rates. At a recent TR-51 Engineering Committee meeting in Dallas, Texas, committee members focused on adding security requirements to this series of standards.

The final work is intended to align with the Wi-SUN Field Area Network (FAN) standard with additional support for physical layer and regional spectrum outside the current scope of the Wi-SUN FAN. TIA continually seeks participants to join TR-51 experts in the revision process. For more information contact Marianna Kramarikova, 703.907.7743.

TIA’s Performance and Accessibility Engineering Committee Publishes Twelve Standards in 2015

TIA’s Engineering Committee on Performance and Accessibility for Communications Products (TR-41), accomplished the publication of 12 ANSI/TIA and TSB standards in 2015, including revisions to a standard for Handset Magnetic Measurement Procedures and Performance Requirements (TIA-1083-B) and a standard for Amplified Telephone Procedures and Performance Requirements for Communications Products (TIA-4953-A).

The TR-41 Engineering Committee met at TIA’s headquarters in Arlington, VA and recognized the committee members for their dedication to advancing industry standardization. TIA awarded 15 experts on the committee with total of 59 certificates. These awards serve as an acknowledgement to the individuals and their companies for the numerous hours these acoustic expert volunteers spent editing and leading editorial groups to publish this year’s standards.

Recognition was also given to Randy Ivans of UL who has led the international safety standards working group and been involved with EIA/TIA standards activity since 1986. In addition, TIA recognized Steve Whitesell of Whitesell Consulting LLC, who after 15 years has retired as chair of TR-41. In addition to his extraordinary leadership, Whitesell has contributed to more than 150 TIA standards advancing technologies for communications products.

During the meeting, the committee also agreed that the Engineering Subcommittee on Environmental and Safety Considerations (TR-41.7) will now be administered by the Engineering Subcommittee on Analog and Digital Wireline Terminals (TR-41.3). TR-41.3 will be responsible for any issues related to the development, maintenance and adoption of standards on environmental, powering and grounding issues for telecommunications equipment.

TIA Power Over Ethernet (PoE) Standards to be Incorporated into Global Technology Standard

The Power over Ethernet (PoE) Ad hoc Group of JTC 1/SC 25 chaired by TIA member, Masood Shariff of CommScope, met during the months of October and November. Since its inception in early September, as part of an international standards subcommittee on generic cabling to address remoting power for cabling systems, the Group had significant accomplishments.

Specifically, the group gathered input on DC electrical resistance for cabling used for PoE. This important parameter for PoE is addressed by a TIA developed industry standard (TIA TSB-184-A). The ad hoc group used TIA’s standard as the basis for its international standard (ISO/IEC TR 29125), which will be completed by March 2016. The group is comprised of experts from the U.S. – including TIA member companies – U.K, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Japan, Germany and France.

The Technical Report is now officially a Proposed Draft Technical Report, which has already been circulated for further comments and a vote from other National Committees.

The group also finished old business concerning development of the Working Draft specification, ISO/IEC TR 29125 edition 2, and closed other open issues addressing cable bundle modeling including installation factors, cable diameter, conductor diameter and temperature rise.

For clarification, a new definition for cable bundle was also included. This is was in preparation for next phase of development after the Working Draft, the Proposed Draft Technical Report (PDTR). Through the process of developing this PDTR, the European and TIA cable bundle models converged, creating a single model for the standardization of remote power for cabling systems.

For more information, please contact Florence Otieno, 703.907.7556.

TIA, oneM2M Prepare for Second Release of Global Standard for Machine-to-Machine and Internet of Things

During the week of November 9, more than 100 participants from around the world joined the 20^th meeting of the oneM2M Technical Plenary (TP), held in Beijing, China. TIA is a founding member of oneM2M, the global standards initiative for Machine-to-Machine (M2M) and the Internet of Things (IoT). Several TIA member companies participated in the successful meeting.

As oneM2M continues development on its Release 2 specifications, a major focus of activities was preparation for the Architecture working group’s documents that will enter the “freeze” stage at the next TP meeting which is being hosted by TIA in January 2016 in San Diego, CA.

OneM2M Release 2 specifications are scheduled for deployment in mid-2016. The main features slated for inclusion are:

Industrial Domain Enablement
Home Domain Enablement
Semantic Interoperability
Advanced Protocol Binding
Dynamic Authorizations
oneM2M as Generic Interworking Framework
Security

TIA is also a member of the oneM2M Secretariat Team, which provides support to all levels of the organization from strategic direction and management of the Project to its technical development. oneM2M published the world’s first set of global standards for M2M deployment in January of this year. TIA transposed those documents and published them as TIA standards (TIA-5022 Series).

For additional information, please contact Victoria Mitchell, 703.907.7779.

Contact Your Membership Team

For any membership concerns, and to take full advantage of your TIA connection please contact:

John Jacobs, VP, Membership & Industry Relations: 703.907.7747
Ancilla Brady, Director, Member Relations & Services: 703.907.7713
Lois Parks, Manager, Member Relations: 703.907.7739

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