PRESS RELEASE

28 February 2017

Leading Companies to Showcase the Technologies and Solutions Shaping Today’s Optical Communications Ecosystem at OFC 2017

LOS ANGELES — The world’s leading conference and exhibition for optical communications and networking professionals will be held 19-23 March at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The Optical Fiber Conference (OFC), expected to draw more than 13,000 attendees and 600+ exhibitors, features a dynamic conference program exploring the latest advancements in optical communications and high-speed data center links through the conference’s 1,150 technical and business presentations.
 
Optical communications is a large and dynamic market which impacts organizations across the globe regardless of industry. According to market research firm LightCounting, capital expenditures among network operators reached nearly $180 billion in 2016. Data center expansion, expected to be a key topic at OFC, is a rapidly growing segment, with Google spending $10 billion alone, and over $3 billion in transceiver sales for data centers across all customers, according to Discerning Analytics.
 
“OFC is the only global conference and exhibition that represents the entire ecosystem, from cutting-edge research to the marketplace — it paints a picture of the entire industry,” said Shu Namiki, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Japan and OFC General Co-Chair. “More than 13,000 executives, analysts, technical experts, academia and media attend OFC each year for its unparalleled networking and partnering opportunities, and to gain critical insights and inspiration on the major trends and technology advances affecting the industry.”

Opening the three days of exhibits is a dynamic plenary program featuring three distinctive and renowned global leaders: Urs Hölzle, Senior Vice President for Technical Infrastructure Google, Inc., USA, Presentation: A Ubiquitous Cloud Requires a Transparent Network; Meint K. Smit, Professor Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands, Presentation: Photonic Integrated Circuits for all: How foundries are transforming the prototyping of exciting new devices; and Mischa Dohler, Professor King’s College, London, UK, Presentation: Internet of Skills – Where Communications, Robotics and AI.
 
EXHIBIT HIGHLIGHTS:
Occupying more than 340,000 square feet of exhibit space, OFC 2017 will feature 600+ exhibits and live technology demonstrations from international leaders including Ciena, Coriant, Corning Incorporated, Cisco Systems, Fujitsu Optical Components, Global Communication Semiconductors, Inc.; Huawei Technologies USA, Juniper Networks, Mitsubishi International, Nokia and more. The exhibition includes 100+ California-based companies including; Broadcom, Intel, Kaiam, Lumentum, Mellanox, Oclaro and more. Technologies on display include network and test equipment, optical transport systems and optical component, fiber cables and specialty fiber manufacturers.

HIGHLIGHTS:  Complimentary exhibition floor programming highlights include:

• Data Center Summit: Next Generation Optical Technologies Inside the Data Center: 21 March - Moderated by Lisa Huff, Discerning Analytics, this one day summit will focus on next generation optical technologies likely to be used inside the data center. Featured speakers from Alibaba, Arista Networks, Intel and Nexans will discuss evolving data center requirements, hyperscale and non-hyperscale and how data centers are working with optical components suppliers and equipment vendors to achieve their goals.
• Market Watch: 21-23 March - From subsea fiber optic networking applications in global markets to the state of the industry to pluggable optics and SDN, this three-day series of panel discussions, addresses the latest application topics and business issues in the field of optical communications. Presentations and panel sessions feature esteemed guest speakers from industry, research and the investment community, including ADVA Optical Networking, Cisco Systems, Heavy Reading, Inphi Corporation and Verizon Communications.
• Network Operator Summit: 22 March 10:30 – 15:00 - A one-day program that gives attendees the inside perspective from service providers and network operators – their issues, drivers and how their requirements may impact the future of the industry. Keynote by: China Telecom Beijing Research Institute and speakers from ACG Research, AT&T, Coriant, Comcast, KT R&D Center, NTT Corporation, Shanghai Institute of China Telecom, Verizon Communications and ZenFi.
• Smart City: A competitive representational platform to discuss technological innovations of a smart city project, incorporating innovative virtual reality technologies. This year’s competition will be based on the concept of a fictitious city council (the OFCity Council) planning its Septicentennial (700-year anniversary!) celebration in 2023. Four multidisciplinary teams consisting of experts from a cross-section of the industry will compete to recommend innovative optical solutions and complementary technologies for the preparation and broadcasting of its Septicentennial Concert and three major sporting events.

Presented in two theaters on the show floor and open to all OFC 2017 registrants, nearly 20 individual programs covering topics from business solutions to emerging technologies, including intra and inter data center connectivity; infrastructure makeover and networking; SDN and open source - SDN and open source community updates and international photonic systems roadmaps. A comprehensive schedule can be found here.

OFC will host to several special events and demonstrations including the Cheeky Scientist Workshops, Lab Automation Hackathon and the VIP Industry Leaders Speed Meetings Lunch. A complete listing of special events can be found here.

MEDIA REGISTRATION: Media/analyst registration for OFC 2017 can be accessed online. Further information is available on the event website at OFC, including travel details.
 
ABOUT OFC
The Optical Fiber Conference and Exposition (OFC) is the largest global conference and exhibition for optical communications and networking professionals. For more than 40 years, OFC has drawn attendees from all corners of the globe to meet and greet, teach and learn, make connections and move business forward.
 
OFC includes dynamic business programming, an exhibition of more than 600 companies, and high impact peer-reviewed research that, combined, showcase the trends and pulse of the entire optical networking and communications industry. OFC is managed by The Optical Society (OSA) and co-sponsored by OSA, the IEEE Communications Society (IEEE/ComSoc), and the IEEE Photonics Society.  OFC 2017 will be held from 19-23 March 2017 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, California, USA. Follow @OFCConference, learn more OFC Conference LinkedIn and watch highlights OFC YouTube.
 
Media Contacts:
media@ofcconference.org