Netflix has it documented – although it isn’t obvious on their website – that four of the top five U.S. ISPs in its leaderboard are American Cable Association members. In the above interview and with his comments on stage at the 2018 Calix ConneXions, Matt Polka lauded his members for their work in serving their communities; communities that are often ignored by larger providers as they tend to be in rural locales.
Polka also compliments Calix on its ConneXions event and the new products introduced at the show that will help operators better serve their customers; particularly within the home environment. Fitting in with the show theme of “Once Imagined Now Real”, Calix introduced all the elements (GigaSpire gateways, the Calix Support, and Marketing Clouds and the Calix Solutions Exchange) for a service provider to offer its customers smart home capability without the end customer needing to be an IT expert.
This whole product approach includes connections to a variety of Internet-connected products, which gives the end-consumer choice. At the same time, the back-end tools and software offer the promise of automation that will allow operators to cost-effectively manage the smart home. This echoes Calix CEO Carl Russo’s comment that “OpEx is how you become a disruptor….providing the lowest cost per bit per mile per service.”
The Calix software tools and analytics are also improving efficiency in how engineering, network, and marketing resources are deployed. For instance, Bethany Chinadle, Vice President of Customer Relations for Triangle Communications, explained in one of the breakout sessions, how targeted marketing has allowed a $200,000 budget reduction over a two-year period; money that can be reinvested into their rural network instead of spent on wasted mailers and media.
In his comments on stage, Polka encouraged operators to continue finding ways to deploy and serve the “hard-to-reach” places. He expressed his appreciation for the current FCC and their efforts to understand the challenges of deploying broadband in rural America. He indicates that the FCC’s rollback of Title II regulations is helping to spur broadband investment.
Lastly, Polka discusses the theme of the upcoming 26th annual ACA Summit, which, like ConneXions, will be about connecting; connecting neighbors, connecting with businesses and connecting with Washington.
