By Tim Young

In June, Pipeline headed to the Strip for the annual collaboration between the TIA and USTA: NXTcomm 2008. Las Vegas represented a new venue for NXTcomm, which was in Chicago last year, and will return to Chicago in 2009.

This show was different from the Chicago event in many ways. The expo floor was spread across two levels, giving the show a slightly different energy. The slightly smaller spaces this created (complete with lower ceilings), made the big, flashy booths seem that much more spectacular.

There was also, of course, the difference in geographic venue. Vegas is a popular spot. I heard lots of random chatter in and around the show centered on Vegas entertainment. (One of my personal favorites, overheard on the NXTcomm shuttle: “Did you go see Carrot Top? He's hilarious.” It's good to see that he still has a few fans.)

Ultimately, the show represented one-stop shopping for major telecom vendors active in the North American market, and is still one of the biggest shows in the telecommunications world. As a publication dedicated to the OSS

space, however, we are perennially compelled to report that shows like NXTcomm are tough for smaller vendors. The big guys (Microsoft, Sun, Fujitsu, et. al.) have massive budgets and enormous booths. What's an OSS vendor in a 10x10 to do?

NXTcomm is making sincere attempts in addressing this issue with the OSS/BSS Pavilion at this year's show. This year, the pavilion had only four companies involved: Aricent, Sonus, Amartus, and OmniOSS. Still, the show is on the right track by at least designating an area for these companies. I hope they continue to look for ways to represent industry subsets and drive traffic to these vendors in years to come.

One of the main issues I heard being dealt with at this event, and at other recent events, is the role of the service provider. At

Furthermore, the idea of quality as a key differentiator is being hammered home more than ever. What else can service providers compete on? Offerings are getting more similar every day. No one wants to compete on price. Quality is key. If you don't believe it, check out any Verizon ad. From wireless to FiOS, they've embraced this messaging of quality above all, and they're not alone.

The Expo:

As usual, we wanted to take some time to highlight some companies we visited on the expo floor, and let you know a little about where they've been and where they're going.