 Welcome, welcome, everyone, to Know Before You Go, a broadcast briefing powered by JSA and telegeography. I'm your host, Jamie Scott-Okitaya, CEO and founder of JSA. Know Before You Go is the show that covers everything attendees should have on their radar from insider talking points to conference logistics and everything in between. While we're attending that very next big event, talking big events guys, there's none other than the PTC24 that we're talking about today. Of course, taking place January 21st of the 24th in the fabulous Honolulu. And by the way, there is going to be a constant QR code over my shoulder pointing to the registration link for PTC, so scan away while we're chatting. All right, bringing in, we are so happy to be joined by telegeography principal analyst, Eric Kreithelt and Steve Legg, CEO, president, net number of global data services, also one of the featured speakers at this year's PTC conference. Eric, Steve, we're gonna talk through the conversations that attendees can expect in and around conference sessions. Welcome, welcome. Thanks for having me. Yeah, great, thank you for having me, hi, Eric. All right, let's go and go ahead and get right to it. This is Trends to Know Before You Go. Okay, Steve, we're gonna kick this off with you, my friend. You are, of course, a featured speaker on the second day of the conference speaking on a panel entitled For Mobile Concerns, Privacy, Security, Trust and Fraud. You'll be joined, of course, by John Brunner, EGIS Mobile, and Stefan Heller, the campaign registry. So great, all-star panel there. Can you give us a little peek? Share us about an overview of the topic and key takeaways that you hope the audience is going to walk away with. Sure, yeah, thanks for having me again. Excited to be here and really looking forward to the panel in January and being back in Hawaii. So as we know, spam, scam, fraud, continues to plague all of our communications channels, email, messaging, and voice all around the world. And so clearly a priority topic for the industry. In the US market, net number, EGIS Mobile and TCR partner to protect the A to P messaging channel. And we've done that now for quite a number of years. So we'll be discussing how our combined end-to-end solution works and its applicability to other markets in the region. So we really want the audience to come away with an understanding of our respective roles in the ecosystem, how we fit together to provide an end-to-end identity verification and control solution. So really excited to be able to talk about that in Hawaii. And we should mention too that this is the first time that our annual PTC conference is offering a mobile-inspired stream at the event in collaboration with Mobile Ecosystem Forum. So really underscoring the importance of these topics, especially to that Pacific market, actually globally, really. So can you elaborate on this market from a mobile-first and growth perspective? Sure, so, look, there's no doubt that PTC is the premier event in the region and it's always a great way to start the year. So it's great and I've been going to PTC for probably longer than I want to talk about here. But the show has really evolved or the event has really evolved and adapted with the industry over the years. So it's really terrific to see PTC and MEF coming together for this collaboration. So these topics and there's a whole basket of them, they're all top of mind for the industry globally and a focus discussion is both welcome and I think really essential for the market. So very much I think it'll be a great series of sessions. Yeah, and you know, end of year, new year coming quickly. So as we approach PTC 24 and 2024, what are some of your thoughts and predictions on how this mobile ecosystem can really mitigate sophisticated acts of messaging fraud such as brand impersonation scams? Yeah, so certainly as I said, top of mind. So in the U.S., we in that number provide several registry based solutions for industry that prevent number spoofing and also stop number types or ranges from being fraudulently text enabled. So the management and control of number inventory is really fundamental and really stopping and preventing misuse of these really critical assets. So we'll be talking a lot more about that and certainly discussing that at PTC, but throughout early 2024, as fraud becomes more sophisticated, the techniques that we employ and our solutions really become table stakes. And I think that discussion will continue and we'll see a number of announcements both from ourselves and our close partners around this topic early on in the new year. That's a great tease, great tease. As always, Steve, you are such a pleasure. Thank you for sharing your great insights, your previews and good luck on that panel. And I'm so excited again about these trends within the mobile ecosystem that you keep us up to date on. Thank you. Right, thanks, Jamie. All right, we're going to go ahead and turn over this hot seat to Eric Cryfeld with Chela Geography. Hey, Eric. Hey, Jim. It is a pleasure to have you as always. And we're going to go ahead and shift focus here. We're going to talk one of my favorite topics, submarine cables, which are always, again, a prime topic for PTC. Chela Geography chronicled the impact of supply chain disruptions last year. You can actually get a peek at that right if you scan the QR code below us as well as get some insight for the annual workshop that Chela Geography hosts every year at PTC. So, OK, let's talk this year. What's the status? Yeah, so as you mentioned, having submarine cables, I mean, it's a topic that's near and dear to our hearts, but they provide the network backbone globally. But in the Asia-Pacific region, they're particularly dependent on them for international connectivity. So those supply chain disruptions were disproportionately affected countries in the Asia-Pacific. And we chronicled that last year, as you said. So this year, and a little reveal, I mean, a lot of those supply chain issues have been sort of mitigated and have sorted themselves out. But we're looking at, so what's the return to normal and what is the new normal? It's kind of what we're looking at this year. That's an excellent way of putting it. What is the new normal? And particularly, what else can we look forward to in the bandwidth market? So even though some of the supply chain issues have been resolved, you still have other forces, like geopolitical forces in the region. You have the most notable, I suppose, are rival regulatory challenges and economic incentives from between the China and the US have delayed projects and changed plans. So as if the supply chain issues weren't enough, now we have that to contend with, which obviously has a big impact on this region. And even with all those forces bearing down on the industry, I guess some good news is we would expect this year to hear news about submarine cables that have been in development for a while and delayed for being ready for service. And we expect to hear some good news on those and that should be hearing about that at PTC this year. Oh, interesting little preview there. Okay, I'm listening. I'm going to keep my ears open there. And okay, maybe I can ask this question. What are all these cables connecting? I am very curious what's going on and the rest of the market. Yeah, right. They all have to connect there. They're all there for a reason connecting something, right? And that too has become a bit complicated. Again, using the Asia Pacific as a model, although this is also a global phenomenon that some of the global hubs for traffic exchange that we take for granted are maybe no longer the default options anymore. We have for developing data centers, for example, that some jurisdictions have moratoria on that or just sort of running out of space. Some places are easier than others to source cost-effective power. And when you're looking at all these criteria, you're trying to resolve all these criteria and optimize all these criteria, you also have AI looming in the background, putting a lot of demand pressure on that. So there's a lot going on. And we would expect to kind of unpack that. And again, in Asia Pacific, specifically I mentioned the geopolitical transient, you have Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan might not be the default options and maybe Malaysia or Indonesia or the Philippines kind of step up to take on some of that global traffic exchange. And so we're taking a deeper look at optimizing some of those criteria where the new markets might be. That's so interesting, this shift that's happening. I guess it's, you know, time keeps happening, whether or not we want it to. And things change as a result. But one thing that does not change is telegeography being deployed at PTC several analysts I'm told from your amazing analyst firm are also on the agenda to speak on telegeography's annual workshop. Can you share a bit of what to expect from your colleagues? Yeah, it certainly is a year beginning tradition for us to rule out a lot of our latest industry view and different research findings. And it's no coincidence that what I've already talked about is going to be reflected in the workshop this year, but specifically, I guess we can start with John Yembo, our subject matter experts on data centers. He's going to take a closer look at them with the moratoria on power availability and AI. On the data center market, Brianna Boudreau will be back and she'll be talking about pricing and she'll be taking a close look at what the new normal is in that regard and the supply chain issues. We were able to detect that in pricing. Where is that now? What's the new normal on price erosion? And then our VP of research, our top guy, Tim Strom, will be back in speaking on, again, those criteria for global venues for traffic exchange. What are they and what are some of the leading indicators for where the next venues might be? As always, you and your amazing team, just all stars in our space and keeping us on trend knowing where those shifts are happening. So thank you so much for your hard, hard work and to share your insights so generously here and of course at PTC and throughout the year with us. So thank you. We really do appreciate you. Have a great one and we'll see you at the end. Thanks. And let's finish out this very powerful briefing, I must say, with some insider tips for making the most of our time at PTC. All right, guys. I am joined by no other Brian Moon, CEO of PTC to share some tips on how attendees can make the most of this year's fabulous PTC. Welcome, Brian. Thanks, Jamie. Great to see you. And Aloha from Honolulu. Aloha. Aloha. Brian, there are just so many new elements that you guys have incorporated this year at PTC. It is mind blowing. It's amazing. It's exciting. But for those who might not know, can you share some highlights? Absolutely. We're thrilled about how this event is shipping up this year. And first, I will say that after the PTC 23 event, which was actually our biggest event in record breaking, we went back and looked at different feedback from our attendees and our members on what they wanted to see in terms of improvements, enhancements that we can incorporate. And what we really wanted to focus on was how do we continue to support our members, the industry, and registered attendees at the conference. And so while you'll start to see a PTC 24, several of those things come into play and action. First and foremost, we're excited that we are actually moving the membership lounge to closer to Toppa Bar down at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. If folks don't know what Toppa Bar is, I think many of the community knows, but the membership lounge being very close to Toppa Bar, I think will help improve the networking and the meetings that take place. The other exciting news is speaking of Toppa Bar, PTC is actually going to be managing the Toppa Bar for the very first time officially on Monday and Tuesday of the conference. So that was from feedback as well from our members and attendees. And the third piece that I'm really excited about is we're actually also offering a closing room. So our members and attendees who need private space to sign those deals, LOIs, the agreements, we have a private space. And actually we have a photo opportunity as well. We want to make that public that we can capture for them on photo and video to capture that this deal was done at PTC 24. So those types of benefits are what we're really excited about and what we're rolling out at PTC 24. I mean, you can tell you guys have been speaking to your members, your attendees really leaning in and delivering. It's incredible and so exciting. I don't know if I mentioned that. And we should also say what an incredible lineup of speakers you have. I mean, we already had a little bit of a preview from Steve earlier, one of your Toppa speakers at the conference. But can you give us a little bit more sneak peek of what attendees can expect from the education portion of your conference? Absolutely. So it was so good to see Eric and Steve friends at PTC from telegeography and that number prior to this and your conversation. So the conference will kick off with the ever popular submarine cable workshop, which our friends at telegeography are part of. And then as you mentioned in your conversation with Steve, we are thrilled to be partnering with the mobile ecosystem forum. We'll be producing an entire full day track on Sunday as well. And Steve will be one of the featured speakers. As you noted, the really exciting part, Jamie, this year in terms of the program is that we've completely revamped center stage and the topical sessions. And you can see that on our website and you download the mobile app. We've started to highlight many of the featured speakers and the executive speakers that are there. And I would say arguably it is the strongest lineup that PTC annual conference has ever had, or at least in recent years. And maybe just in the industry calendar this year. I mean, we've got folks like Mark Gansy, Kerry Gilder, Jan Vesley, Andy Power, Rory Stasko, Gary Smith. So you have some really, really heavy hitters coming to Honolulu this year. And they're not only speaking, but we've intentionally put them together in very focused strategic panels. And that's what we're talking about when we speak about revamping center stage. And so they're going to be focusing on what is the CEO of tomorrow thinking about, right? We're in this new day and age, like you said, what's the new normal now? And what's on the minds of these CEOs is they're planning out the next five, 10, 15 years of their strategic plans. They're going to be talking about the new opportunities in Asia, right, as we look elsewhere. And then there's infrastructure builders. So, you know, we're really excited about this lineup and we keep adding speakers and more will be added over the next month, but it's a really, really dynamic lineup that we have this year in terms of speakers. And then in terms of topical sessions as well, those are all going to be programmed in the afternoon. And we're focusing on topics that are relevant to the industry right now that people have asked us for our members and attendees have asked us for. So we'll be focusing on AI, legal and regulatory, satellite, fiber, energy, finance, and the list goes on. So we're going to try and cover it all during the week. I mean, it's mind blown. I got to say, you guys have completely just redefined PTC. I mean, you guys have been amazing always, but this is a whole new atmosphere of amazingness if that's a thing, but we'll make it a thing. All right. In talking about growing these incredible reputation that you have over the many years, you guys are also so known for networking opportunities. How can attendees have really the best networking experience during PTC, any special events? You mentioned a meeting app. What else do we need to keep? Yeah. So networking is really important as you noted. So the members who are ever popular members who are able to be returning. So that is Saturday evening. If you're not a member of PTC and you're watching, please join us. We're here to support you and we have a great event that takes place to kick off the week. The opening reception. We'll be back on the great long on Sunday evening as well. Here's a really, really exciting program. I'm excited about. So if anyone out there is a fan of the program, TV program Shark Tank. I'm telling you now. So we are going to have the first time ever the big kahoonas at PTC. Oh, I love it. So I mentioned PTC is managing the top of bar this year on Monday and Tuesday. The big kahoonas will be taking place at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, both Monday and Tuesday. And so we have a terrific lineup of contestants. But obviously these are real companies in the industry. Startups, companies looking for feedback. And they're going to be sitting in front of a pretty powerful panel of industry titans to give them feedback. Maybe a little bit of ribbing, but some advice. And we want them to succeed, right? So again, if you're a fan of the TV program Shark Tank, we have the big kahoonas happening Monday, Tuesday evening at 4 o'clock both days at the top of bar. The other big event that I'm excited to share with the audience is the PTC awards ceremony. It's actually changing from an evening event to a Wednesday morning breakfast ceremony. So it's open to all registered attendees. Free food. Free breakfast is in the morning Wednesday. But it's really an opportunity to celebrate the industry. So the PTC 24 awards will be handed out. Emerging scholars. There's our research. Our researchers, PTC Beyond. And so we're just bringing everyone together to finish off the week and really celebrate it the way. So that is open to all registered attendees Wednesday morning of the conference on the last. So I knew about the very, very strategic compelling move with the award ceremony. And I was like, okay, I pushed that fight back, ladies and gents, because we could all celebrate first. And you have so much to celebrate. It's been a crazy 23, but 24 is definitely a rear-end to go. I feel it. But you blew my mind with the big cahoonas. Save me a little my time. That is incredible. So creative. And yes, what our industry needs. Again, it kind of underscores what you guys do as a member-based organization. And where it's about collaboration and support and community. Both reach each other out. So love all of that. All right. So can you share with us your top three tips for getting the most out of this year's conference? So we PTC has made a significant investment in the mobile app. And this is strictly based on listening to, again, our members and the attendees from last year on what worked, what could be tweaked a little bit. So we've made an investment in the mobile app. And so it is live now. And the Apple and Android store. PTC 24 is the key word to search on. And it's going to have all the most up to date information. And we've enhanced all the features that our participants have asked for. So scheduling the calendar, how to network with other folks, the attendee directory. So it's all there in the mobile app. So number one, I would say download the mobile app. We're pushing everyone to it. And it'll have all the most up to date information throughout the week of PTC 24. Attend center stage and the topical sessions. As you and I chatted about a minute ago, we've revamped that entire program. We're really, really excited about it. And I mean, the entire week is incredible. It's incredible. Again, the lineup of speakers that we have from C-suite, from the C-suite and other executive levels. So it's a great opportunity to see these industry Titans and these industry celebrities all in one place. And then finally, I just open to networking, right? What makes PTC's annual conference so great is the serendipitous moments of who you're going to meet. Top of bar, as I mentioned, PTC is managing it for the first time officially. We have the opening reception, the members for A, the big kahunas. And so there's just a plethora of opportunities to meet new people when you least expect it. So just be open to that. Because again, the serendipity is what has made PTC so special. Oh my goodness. So okay, I'm going to go through your list. First, the mobile app. Second, your speakers, which I thought your industry celebrities, I loved that. And third, networking, networking, networking, what you are known for, but you guys, again, over-delivering in 24. All right. So if I am an attendee and I am getting ready to have the best show leading up to my arrival, what's the best way to keep up to date? The app? The mobile app. After you register, we are over-communicating everything as well. So we want to make sure everyone understands what's happening that week, all the exciting updates and updates to the agenda and speakers. And so all registrants will receive emails from us as well. So the mobile app emails, our LinkedIn is very active. And so if you don't follow our PTC LinkedIn page, please do that. We have industry news as well as updates to PTC 24. So those would be the top three things. Mobile app emails that you'll receive after registering and LinkedIn. Yeah. Hashtag PTC 24. It is going to happen in a really big way this year as always. But I mean, you're taking it to a whole other layer. Yeah. Thank you so much, Brian, for joining us for your insight. So I appreciate you and such a pleasure catching up. And thank you also, telegeographies, Eric, CryFelt, net numbers, Steve Legg for giving us again such great insights on the latest trends that we will expect to hear about at PTC 24. And guys, go ahead and register. That's that registration link over my shoulder. And of course use hashtag PTC 24 when sharing it on LinkedIn. X used to be Twitter anywhere on social. Use it. All right, guys. Also, we should mention be sure to tune in the week of PTC. JSA is so excited to be a PTC media partner. And we will be broadcasting live from the expo floor with interviews with again, these top thought leaders, these industry celebrities that will be in the midst of PTC in Honolulu. In the meantime, go ahead and follow both JSA and telegeography on LinkedIn as well as PTC. And find out more about us on jsa.net, telegeography.com and PTC.org. Thank you again for tuning in to Know Before You Go. And as always, happy networking. See you in sunny Honolulu very soon.