25 More Telecom Conferences in 2018

Great news! If you are still looking for telecom conferences to attend this year, never fear, you have not missed the boat. Following on from our first edition of 25 Global Telco Conferences in 2018, here’s our curated list of even more global telco conferences still to come in 2018. From Lisbon to Cape Town, Miami to Amsterdam, Singapore to São Paulo and more, there are plenty of destinations to choose from.

What are the hot topics this year? 5G; executive strategies in telecoms; network slicing; IoT; voice market trends; blockchain in telecom; telco-as-a-service; data monetisation; next generation broadband; AI and machine learning; cybersecurity; network function virtualisation (NFV); and more.

Managing (and monetising) telco customer email platforms still doesn’t seem to rate a conference track of it’s own, but if you’re a telco or ISP wanting a trusted email services provider to help you brainstorm better ways to manage your customer email platform, we’d love to meet you at an event this year and/or return your enquiry here. With 20 years of experience providing white label email to the telco industry, we’re sure we can help.

 

 

SEPTEMBER 2018

 

1. Capacity North America 2018

Denver, United States, 5-6 September 2018

Cost: Free* for content providers or US$1,449*+ (Early bird price ends 3 August) for non-content providers

Capacity North America, now in it’s seventeenth year, aims to unite content providers and cloud service providers with the international carrier community.

“With broadcasters, streaming video services, gaming providers, cloud providers, content and OTTs demanding extensive network coverage and reliability, the traditional voice and data marketplace is expanding with carriers having to establish partnerships with these new sectors to remain ahead of the curve.”

Speakers represent: Disney Streaming Services; Cloudflare; Dropbox; Microsoft Azure; Verizon; Akamai; Atlantic-ACM; Capacity Media; CenturyLink; EdgeConneX; Epsilon; Equinix; Extenet Systems; Flexential; GTT; iMarket2; Linx America; Morgan, Lewis & Bockius; Netrolix; Root Data Centers; Seaborn; Streaming Video Alliance; Tata Communications; Telstra; and Windstream Enterprise and Wholesale.

 

2. 5G Asia

Co-located with: MVNOs Asia / TechXLR8 Asia / Internet of Things World Asia

Singapore, 18-20 September, 2018

Cost: Free* for Operators or US$999* for 5G Asia (if book by 13 July) or US$2,499* for all of the co-located events combined (if book by 13 July)

Size: 4,000+ (across the various co-located conferences)

If you’re still grappling with how to optimise your current network and services for 5G, or you’re perhaps a little addicted to the topic, 5G Asia (now it’s 11th year) might be of interest this September in Singapore.

Speakers herald from: YTL Communications; NTT Docomo; Telenor Group; Telstra; Mobitel; Nokia; SK Telecom; Huawei; Dialog Axiata; Cellcard Cambodia; and more.

 

3. TPRC46: Research Conference on Communications, Information and Internet Policy

Washington DC, United States, 21-22 September, 2018

Cost: US$125-$795* (depends on pass type and purchase date)

If you’re more academically-inclined, the annual Research Conference on Communications, Information and Internet Policy (commonly referred to as TPRC based on its historical name Telecommunications Policy Research Conference) this September in Washington DC might appeal.

“Every year, TPRC brings together a diverse, international group of researchers from academia, industry, government, and non-profit organizations to challenge each other’s ideas and to interact with policy makers and members of the private sector. The conference format consists of keynote speeches, panel discussions, and paper presentations, all with audience interaction.”

Sponsors include: Comcast; AT&T; Verizon; T-Mobile; Charter Communications; Facebook; NCTA; CableLabs; and the Internet Society.

 

4. ITCN Asia

Karachi, Pakistan, 25-27 September, 2018

Cost: US$0-$5*

Size: 67,000+

Now in it’s 18th consecutive year, ITCN Asia is marketed as an “IT and telecom extravaganza.

The “most powerful brands of the world will showcase their state-of-the-art products and services which would allow the user community to get exposure to a wide range of technology and solutions under one roof”.

At the time of writing, the 2018 conference agenda had not yet been published on their website.

 

More telecom conferences in August/September:

For more details on these additional conferences, please see our first edition of 25 Global Telco Conferences in 2018.

• LATAM 2018 GCCM
  • São Paulo, Brazil, 20-21 August 2018
• International Summit on Telecommunications, Cloud Computing and Wireless Technology
  • Singapore, 22-23 August 2018
• ITU Telecom World 2018
  • Durban, South Africa, 10-13 September 2018
• CIS 2018 GCCM
  • Almaty, Kazakhstan, 4-5 September 2018
• Mobile World Congress Americas
  • Los Angeles, United States, 12-14 September 2018
• Telecoms World Middle East (Meet atmail at this event)
  • Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 17-18 September 2018

 

 

OCTOBER 2018

 

5. Voice & Advanced Communications Summit

Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 8-10 October, 2018

Cost: £1,199*+VAT (if you book by 3 August)

Size: 170 companies expected

The theme of this year’s Voice & Advanced Communications Summit (previously known as LTE Voice Summit) in Amsterdam is: Advanced communication services over next generation networks. But not much else is known at the time of writing, because their 2018 agenda and speaker details were not yet listed on their website.

To give you an indication however of the calibre of their expected speakers, the Summit’s 2017 speakers included: KPN; Deutsche Telekom; Vodafone; Orange; Telus; SK Telecom; MTS; and Swisscom.

 

6. NG Telecoms Summit

Ayrshire, Scotland, 8-10 October, 2018

Cost: Invite only. Need to register your interest to apply (and hopefully learn prices).

Size: 50+ attendees expected

The European NG Telecoms Summit will bring together senior decision-makers and business leaders to “discuss current industry challenges and opportunities, how to get the most out of them and where the solutions lie. From case studies lifting the lid on operations inside best-in-class organisations, to workshops and collaborative sessions that focus on real challenges and future technology innovations, to one-to-one meetings with industry peers offering practical advice tailored to attendees’ specific needs, the summit will provide executives with everything they needed to implement their key projects more effectively.”

This year’s Summit will be at the upmarket Royal Turnberry Hotel in Ayrshire, Scotland and will included attendees from the following companies: DNA; Uktelecom; Orange; Telefonica; VEON; Telekom Srbija; Liberty Global; T-Mobile; Telekom Slovenije; Telenor; and Lycamobile.

 

7. M3AAWG (44th General Meeting)

Brooklyn, United States, 8-11 October 2018

Cost: Included in M3AAWG memberships

Founded in 2004, M3AAWG (Messaging, Malware and Mobile Anti-Abuse Working Group) is a highly respected, technology-neutral, non-political working body with 200 members worldwide, sponsored by 16 or so companies such as AT&T, Comcast, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Orange.

They “systematically focus on operational issues of Internet abuse including technology, industry collaboration and public policy. [Their] membership Includes Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecomm companies, Email Service Providers (ESP), social networking companies, leading hardware and software vendors, major brands, major antivirus vendors and numerous security vendors.”

M3AAWG meetings are where members come together to work against botnets, malware, spam, viruses, DoS attacks and other online exploitation. They aim to develop cooperative approaches for fighting online abuse. So, if you’re a telco or service provider interested in contributing to the messaging industry, this October’s M3AAWG meeting might be the place for you.

 

8. Customer Experience Management in Telecoms Americas Summit

Los Angeles, United States, 10-11 October 2018

Cost: Operators + MVNOs: US$899* (before 9 August) or $1,399*. Solution providers and consultants: $2,199* (before 9 August) or $2,399*.

Size: 100+

Did you know that “CX is predicted to become the single greatest purchasing indicator for most consumers by 2020, providing telecoms with an incredible opportunity to differentiate themselves from competitors and catch up to the rest of the market”?

That’s the premise of this October’s Customer Experience Management in Telecoms Americas Summit, aimed at 100+ of the America’s CEM decision-makers and 50+ operators and MVNOs tasked with innovating and driving customer-centric change across North, Central and South America.

Target audience is listed as telecoms professionals in these types of roles: Chief Experience Officer; Customer Experience Lead; Customer Resolution Team Manager; Director Customer Success; Director CX Insights and Strategy; Director Market Insights; Director Process Excellence; Director, CX Measurement and Insight; Director, Digital Experience; Director, Innovation and CX; and so on.

Target audience is listed as representatives from the following companies: AT&T; Verizon; T-Mobile US; Sprint; Telus; Rogers; Ultra Mobile; Vodafone Americas; Comcast; América Móvil; Oi; and Telefonica Brazil.

 

9. GITEX

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 14-18 October 2018

Cost: TBA (Not listed at the time of writing)

Size: 150,000+ attendees expected

Promoted as “the largest technology event in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, GITEX has been running for 38 years and always seems to attract telco representatives in it’s ginormous, international crowd.

Speakers this year include the following companies: BBC; CNN; IKEA; Amazon; Google; Ebay; Renault; and various high-level government representatives.

 

10. Futurecom

São Paulo, Brazil, 15-18 October, 2018

Cost: TBA (Not listed at the time of writing)

Size: 15,000 attendees expected

In it’s 20th year, Futurecom claims to be “the largest and most important event of technology and telecommunications of Latin America. It brings qualified content, technological experiences and attractions making Futurecom the meeting point for professionals, entrepreneurs and investors who are looking for the latest technologies, in addition to the opportunity to strengthen their networking.”

At the time of writing, there was no finalised agenda or speaker list, but their website states that this year’s three official themes will be: new market environment; hyper connectivity; and disruptive technologies.

 

11. MVNOs North America

Miami, United States, 16-17 October, 2018

Cost: US$150* for MVNOs/MNOs or US$1,495* for all other attendees (prices valid if you book by 20 July)

Size: 230+ attendees expected

“There is a lot happening in the North American market. With the potential merger/acquisition between T-Mobile and Sprint; the increased expansion of cable operators into the MVNOs space; regulatory pressures for more economical mobile services; the increased development of sub-brands/B-Brands; the growing uncertainties in relation to the Lifeline Programme;” and more.

“This is the time to ask yourself: Who am I directly competing with now? What makes my business and my product different, competitive and enticing to my current and possible customers? What is my competition offering but more importantly, where are they investing their time and resources?”

The theme of this year’s MVNOs North America conference will be: Differentiating, building partnerships and securing your place in a time of greater consolidation.

Speakers will be from: Globalgig; Telna; Boost Mobile; US Mobile; Mobi; Verizon Wireless; Tata Communications; Ready Wireless; RedPocket Mobile; CeliTech; and more.

 

12. ETIS Community Gathering

Lisbon, Portugal, 18-19 October, 2018

Cost: Free* for members

Size: 200+ attendees expected

Founded in 1991, ETIS is “the community for telecom professionals”. A non-profit association, it is run by its members and it aims to bring together the major telecommunications providers in Europe to share knowledge in a trusted environment. Their goal is “to enable our members to reach their strategic objectives and to improve their business performance by sharing knowledge on industry challenges and by collaborating where possible”.

The annual ETIS Community Gathering will take place this October in Lisbon with the theme: Taking the lead in the age of digital disruption and AI.

Speakers include:

• Martin Creaner – who “has been named among the 25 most influential people in telecom software by Billing World and has been repeatedly named as one of the Global Telecom Business top 100”);
• Risto Siilasmaa – who will also release his new book (Transforming Nokia: The Power of Paranoid Optimism to Lead Through Colossal Change) this October; and
• Malcolm Frank – the co-author of the 2014 best-seller Code Halos and 2017’s What to do When Machines do Everything.

 

13. ICANN 63

Barcelona, Spain, 20-25 October, 2018

Cost: Free*

ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is a non-profit organisation responsible for coordinating the maintenance and procedures of several databases related to the namespaces and numerical spaces of the Internet, ensuring the network’s stable and secure operation.

ICANN general meetings, whilst perhaps more in the modern telco/ISP/service provider space than the traditional telco space, are worth considering on your travel calendar if you’re interested in learning (and/or contributing to) the latest developments in this arena.

To see the list of companies already signed up to attend the 63rd general meeting for ICANN this October in Spain, please click here.

 

14. Capacity Europe 2018

London, England, 23-25 October, 2018

Cost: £1,299*+VAT (if you book by 24 August)

Size: 2,500+ attendees expected

Bringing together an expected 600+ companies from across 85+ countries, Capacity Europe is promoted as “the largest carrier event in Europe”.

The event “unites voice and data businesses to purchase and sell annual trading agreements and offers new partnership opportunities with OTTs, content and cloud providers, data centres, IXPs and ISPs”.

At the time of writing, the 2018 speakers and agenda were not yet published, but to give you a taste of what to expect, here is Capacity Europe’s 2017 wrap-up video:

 

Capacity Europe 2017 from Bella Films on Vimeo.

 

15. India Mobile Congress

New Delhi, India, 25-27 October, 2018

Cost: TBA (Not listed at the time of writing)

India Mobile Congress claims to be “one of the biggest marquee Mobile, Internet and Technology event for the South-East Asia organized by COAI and DoT”.

This year’s theme is New Digital Horizons: Connect, Create, Innovate and the New Delhi telco event aims at “building ideas, forging lasting Industry relationships, showcasing cutting-edge mobile technology and product trends, providing sectoral insights, industrial solutions, case studies and workshops”.

“The conclave will comprise of Ministerial and Partner Programs in Digital India, Smart City, Emerging Technologies, Make in India Projects, Skill Harmonization, Business Innovation, Knowledge Sharing, etc. There will [also be] a technology showcase offering a glimpse into Virtual Reality, Connected Cars, m-Health, Smart Wearables, Smart Home, Artificial Intelligence, Drones, Robotics, Smart Energy, Internet of Things, Blockchain, Machine Vision, Cloud Computing, Holography etc.”

Meet atmail at this event

 

16. Hosting & Cloud Transformation Summit

Las Vegas, United States, 24-26 October 2018

Cost: US$1,299* (Service Providers), US$1,599* (Technology Providers), US$1,899* (Finance Professionals) or free* for IT Professionals

Size: 500+ attendees

Hosting & Cloud Transformation Summit (run by 451Research) markets itself as “the premier forum for executives in the hosting, cloud, datacenter and managed services sectors. The agenda is carefully crafted by 451 Research analysts and industry experts to provide timely, actionable insight into the competitive dynamics of innovation. In addition to analyst and executive sessions, the three-day schedule includes a plethora of networking opportunities that will maximize your time spent in Las Vegas and foster the industry-changing relationships HCTS is known for igniting.”

Most of the speakers seem to be from 451Research, interspersed with speakers from Huawei, AWS, ING, Uptime Institute Research, HyperGrid, Structure Tone, Bank Street and DH Capital.

 

More telecom conferences in October:

For more details on these additional conferences, please see our first edition of 25 Global Telco Conferences in 2018.

• Middle East 2018 GCCM: Dubai, UAE, 10-11 October 2018
• TC3 Summit: Silicon Valley, United States, 17-18 October 2018
• Broadband World Forum: Berlin, Germany, 23-25 October 2018
• Total Telecom Congress: London, England, 30-31 October 2018

 

 

NOVEMBER 2018

 

17. MVNOs Europe

London, England , 6-7 November, 2018

Cost: £499*+VAT for MVNOs, £899*+VAT for MNOs, £1500*+VAT for all other attendees (all prices only if you book by 14 September)

Size: 350+ attendees expected

While the EU MVNOs market has “thrived with many successful case studies, there are significant changes ahead. These changes include the EU roaming regulation “Roam Like At Home”, eSIM technology and provisioning, as well as the virtualisation and digitalisation of products and services. These factors are influencing the core market and will affect MVNO growth within Europe, as well as inhibit international investments.”

The 15th annual MVNOs Europe will this year be held in London at the ILEC Conference Centre.

Speakers include: Lycamobile Group; Virgin Mobile; Deutsche Telekom; Acqua Telecom; Tazamobile; International Telecommunication Union; Suop; and more.

MVNOs of all sizes welcome.

 

18. 5G Africa

Co-located with: AfricaCom

Cape Town, South Africa, 13-15 November 2018

Cost: Free* passes for qualified delegates (see below) or US$1,126*+ (if book by 20 July)

Size: 13,000+ attendees expected (includes AfricaCom)

5G Africa is a mirror of Singapore’s Informa event in September and might be the event for you if you’re wanting to explore how to optimise your current network and services for 5G.

Speakers will be coming from: MTN; Vodacom; Safaricom; Vodaphone; Google; Smile Telecoms; Microsoft; various government organisations; and more.

“Free passes are available for licensed network operators*; enterprises / SMEs* who have registered company status in an African state; telecoms and finance industry regulators, ministers and government officials; and select web-based companies. Individuals must be from senior management, C-level or board level to automatically qualify for a free pass.”

 

19. OpenStack Summit

Berlin, Germany, 13-15 November 2018

Cost: US$699* (if you book by August 22)

Size: 2,000 attendees expected

With OpenStack now being used by big telco and ISP players such as AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, Ericsson, GoDaddy, Nokia, Telefonica and more, this November’s OpenStack Summit Berlin is sure to attract a large, like-minded, OpenStack fan base.

The Berlin OpenStack Summit has scheduled over 200 sessions and workshops on Container Infrastructure, CI/CD, Telecom + NFV, Public Cloud, Private & Hybrid Cloud and members of open source communities like Kubernetes, Docker, OPNFV, Ansible, Ceph, ONAP, Open vSwitch and OpenStack.

If you represent a telco that is using (or exploring) OpenStack – and if your skills are more tech than commercial – this could be a conference for you.

 

20. AWS re:Invent

Las Vegas, United States, 26-30 November 2018

Cost: US$1,799*

Size: 43,000+ attendees expected

Any telco or service provider serious about moving to the cloud would likely have AWS on their radar. And as one of the biggest players in the hosted web services space, AWS’s annual re:Invent conference does not usually disappoint.

AWS re:Invent caters not just to the CIOs or sales people (with a business track and basic AWS sessions), but also to the tech crowd responsible for delivering stable and reliable cloud services (with how-to sessions, collaborative, community workshops, hackathons, boot camps, lab sessions and AWS certification exams) to help you learn (and use) AWS more and more.

They’ve also organised Harley rides, a Tatonka challenge, a 4km and 8km run, broomball (ie. ice hockey without the skates – with broom handles to push the ball into the goal), “Midnight Madness” and other social activities for the more festive attendees.

Meet atmail at this event

 

21. Messaging & SMS World

London, England, 27-28 November 2018

Cost: £749*+ VAT

Size: 350+ attendees expected

Messaging & SMS World is one of the 20 or so events organised annually by Capacity Conferences.

Touted as “the leading gathering for opportunities and innovation in A2P”, it is a relatively small conference, now in it’s 5th year.

The annual event aims to bring together SMS aggregators, wholesale carriers, MNOs, messaging players and innovators in VoIP and RTC technology.

At the time of writing, their website does not yet have the 2018 agenda, speaker list or full brochure.

Meet atmail at this event

 

22. Open Mobile Summit

San Francisco, United States, 27-28 November 2018

Cost: US$1,745*-$3,095* (depends on pass type and purchase date)

Size: 500+ attendees expected

The Open Mobile Summit (which seems to have been semi-renamed as the Open Digital Summit) has more of a marketing and product management (rather than a telco) focus, but given the rise in importance of product teams within telcos, this conference might be a good fit for leaders in today’s innovative telcos.

The theme for November’s event is, Digital Product in the Age of the Connected Customer: Beyond mobile: Create personalized, multi-platform experiences for consumers in a rapidly evolving digital ecosystem. 

Speakers come from companies such as: GoDaddy; USA Today Network; Microsoft; Wall Street Journal; Tesla; Condé Nast; Samsung Pay; Uber; National Geographic; LinkedIn; and more.

 

More telecom conferences in November:

For more details on these additional conferences, please see our first edition of 25 Global Telco Conferences in 2018.

• Africa 2018 GCCM: Cape Town, South Africa, 11-12 November 2018
• AfricaCom (Co-located with 5GAfrica): Cape Town, South Africa, 13-15 November 2018
• Telco:CODE: Berlin, Germany, 18-20 November 2018
• TelcoDays Barcelona: Barcelona, Spain, 20-21 November 2018

 

 

DECEMBER 2018

 

23. 2020 Vision Executive Summit

Lisbon, Portugal, 4-6 December 2018

Cost: US$2,595*-$3,495* (Early bird discount ends September 27)

Tackling telecom’s toughest questions is the theme of this exclusive, invite-only, CXO-level symposium by Light Reading that targets the challenges facing the communications networking and services industry.

A heavy dose of reality has started to set in as the day-to-day business and operational disruption caused by increasing automation, bewildering competition, regulatory uncertainty, political intervention, ever-faster innovation and unparalleled cybersecurity threats hits home.

These key issues will be front and center at this year’s 2020 Vision Executive Summit in Lisbon, December 4-6, where the crack team of Heavy Reading analysts, Light Reading editors will invite and encourage attendees to discuss pressing topics and answer questions.”

 

 

 

24. Capacity Asia 2018

Hong Kong, 5-6 December, 2018

Cost: £849*+VAT (Early bird pricing)

Size: 850+ attendees expected

Another event in the Capacity Conferences portfolio, Capacity Asia is now in it’s 12th year and expecting to attract more than 850+ senior-level executives, from 300 companies, across 60+ countries.

At the time of writing, the 2018 agenda and speaker list had not been finalised online but their messaging promises:

“The market is evolving, and so is Capacity Asia. Focusing on new business in new market segments, and more networking opportunities than ever before, Capacity Asia promises to deliver 2 days of dynamic discussions and face to face time with your next business partners.”

Major OTT and content providers in 2017 included: Akamai Technologies; Baidu; Amazon; Google; DAZN; HOOQ; Facebook; Skype; Tencent; Twitch; and more.

Major cloud service providers and data centres in 2017 included: Alibaba Cloud; Amazon Web Services; Cloudflare; Equinix; Google Cloud; IBM Cloud; Interxion; Microsoft; and more.

 

25. IEEE GLOBECOM

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 9-13 December 2018

Cost: Various price options (depends on eligibility and date of purchase)

“The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.) is the world’s largest technical professional society. Through its more than 400,000 members in 150 countries, the organization is a leading authority on a wide variety of areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power, and consumer electronics… The organization annually sponsors more than 850 conferences worldwide.”

IEEE’s Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM) is run by the IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc), which has “has over 27,000 members in more than 142 countries… and is paving the way for strategic and technical advancements in the emerging areas of 5G, SDN, IoT, Fog Computing, Big Data, Green ICT, fiber optics and more.”

Patrons of the event include: Etisalat; Huawei; Intel; National Instruments; NetSim; and TRA (Telecommunications Regulations Authority of the UAE).

 

Still want more telecom conferences?

Unfortunately we did not have enough space to include these, but if you’re still looking for more telecom conferences in 2018, here are even more suggestions (in date order):

• Capacity Africa: Kigali, Rwanda, 5-6 September
• Capacity Eurasia: Istanbul, Turkey, 11-12 September
• The 5G Congress 2018: New Delhi, India, 19-20 September
• Telecom Convergence Summit: New Delhi, India, 28 September (Meet atmail at this event)
• Capacity Central American Andean: Bogotá, Colombia, 3-4 October
• Iran Telecom Innovations: Tehran, Iran, 3-6 October
• Bakutel 24th Azerbaijan International Telecommunications, Innovations and High Technologies Exhibition and Conference: Baku, Azerbaijan, 4-7 December

 

 

New to atmail?

With 20 years of global, white label, email expertise serving telecommunications and hosting providers across every continent, you can trust us to keep your email platform secure, reliable and private. We offer user-friendly, white labelled, cloud hosted email with 99.99% uptime and your choice of US or (GDPR compliant) EU data centres. If you want to stay in-house, we offer on-premises webmail and/or mail server options. Our customer satisfaction rating is 99% and you can rely on our professional services team for a smooth transition and ongoing support.

Today, we power 170 million mailboxes worldwide and offer global support coverage with the help of our team members in Australia, the United States, India and Europe. If you’re looking for a trusted email services provider to manage your customer email for you, so that your technical team can hand over email management and get back to core business, we can help. To ask us a question or request a call, please get in touch here.

Thanks for your time and we hope you enjoy your 2018 telecom conferences!

 

Disclaimer: This list is not all-inclusive and atmail is not associated with any of the events listed.

*Rates subject to change and provided as a courtesy only. No responsibility will be taken for inaccurate rates.