Looking Forward to the New Year

Someone recently asked me to comment on what I see as the most important topics in communications as I survey the year ahead, and to review what xchange is doing to address them. So I’d like to use my space here to offer some of my thoughts on this front.

In 2008, as always, xchange plans to cover the most interesting and compelling things that are impacting our readership, which consists almost entirely of C-level executives at service providers of all stripes. Of course, that certainly will include the elections and their impact on our industry, frequent updates on what’s happening in WiMAX, the 700MHz auctions that kick off this month, the activities of Google, the mobile Internet movement, advances in broadband access, transport issues involving optical and Ethernet, video/telco TV/IPTV activities, new service creation and delivery efforts, Web 2.0 developments and issues, the OSS/BSS scene, new developments related to business services — including software as a service — and much more.

As a reminder, xchange provides coverage and education not only in the print publication you now are reading, but also on our recently redesigned Web site and in a weekly e-newsletter, both of which provide more frequent updates on breaking news as well as offering blogs and some trend stories.

We also offer xchange Webinars and eBooks, which are both sponsored opportunities, and have been hugely successful efforts for both xchange and its partners/customers. Our Webinars give sponsors an opportunity to educate xchange’s readership on a given topic and are available both in real time and on demand. Our eBooks allow sponsors to define a topic they’d like to see covered, and xchange editors then produce a topic-specific eBook (essentially an online magazine), which generates leads for the particular sponsor. The quality, consulting and ease of production xchange provides to clients during our joint work to create and deliver Webinars and eBooks makes xchange unique. If you talk to anyone who’s worked with xchange on these efforts, I think they would tell you how smoothly we guided them through the process and how the products helped them successfully market their offerings.

Beyond these publications and products, xchange and its parent company, Virgo Publishing, continue to expand activities in the event arena. In fact, 2007 was a big year for xchange and Virgo in this vein. That’s because in September of 2007 Virgo announced its acquisition of the Billing & OSS World Conference & Expo (as well as Billing World and OSS Today Magazine) from TeleStrategies Inc. With the acquisition of the Billing World properties, Virgo was able to grow its Telecom Division immediately and, at the same time, offer the Billing World franchise the ability to grow to the next level with the backing of an experienced publishing and events company. We look forward to the ongoing success of the Billing & OSS World event, which will take place April 29 to May 1 in Chicago.

In addition to this important show, Virgo also owns a very successful event called Channel Partners Conference & Expo, which is the only event devoted exclusively to The Channel — agents, VARs, systems integrators, interconnects, wireless dealers and consultants — selling communications products and services. The biannual trade show in 2007 celebrated its 10th year by achieving milestones in the variety and number of attendees, exhibitors and sponsors. Channel Partners is aligned with both xchange and, even more intimately, with xchange’s sister magazine PHONE+.

The most recent Channel Partners took place in September in Secaucus, N.J. So xchange decided to colocate that with its own one-day event. The new event, spearheaded by xchange’s Executive Editor Bob Wallace, was called Capital 2.0, a one-day financial seminar for the communications industry.

xchange and Virgo look forward to a fantastic 2008 and look forward to providing the communications industry with an ever-growing family of products to help you reach your goals.

Until next time,

Paula Bernier
Editor in Chief

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