This year was a big one for broadband, and that meant big news out of big shows. We trotted around the U.S. this year to cover some of the most important industry events - and the news that came out of them.
From Florida to Denver and D.C., here's a look at where we went and what we learned in 2023.
Be sure to check out the slideshow above as well as the story below!
Fiber Connect
Held at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center outside Orlando, Florida, Fiber Connect 2023 was Fierce Telecom's first in-person event of the year. And boy was it a doozy.
We heard from AT&T, Nextlink and Ting about how and where to secure broadband funding, Calix about how tech jargon is hindering broadband marketing, the Power and Communication Contractors Association about a looming workforce shortage and CycloMedia Technology and Google Fiber about how digital twins can help with network reliability and disaster recovery. During keynotes, there was also a fair bit of beating up on fiber's cable rivals.
Perhaps the most interesting tidbit from the show came from a keynote, during which we learned of the existence of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, which is trying to help streamline the federal permitting process for broadband providers to help speed deployments. The more you know!
SCTE Cable-Tec Expo
Broadband technology as a whole may be benefiting from the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, but fiber is certainly the golden child of the bunch. So, it was little surprise to find cable providers playing defense at this year's Cable-Tec Expo put on by SCTE in Denver, Colorado in October.
Executives from ATX, Rogers Communications and Vecima argued cable still has a long life ahead of it and can be upgraded to faster speeds quicker and with less disruption than new fiber can be laid. Elsewhere, Comcast talked distibuted access architecture (DAA) and DOCSIS 4.0.
And there was hybrid cable/wireless news at the show, too, with Comcast saying it was deploying Samsung 5G strand-mounted small cells to supplement the wireless coverage for its mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) service.
In a surprise turn of events just before the show began, longtime SCTE CEO Mark Dzuban announced plans to retire, making him the latest in a line of key cable execs to step down. Recent retirees include Charter Communications' Tom Rutledge, Altice USA's Dexter Goei and ACA Connects chief Matt Polka. It's not exactly clear what Dzuban's end date will be, but he said this year's Cable-Tec show would be his last.
U.S. Broadband Summit
The U.S. Broadband Summit was Fierce Telecom's first EVER in-person event, and three-quarters of our editorial team assembled in person to gather all the news. Several key themes - including workforce issues - emerged, echoing some of what we heard earlier in the year at Fiber Connect. But there were also plenty of fresh perspectives on offer.
Verizon's Kevin Smith talked about what kind of ISP it will take to not just build but also maintain networks funded by the BEAD program. DigitalBridge's Jonathan Adelstein weighed in on how private equity players are evaluating the broadband landscape. And a panel of executives from AT&T, Comcast, Nextlink and Ohio's state broadband office sounded off on why affordability and equity matter and how operators can balance the cost to build with consumer costs.
Check out our deep dive into the takeaways from the Summit here. And be sure to register for the bigger, better Broadband Nation event that's coming in 2024. See you there?!