At the last Spectrum Futures conference, we moved to a “no presentations” format designed to maximize chances for full discussion and sharing.
At the next edition, we want to allow more opportunities for communities of interest to self organize discussion around ways to connect the unconnected, align the ecosystem and bring new business models and technology to bear.
We have, over the last three years emphasized business model alignment–getting costs down while enabling new revenue models–as well as enabling new technology (access and backhaul platforms) by means of innovative spectrum policy (spectrum sharing, dynamic spectrum).
All of those themes remain salient.
What we want to experiment with, at the next event (October 2017) is a fuller use of self-organized themes and content, relying heavily on leadership by the trove of speakers who have participated in the event, know the format and can address issues in their domains.
For example, we have had proponents of community-owned or village networks talk about how such innovations address the “high cost” of traditional networks. We would like more focused discussion on how, where and why that works, who does it and how to do it better.
We’d like to see more organized discussion of how partnerships are created and sustained, especially when new platforms and existing suppliers work together. We’d like more focused discussion on the roles of open source platforms; more attention on resource sharing.
Policies designed to protect competition sometimes can also impair innovation. Bans on zero rating provide an example. Are there other policies that can encourage sampling of the internet, spur use of the internet and therefore create sustainable demand? What else are people doing to encourage use of devices, apps and services that help us increase demand for internet content and services?
Where do you see practical solutions for increasing supply and demand across the internet ecosystem? What should regulators and policymakers be doing now to help increase supply and demand?
Abundance is the outcome, where it comes to internet access. But where in the ecosystem can some amount of scarcity actually help move the ecosystem towards abundance? In other words, scarcity that produces more investment arguably is a good thing, while scarcity that restricts investment arguably is a bad thing. Are there areas in which scarcity is a relatively good thing, and why?
Still, how can we help create abundance where scarcity remains a big problem? What should we do, and what policies are needed to allow more innovation? How can we better align the ecosystem?
We call the community to help us create compelling discussions that help policymakers move faster towards the goal of “connecting all of us, everywhere.”
