| Frederick Noronha on Tue, 22 Feb 2000 01:30:03 +0100 (CET) |
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| <nettime> COMMSPHERE: Info about a meeting in India |
"COMMSPHERE 2000"
International Millennium Conference
on
"AFFORDABLE TELECOM AND IT SOLUTIONS FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES"
February 28 - March 2, 2000
Indian Institute of Technology,
Chennai 600 036, India.
e-mail : [email protected]
http://www.tenet.res.in/commsphere/commsphere.html
OBJECTIVE
Accessibility to telecom and Internet network is fast becoming a
major factor determining the competitiveness of an individual,
group or society. Telecom and IT systems and solutions prevalent in
the developed countries are not necessarily the best options for
developing countries for making the network affordable and
available to large sections of their people. The conference will
focus on the needs of, and affordable solutions for, developing
countries.
Access to Internet is creating a new differentiator in society.
Those who have access to the Internet have access to all kinds of
information. It puts them in an advantageous position in society
vis-a-vis others who do not have such access.
Internet Access is built upon the basic telecom network. While the
telecom infrastructure in advanced countries is well developed
(with teledensity well above 50 per hundred population), allowing
them to move rapidly towards universal telecom and Internet access,
the infrastructure in most developing countries is totally
inadequate. With the teledensity in most of these countries well
below 10 per hundred population and many times even below 2 per 100
population, large-scale telecom and Internet access is possible
only with large-scale expansion of telecom infrastructure. The
problem is that the cost of building this infrastructure hovers
around $1000 per line. Considering the high cost of finance (often
touching 15%) in developing countries, and taking into account the
cost of operation, maintenance and obsolescence, revenue of the
order of US $300 per year will be required from each telephone line
to break even. In most developing countries, US $300 per year for a
telephone is affordable to less than 5% of the population. How then
can one hope for the development of telecom infrastructure and look
for even some semblance of universal Internet Access?
What is required is lower cost infrastructure. Fortunately, over
the last decade, optical fibre technology has already brought down
the cost of the telecom backbone to a very modest level. With the
separation of Access Nodes from the main exchange, the cost of the
main exchange also amounts to a relatively small fraction of the
total cost. It is, therefore, the access which dominates the cost
today.
The cost of the copper local loop, used over the last hundred
years, is rising continuously. But even in the copper loop there
have been a number of technological advancements. While
technologies like HDSL, ADSL and VDSL push the data rate higher and
higher on copper, it is now possible to share the copper loop
between a large number of users, thereby reducing the costs. The
Fibre Access network is another way by which cost of the local loop
is being slashed. Further, the Wireless Local Loop is not only
proving to be very cost effective, but also promises very rapid
expansion, especially in small towns and rural areas.
While there have been very significant advances in telecom-related
science in recent decades, most of these in advanced countries have
focussed on providing better services and greater bandwidth to the
user. The requirement in developing countries is significantly
different: to provide lower-cost basic access with a reasonable
basket of important services such as Internet and voice
communication. All the known techniques need to be harnessed to
reduce the cost of telecom infrastructure to, say, $300 per line.
Such an endeavour alone can make telecom and Internet services
widely affordable in the developing countries.
This conference will focus on technologies and innovations which
could make this possible in a not too distant time-frame. The
interconnection of computers spread over wide areas is the key to
the growth of Information Technology. Low-cost innovative IT
solutions are a must if IT is to make a mark beyond the top few
percent of the population of developing countries. Hence non-
conventional telecom, computer networking and IT solutions, that
promise value-added services at significantly lower cost, will be
explored at this conference.
The conference will begin by examining the hierarchy of telecom
needs of different developing countries and regions. It will then
look at technological innovations required to fulfill these needs
at an affordable price. In addition to examining the systems that
would make telephone and Internet services widely available, the
conference will examine ways of creating a multi-service network
catering to education, health and various commercial needs of
society. In this context, one would deliberate on a variety of
access terminals required for different purposes. The conference
will also dwell on manpower training in different countries to
create, manage and maintain such a network. And finally, the
conference will examine telecom regulation and policy issues that
will make such low-cost telecom and IT solutions and wide
accessibility possible.
CALL FOR PAPERS
The Steering Committee invites both original and review papers on
areas given below:
CONFERENCE SESSIONS
1. Hierarchy of Telecom & IT needs in different developing
countries and regions
2. Recent Innovations in technologies and systems
3. Affordable Telecom and IT network
4. Multi-service networks - education, health
5. Innovations in access terminals and Software Components
6. Manpower needs for creating and operating networks in developing
countries
7. Regulatory and policy issues.
Manuscript for review should be submitted in four (4) A4 size
sheets, typed in double space (1200 words), so as to reach at the
earliest.
TUTORIALS
A number of Pre-conference tutorials, each for 4 hours, are planned
to be held on Feb 28, 2000. The topics include:
1. Wireless Access
2. Fiber Access
3. xDSL Access
4. Access on Cable
5. Internet Networking
6. Network Operation and Management and
7. Communication Terminals
VENDOR PRESENTATIONS
Vendors who wish to present their products should send a short
summary (limited to a maximum of 4 A4 Pages) for review. Reviewed
and accepted products can be displayed at the conference venue in
stalls of minimum size 10' x 10' made available by the organizers
on payment basis.
TIME FRAME FOR VARIOUS SCHEDULES
Submission of camera-ready paper : January 1, 2000
Last date of pre-registration : January 1,2000
REGISTRATION FEE: * (for participants from India)
------------------------------------------------------
Programme General Academia
Rs. Rs.
------------------------------------------------------
One Tutorial 1,500 750
session only
Two Tutorial 3,000 1,500
sessions only
Conference only 5,000 2,500
One Tutorial 6,000 3,000
session +
Conference only
Two Tutorial 7,000 3,500
sessions +
Conference
------------------------------------------------------
* A limited number of partial fee waivers are available. Please
indicate on the registration form if you wish to be considered
for a waiver.
REGISTRATION FORM
Please write in block letters or type
Name :
E-mail :
Address :
I plan to attend :
a) one tutorial session only
b) two tutorial sessions only
c) the conference only
d) one tutorial session + conference only
e) two tutorial sessions + conference (all four days)
I am enclosing a Bank Draft for Rs. ........... drawn in favour of
"Commsphere 2000 IITM 600 036" and payable at Chennai.
I need accommodation at Hotel .....................................
I need accommodation at city Guest House : Yes/No
I am accompanied by my spouse : Yes/No
Signature
Enclose an application for fee waiver, if needed, giving reasons.
Strike out whichever is not applicable.
****************************************************************
Please mail the registration form to:
Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala
COMMSPHERE 2000
Department of Electrical Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology
Chennai 600 036, INDIA.
****************************************************************
ACCOMODATION
Chennai (formerly Madras), the venue of the conference, has a large
number of hotels of varying tariffs. In addition, discounts have
been sought at select hotels to facilitate the delegates' stay.
Accommodation can be arranged on specific request at the following
hotels :
-----------------------------------------------------------
Hotel Discounted Special Tariff / night
-----------------------------------------------------------
Single A/C Double A/C
Trident US $ 160 US $ 170
GRT Grand Days Rs.3040 Rs.3500
Savera Rs.2200 Rs.2750
President Rs.1500 Rs.1700
Shelter Rs.1450 Rs.1850
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 US $ is approximately Rs.43/-.
Accommodation can also be arranged at Guest Houses in the city
where limited accommodation is available on first come first served
basis.
**********************************************************
Further Information on Commsphere2000 is available on the
Website http://www.tenet.res.in/commsphere/commsphere.html
**********************************************************
INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Sam Pitroda, WorldTel UK (Co-Chair)
Govind Swarup, TIFR, India (Co-Chair)
W.A.Baan, NFRA, The Netherlands
Bixio Rimoldi, Swiss FIT., Switzerland
K.B.Chandrasekhar, Exodus Comm., USA
T.Itoh, UCLA,USA
Joe Shapira, Celletra Ltd., Israel
Kenneth Keniston, MIT, USA
H. Matsumoto, RASC, Japan
M.G.K. Menon, IT Task Force, India
A. Paulraj, Stanford University, USA
Ramjee Prasad, Center For PersonKommunikation, Denmark
Ray Stata, Analog Devices, USA
Ryszard Struzak, Spectrum Management and Wireless Telecommunications URSI
Working Group, Switzerland
Sandeep Channakeshu, Ericsson, USA
T.B.A. Senior, Univ. of Michigan, USA
N.K. Sinha, Telecom Commission, India
B.S.Sonde, University of Goa, Goa
Tasmima Hossain, MP, Bangladesh
Yash Pal, National Professor, India
NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Amitabh Kumar, VSNL, Mumbai
Anurag Kumar, IISc, Bangalore
Arun Jain, Polaris Software, Chennai
S.C.Bhatnagar, IIM, Ahmedabad
A. K. Chakravarti, DOE, New Delhi
T.H.Chowdary, CTMS, Hyderabad
Gautam Barua, IIT, Gawhati
K.Gnanadesikan,ELCOT, Chennai
K.N.Gupta, C-DoT, New Delhi
P.V. Indiresan, INAE, New Delhi
B.K.Jhawar, Usha Commns., Calcutta
V.K. Koshy, BEL, Bangalore
Lakshmi G.Menon, HTL, Chennai
Mahendra Nahata, HFCL, New Delhi
S.L. Maskara, IIT, Kharagpur
Mohan Tambe, Innomedia Tech., Bangalore
S.S.Motial, ITI, Bangalore
C.R. Muthukrishnan, IIT, Chennai
R. Narasimha, NIAS, Bangalore
R. Natarajan, IIT, Chennai
Nirmal Jain, Tata Infotech, Mumbai
K.K.Nohria, Crompton Greaves, Mumbai
M.V. Pitke, Axes Tech., Mumbai
Rajiv Mehrotra, Shyam Telecom, New Delhi
Rajiv C.Mody, Silicon Automation, Bangalore
S. Ramani, NCST, Mumbai
P. Rama Rao, ARM, Hyderabad
V.H.Ron, ECIL, Hyderabad
S.C.Sahashrabudhey, IIT, Mumbai
Shamin Ahmad, CEERI, Pilani
R.S.Sirohi, IIT, Chennai
Surendra Prasad, IIT, New Delhi
B.K. Syngal, Reliance, Mumbai
Venkatrama Raja, RAMCO, Chennai
Vishwanath Sinha, IIT, Kanpur
N. Vittal, CVC, New Delhi
Vijay P.Bhatkar, C-DAC, Pune
Vinay Deshpande, NCORE, Bangalore
B. Yegnanarayana, IIT, Chennai
STEERING COMMITTEE
Joe Shapira, Celletra Ltd., Israel (Co-Chair)
Ashok Jhunjhunwala, IITM, India.(Co-Chair)
G. O. Ajayi, O.A. Univ., Nigeria
Arun Mehta, Indata Communications, India
W.A.Baan, NFRA, The Netherlands
Bijoy Chatterjee, Nat.Semicond., USA
U.B. Desai, IITB, India
Edmund Lien, BIE Co., China
Govind Swarup, TIFR, India
I.Kimura, Osaka Inst. Tech., Japan
Kumar N.Sivarajan, IISc. India
Mike Haidar, Analog Devices, USA
S.M.Radicella, ICTP,Italy
Rajiv Ramaswamy, Tellabs, USA
N.Ravi, WorldTel, UK
V.U. Reddy, IISc, India
Samir Kallel, Omniacom, Tunisia
Sangal Rajeev ,IIIT, India
Sriram Jaisimha, Signion Sys., India
All correspondence may be addressed to:
Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala,
Convener, COMMSPHERE 2000,
Dept. of Electrical Engineering,
Indian Institute of Technology,
Chennai - 600 036, INDIA
email:[email protected]
Telefax: +91-44 235-2120
Ph : +91-44 235-2120/445 8414/
445 8366/4909048.
---
Original author of this message: Frederick Noronha
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