Ethernet Expo: COLT Calls the ShotsEthernet Expo: COLT Calls the Shots

LONDON -- Ethernet Expo: Europe 2009 -- The cream of Europe's service providers hit London's ExCel Conference Centre today to hear a call to arms from Colt Technology Services Group Ltd CTO Dr. Alireza Mahmoodshahi, who wants to see action from the carrier and the vendor communities.

Executives from the likes of Belgacom SA (Euronext: BELG), BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA), Cable and Wireless plc (NYSE: CWP), COLT, Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE: DT), KPN Telecom NV (NYSE: KPN), Level 3 Communications Inc. (NYSE: LVLT), Telefónica SA (NYSE: TEF), Telia Company , and Virgin Media Inc. (Nasdaq: VMED), and more than 25 other network operators, were among the near 350 attendees who piled through the doors on day one of this year's Ethernet Expo to check out the latest technology and service strategies in the carrier Ethernet world.

And Dr. Mahmoodshahi had a message for them: Carriers need to cooperate more to enable global, end-to-end Ethernet connectivity, and do more than just agree to interconnect. Check out the video below to see what he had to say to LRTV:

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The COLT man says more needs to be done on the operational and business systems that underpin carrier Ethernet services, and he wants to see the industry agree a standardized way to achieve interconnect settlements, based on the electricity industry's kilowatt-per-hour model. "Call me optimistic, but I think this can be done."

He also wants to see vendors developing technology that can help carriers be the leading providers of "cloud services."

"Who is best placed to deliver cloud services? Is it Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), or Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT)?" he asks. "No, it's the telecom industry. We have a tremendous opportunity and suppliers need to build new technology so we can do it, while carriers need to think less about ruling the world and more about collaboration."

Elsewhere at the show, Global Cloud Xchange announced the extension of its international VPLS service, and a host of vendors unveiled their latest wares. Among the show news today:

— Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading