Certification for the 8 service types would be available in the second quarter, Nan Chen says. Presumably, some products will actually get certified around that time too.
You ask a very valid question. The answer is no, things won't work seamlessly. You have to use ethernet 2.0 cables, pwe3 2.0 e-line, l2vpn 2.0 e-lan. IEEE and IETF will have their work cut out...
What are we going to do? (wrings hands and runs off-stage, wailing)
So who, besides the MEF and its testing partners, really benefits from a CE2.0 certification program?
The carriers still need to do their own testing and it would add costs to the vendor side. I guess I'm unclear on how much red tape CE2.0 cuts vs. CE1.0, which was a tad more trailblazing.
CE 2.0 certification means a consolidation of a set of MEF certification tests into a brand that is easily recognized and appreciated by all stakeholders. CE 2.0 certification provides a very clear and cost-effective framework for service providers and equipment vendors to prove compliance in one fell swoop with a series of MEF specifications developed by the 190 strong MEF membership - for example MEF 6.1, MEF 10.2, MEF 23.1, MEF 33 and so on. It's the way MEF certification is represented that has taken a leap forward by orienting it to the well known services like the new Multi-CoS, managed E-Lines and E-LANs in CE 2.0 as well as the altogether new E-Access and E-Tree introduced in CE 2.0. When enterprises, service providers, operators and equipment vendors can all refer to CE 2.0 certification, the markets will align faster and grow faster which benefits everyone.
http://www.lightreading.com/video.asp?doc_id=152009
You heard (watched it, read it, whatever) here first.