Volume 48 No. 2 MAY 2026
n Crisis? What crisis? The GROWING Demand for Power n FTTH Market Panorama n Meet the SCTE at ANGA COM on the Boulevard, stand MB8! n SCTE ® Presents: The Future of Tech in review n Plus: we talk to Technetix, Netceed, IPKO, Amphenol and Abloy Finland in Focus
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VOLUME 48 NO. 2 - MAY 2026
editorial Editor’s Letter Welcome to the May 2026 issue of Broadband Journal.
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ISSN 1751-0791
from the scte SCTE News All the latest news and events from the SCTE.
SCTE ® - The Society for Broadband Professionals
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scte benelux news Benelux News All the latest news and events from the SCTE’s Benelux Group. scte balkans news A Digital Growth Story with Andras Pali, CEO of IPKO Communications scte member focus Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Adams, CEO, AXP Systems Engineering GmbH scte presents Julian Clover, editor of Broadband TV News, reports on our very successful SCTE ® Presents: Future of Tech event in April. network perspective Network Perspective Phil Scott, Chief Sales Officer at Technetix, shares his take on the fast- changing world of telecoms and how it intersects with technology.
Officers and Members of the Executive Committee President and Chair Dr Anthony Basham FSCTE Vice President Dave Hodges FSCTE Director Dr Roger Blakeway FSCTE Secretary Beverley Walker FIAM Members Laura Baskeyfield, Keith Bail, Melissa Cogavin, Costas Kyriacou, Ian Nock, Peter Sealey, Chris Swires and Peter Veerman
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SCTE ® iMex Centre 575–599 Maxted Road Hemel Hempstead HP2 7DX Tel: +44 (0) 1923 815500
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office@theSCTE.eu www.theSCTE.eu
Managing Editor Melissa Cogavin Tel: +44 (0)7501 780342 melissa@theSCTE.eu
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scte long read Finland in Focus
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Publisher Evolution Print & Design Ltd 143 Cavendish Road, Leicester LE2 7PJ, UK
international women’s day International Women’s Day Melissa Cogavin celebrates International Women’s Day interviewing women whose achievements set them apart and whose vision is worth amplifying.
Tel: +44 (0) 116 274 7700 sales@evolutiondc.co.uk
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Broadband Journal is published on behalf of the SCTE ® (Society for Broadband Professionals) by Evolution Print and Design Ltd. Neither the editor nor the Society, as a body, is responsible for expression of opinion appearing in the journal unless otherwise stated. Papers and contributions for consideration for publication in Broadband or for reading at meetings are welcome and should be sent to Melissa Cogavin. Letters Broadband Journal is your forum for debate on issues affecting the industry. Let us have your news and views. Write to The Editor, c/o the SCTE, marking your letter ‘for publication’ or email melissa@theSCTE.eu. For reasons of space, we reserve the right to edit letters published in Broadband .
from the industry Industry News The latest global news from the industry.
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FTTH Council Europe publishes European FTTH/B Market Panorama 2026
Intentional Broadband Investing in a Resilient Fibre Future 62 Towards a unified theory of risk: What can Cyber and Health and Safety learn from each other? 66 Crisis? What Crisis? The growing demand for power 70 Data shows how inflation & high energy prices are impacting the mobile ecosystem 74 Unplugged with Netceed 78 The Ice Cube that Refused to Melt - Exploring the long, long life of cable, with Paul Broadhurst 82 Unlocking network value through unified wholesale access 86 Anti-Piracy as a Network Challenge: Why Protecting Content is now Essential to Safeguard QoE 76
© 2026 Broadband Journal Information in Broadband Journal may not be reproduced, changed or used without prior written permission from the SCTE ® .
letter from the americas In a new regular column, industry journalist Alan Breznick reports on the evolving broadband, telecoms and technology landscape in the Americas
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technical Hollow-core fibre (HCF) testing explained:
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UK Telecom Security Act Why physical security still matters?
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Streaming momentum underpins broadband demand as the UK video market steadies
industry events ANGA COM 2026 Broadband, Media and Connectivity at their Best
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service finder
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diary dates
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Volume 48 No.2 MAY 2026
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EDITORial
Editor’s Letter
predict the next five years has always been challenging; these days they don’t even want to commit beyond 18 months. That said, the mood is characteristically upbeat, as you’ll read in this issue. It must be something to do with the element of constant change that makes the telecoms industry so resilient; unlike other sectors, there is never any sense it’s all going to come to an end one day. We’ve just returned from the FTTH show in London and saw again and again the vision of clear-eyed, seasoned professionals in this industry who recognise the cyclical nature of business - that the only way is up when things are down. That aided the general pragmatism on display at the FTTH Show this week. We welcome Broadpeak as our newest Corporate member; for many of you Xavier Leclercq is a familiar face and he will be moderating a panel at our next event on June 18, SCTE® Presents: The Changing Face of Streaming – places are limited so make sure you register via https://www.thescte.eu/events/scte- lectures You’ll also see a fantastic, 19 page spread on the most recent event, featuring Julian Clover’s excellent editorial all about The Future of Tech, which took place on March 18. Huge thanks to our good friend Julie Harriss, who has left us for now. We appreciate all your help putting this and previous events together. You will be missed. You’ll hear from the FTTH Council Europe on page 60, who update us on the latest fibre roll out figures, and we have comment on this from Carsten Engelke and Anthony Basham on page 62. We take a deeper dive into this with this issue’s Long Read on page 42, examining the unique telecoms landscape in Finland and the commercial, geographical and political elements that characterise it. A
big thanks to everyone I spoke to for their input, it was fascinating.
Our second instalment celebrating International Women’s Day can be found on page 48, featuring two fabulous, formidable achievers, Patricia Jo Boyers and Tiffany Shurr. Ladies, it was so great working with you on this, thanks again for your time. You’ll also hear from Mike Hewitt of Breakwater Technology on page 70, whose urgent warnings about top-down, bottom-up orchestration of the nation’s energy supplies and usage should be heeded as we charge headlong into a future of AI, data centres and renewable energy. Our Corporate Member Technetix recently announced some excellent, trend-bucking end of year figures so we talked to CEO Paul Broadhurst about what’s happened in the last 12 months and his projections for the future – that’s on page 82. You’ll find this issue packed with technical papers too – we have input on security from Abloy, streaming from Futuresource and hollow core fibre is explored by EXFO – from page 96 onwards. We are full of optimism at the SCTE as we embrace another great week at ANGA COM. Thank you to all our members and sponsors for your continued support, welcome to our newest members (all detailed on page 4) and we look forward to seeing you in person in Cologne!
Melissa Cogavin Broadband Journal SCTE ® , Society for Broadband Professionals melissa@theSCTE.eu www.theSCTE.eu The clocks have gone forward, spring seems to have sprung out there when we weren’t looking; we are almost halfway through 2026 already, preparing for another ANGA COM (where we are Official Magazine Partner), another exceptional Gala Dinner, our summer SCTE ® Presents conference on The Changing Face of Streaming, both in June... and among all that, we are looking around at an industry in flux. Ground-breaking technology developments, an industry still grappling with consolidation and monetisation now the feverish, land-grab, build phase is in almost in the rearview. Mounting losses and network overbuild that characterise Altnets are being swallowed whole, and others are falling sadly into administration. We are a technical journal officially but increasingly chaotic geopolitical events keep barging into our well-ordered sector, demanding our attention, requiring swift pivots and contingency plans, the world seeming a little bit crazier every time I write one of these. Asking executives to
Enjoy the summer.
Melissa Cogavin
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Mike Thornton HFSCTE IN MEMORIAM
It is with great sadness that we report the death, in early March, of our colleague Mike Thornton at the age of 77. Mike had been in telecommunications for over 40 Years having studied electrical and electronic engineering at Watford College of Technology from 1967 to 1970. His first major post in our industry was with Carlton Cabletime where he served as Network Engineering Manager for 5 Years from 1983. In 1994 he became Managing Director – Network Engineering for Comtel before becoming a Network Consultant with Omne Communications in 2001. 2003 saw a major change for Mike with the setting up of Countryside Broadband, a wireless broadband local loop operator in South Oxfordshire providing internet service for the rural community. In 2004, in parallel with his work with Countryside Broadband, Mike was director with Genius Gates Systems, a company that manufactured GSM based intercom and remote-control systems for automated gates. Mike was a major supporter of the Society, having joined as a member in 1989. In 2009 he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship and joined the Executive Committee later that year where he served until 2020. Mike was elected Vice President of the Society in 2014 and again in 2019. In 2017 he was elected as president where he served for two years. During the latter years, his role included special responsibility for developing overseas contacts with other sibling organisations as well as a hands-on trainer in RF and digital networks.
scte news SCTE Welcomes New Members
our industry. The SCTE creates an important space for open dialogue, collaboration, and the exchange of ideas around emerging and cutting‑edge technologies. We’re excited to share our perspectives, learn from others, and work with the SCTE team in the years ahead.”
The SCTE welcomed Broadpeak as its latest Corporate Member last month, and we are delighted to be working with Elodie, Xavier and the team there. Founded in 2010 and based in Cesson Sevigne, France, Broadpeak specialises in video streaming solutions for content providers and telecom operators, helping deliver high-quality live and on-demand video efficiently across networks, improving viewing experiences for audiences worldwide. Elodie Levrel, Corporate Marketing & Communications Director told us, “We are very pleased to have joined the SCTE and to support its vital work in educating and connecting
www.broadpeak.tv
We also welcome these new individual members to the SCTE: Daryl Robinson Harmonic Sales Director (Based in The Netherlands) Zenita Henderson AMT Vice President, Programs (Based in the USA) Nagaraju Koodli Liberty Global Senior Access Engineer (Based in the UK) Calum Smith-Pryor Blakeglow Systems Ltd Apprentice (Based in the UK) Arpad Jordan Harmonic Director of Product and Business Development, Intelligence and Cloud Services (Based in the UK) Brianna Grant Fibreplus Ltd Marketing Manager (Based in the UK) Daniel Gaunt MS3 Networks Health & Safety Manager (Based in the UK)
Official Magazine Partner
SCTE Goes To
Will you be at ANGA COM in May? If so come and see us at our lovely stand on the boulevard, stand number MB8 , and on Wednesday 20 May at 4pm we’ll be hosting drinks, so drop in and say hello!
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SCTE NEWS
SCTE Gala Dinner & Awards
please email office@thescte.eu for more information. A big thanks to the following companies for their support, and we look forward to seeing you at the dinner!
excellent exposure for your brand and a great way to connect with your customers.
We are delighted to welcome so many of you to our sell-out Gala Dinner, taking place on June 20 in London. While the places have now gone there are still a few sponsorship packages available, offering
There are some fabulous packages still available and if you’re keen to know more
Champagne Reception
After-Party
Dinner Chocolate Gifts
Place Cards
sponsorship packages still available! Hurry!
n Photography
£600 £500 £500
n Dinner Wine
£1,500 £1,200
n Brandies and Liqueurs
n Gifts for attendees n Reception Entertainers
n Menus
£750 £750
n Flowers on tables
SCTE® Presents: Quantum Computing
Calling all experts! This year we are taking a deep dive into quantum, an area that even Nobel Prize- winning physicist Richard Feynman famously once admitted, “If you think you understand quantum mechanics, you don’t understand quantum mechanics”, so it is fair to say we have our work cut out, but you are in for a treat. We are looking for speakers on this topic. If you have expertise in this area and would like to contribute to a thought-provoking and challenging day of debate, exchange of ideas and make the most of some top notch networking, please drop us a line at office@thescte.eu.
Article Correction:
In the March issue of Broadband Journal we published a white paper by VisualON and Intel® entitled “VisualOn Optimizer Delivers up to 40% Bitrate Reduction”, the version of which and had not received final approval at the time of publication. The approved and final version of the white paper differs from the version that appeared in print. Readers can access the correct version at https://online.flippingbook.com/view/9762931/92/
We regret the error and any confusion this may have caused.
Volume 48 No.2 MAY 2026
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SCTE NEWS
INCA’s Better Fibre Live In March INCA hosted its Better Fibre Live event, a half day Conference concerned with both the State of the Altnets report and INCA’s new consumer tool, Better Fibre. Melissa Cogavin reports.
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The report contained some upbeat news for a sector that has seen more than its fair share of blows and negative press in the past 12 months: n Altnets have expanded their full fibre footprints by 35% over the three-year period between 2023-2025 n In terms of penetration, Altnets are seeing an 18% average take-up rate, an increase of 2% on the previous year. n Openreach’s markets share has declined by around 2%, indicating that Altnets are not only capturing displaced demand from incumbent networks, including Virgin Media O2 (whose penetration rates declined by 3.4 percentage points between 2023-25), but are doing so at scale. n Altnets entry-level pricing in 2025 stood at £19, down from £22 in 2020. National providers are currently significantly higher – BT (£35); Sky (£25); and TalkTalk (£25). n Over the five-year period, Altnets’ average price was broadly stable (£39 in 2020 v £38 in 2025) – this compared to notable reductions in the average prices from BT (£46 to £40); and Virgin Media O2 (£49 to £34). This data strongly suggests that intensified Altnet network competition has been driving downward pressure on mainstream pricing. n The top 20 ISPs ranked by consumers on Trust Pilot are Altnets, with none of the four major retail ISPs appearing in this list. On average independent ISPs achieve a rating of 4.4 out of 5 compared with BT (1.3), Sky (1.8), TalkTalk (2) and Virgin Media O2 (2.4) n Yorkshire and Humberside has the largest Altnet coverage, with at least 60% of premises able to access FTTP from an Altnet. An address from Plaid Cymru’s Ann Davies MP reminded attendees that rural communities depend on connectivity more than ever, heaping praise on Altnets in general, with particular attention to Ogi, South Wales’ trailblazing Altnet spearheaded by Ben Allwright. She went on to say that legacy operators badly let these communities down following the wreckage of 2024’s Storm Darragh. It took 4 months for many households to be reconnected, and that the agility and cost-effective pricing that characterises Altnet enterprises is in direct contrast to this. Starlink remains the only option for the most remote households but at £75 per month, this is vastly more expensive than the average Altnet price bracket.
Assembly Research produced a comprehensive review of the industry, followed by a panel discussion featuring Matt Yardley from Analysys Mason, Karen Egan from Enders Analysis and Hayden Shaw, Insight Director FDM who was worried about the price war between Altnets, saying, “Pricing is collapsing. 1Gb broadband was £42 a month on average, and now it’s £36. There is only so long that we can continue to erode that.” However, Veronica Speiser from Assembly Research argued that, “Price rises are starting to happen and it’s something that customers are getting used to.” The consensus was that the addition of a pound here or a pound there shouldn’t aggravate customers too much; equally reducing prices by a pound here or a pound there shouldn’t really affect a decent Altnet’s bottom line. Graeme Oxby, CEO of Community Fibre added, “Price isn’t everything. If you are resistant to raising your price by a £1 because you’re worried about losing customers, you aren’t running a very effective business.” Findings from the consumer study included: n 76% of Altnet customers agreed that ‘my broadband provider offers good value for money’, compared to 68% of major providers; and 33% of Altnet customers compared to only 19% of major provider customers said they “strongly agree” with this n 1 in 10 users of national broadband providers are considering switching to smaller/independent providers, representing around 2.5 million households n 41% of users of national broadband providers feel or expect that smaller providers care more about their customers, whereas 65% of Altnet users had the same thoughts – and Altnet customers are twice as likely to say ‘strongly’ so, by 20% to 9%
n Altnet customers are more likely to trust their broadband provider to act in their best interests as a customer, and “strongly” so, by 25% to 19% n More users of national broadband providers (70%) worry about hidden costs or unexpected price rises than Altnet users (60%) n More users of national broadband providers (65%) feel that broadband is more complicated than it needs to be compared with Altnet users (58%) n One in three Altnet customers agree “strongly” that they are “satisfied with the customer service I receive from my current broadband provider” compared to one in four national broadband provider customers
Commercial Contracts Potential
Untapped opportunities for Altnets included large commercial contracts, and the final panel was unanimous: businesses were generally paying legacy operators ‘egregious rates’ for broadband, but the Altnets themselves lack the scale or resources to court big companies face to face, over long periods of time. Decision making is slow. Onboarding takes time. Settling invoices takes even longer. It is a frustrating situation for Altnets that could potentially make huge profits in this area. On the issue of consolidation, perspectives varied. The luckier Altnets themselves consider it good fortune of course: “We didn’t set out to consolidate; we set out to be competitive,” was one (slightly defensive) view, while Guy Miller reminded people that “Consolidations will happen if investors want to do it, it isn’t really up to Altnets themselves. It’s out of our hands.” Conal Henry, founder and Chair of Fibrus argued that consolidation should not necessarily be the raison d’etre of a business anyway. “If you build a business
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SCTE NEWS
Meanwhile as consolidation progresses, the very fate of INCA themselves is at risk. Goodwill alone won’t save another membership organisation whose members are eating each other whole as the market matures. The experience and knowledge in the room shouldn’t be underestimated; the shared history and long relationships in the room are extremely valuable, and there are lots of ideas on the table about how to approach such challenges. The positive outcomes contained in the State of the Altnets report, said Lloyd Felton, INCA Board Member, in his closing comments, demonstrated that we are better together than apart, as an organisation. “Independence is an asset, but only if we use it collectively.”
competition in the ultrafast broadband market – and the UK is now benefitting from it. “We’re now seeing Altnets moving from supplementing incumbent networks to increasingly being the primary source of full fibre connectivity for millions of households.” Despite the slower pace of network rollout, Altnets still invested £2 billion during 2025 and increased coverage by 20% year-on- year to reach 19.7m premises by the end of the year, with nearly 4.4m of these in Ofcom’s Area 3, a milestone in as much as the Altnets have delivered full fibre connectivity to nearly half of all premises in hard to reach areas. There were some significant performances during 2025 in the Altnet sector, with Fibrus reporting take up rates of 28% and CityFibre reporting it had exceeded 20% penetration across its consumer footprint and is on track to exceed 30% by the end of 2026. Community Fibre also grew its customer base by 26% year-on-year to 429,000, achieving a take up rate of just under 32%.
whose return depends on an M&A, as soon as it happens, you cede control of that business.” Martin Harriman, Chair at Wildanet and Non-exec Chair at GoFibre pointed out that the success of a business can’t depend on consolidation alone and without the four P’s of Marketing in place: Product, Price, Place and Promotion, you won’t even get to consolidation phase. Paddy Paddison, Chief Executive at INCA, summed things up: “Whilst there is much work to do by the independent network sector and still a lot to play for, the data from both studies shows real promise for Altnets. “There is definitely a ‘changing of the guard’ emerging in the broadband marketplace. Altnets are pretty much matching the big players for new connections growth, taking share from them, and there is a lot of evidence that the independent market is giving the big providers more than a run for their money when it comes to customer value and experience. That is vindication for the Government’s policies to create more
www.inca.coop
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Mike Thornton A Tribute By Ben Allwright
Through it all, Mike brought the same qualities that I so admired: judgement and pragmatism, pace, ingenuity and a warm sense of humour. He built and shaped companies, yes — but more importantly, he shaped people. He was a man of principles, a mentor, a guide and a great friend. He was also an adventurer – it was Mike that leapt at the chance to climb the 100ft radio tower in Woodcote when we established the wireless ISP, Countryside Broadband. And at the end of a long day up a ladder, I never tired of heading to the bar to sink a few ales and a fair share of his favourite single malts – enjoying his company, his many ideas and stories. In later years, Mike poured those same skills and energy into the SCTE, chairing the training committee and travelling widely - helping to reshape and revitalise the society, cementing its role as a respected learning hub for the industry. It was a fitting home for his experience, his leadership and his belief in developing others. Mike’s work, character and insight live on in the networks he built, the organisations he strengthened, and the countless people he lifted along the way. So, we say goodbye to a remarkable man. A man of dignity, humour and strength. A true cable giant who gave far more than he ever took, and whose legacy is woven into the careers and lives of so many in our industry. Thank you, Mike — for the opportunities, the adventures, the lessons and the friendship. You were one of a kind, and we will carry your influence with us always.
Many of you will have known Mike Thornton, who sadly passed away in March after a tough battle with cancer. With a lifetime in telecoms, Mike was a man whose influence ran deep. He was many things — a leader, a mentor, a proper engineer, a builder of networks in every sense — but above all, he was a steady, generous presence in the lives of those lucky enough to work alongside him. I first met Mike in the early days of my career at Carlton Cabletime where he taught me the glories of cable RF, of network design and planning — with inked out maps and green screen PCs that felt like the future. The 90s were formative years for me and for cable: technology forward, full of characters, chaos and more learning than I realised at the time. Soon after I joined Mike at Claybrook, working from a rather damp marquee on a chicken farm and designing networks for the cable altnets. And this was the pattern throughout my early working life; it was often Mike that pulled me back into something exciting, like a start-up or a consulting assignment. He was an entrepreneur by nature and loved to create and follow opportunity. Moreover, he backed people long before they’d earned it, giving them room to grow. I was lucky to be one of those people and that belief shaped my whole career and the successes that followed. When he was Networks Managing Director for ComTel, we built cable across Salisbury, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire, Coventry and Swindon. After we’d successfully integrated the Telecential footprint and business, and were later morphed into Ntl, our paths crossed again and again — the Isle of Wight, OMNE in Scotland, Newtel in Jersey — each chapter with its own cast of characters, its own challenges and its own stories.
scte member focus
Member FOCUS Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Adams CEO, AXP Systems Engineering GmbH
What got you interested in a career in broadband/ telecoms and how did you get started? As a callow youth, I was interested in science, but I was not particularly into electronics. It was a pragmatic choice to study electrical engineering. My father was a professor in it; I had experienced some previous exposure to the subject. After graduating in 2001 with a master’s degree from the University of Hawai‘i, I started working as an engineer in my father’s company, planning and integrating broadband networks. It was the era of big multimedia upgrades in Germany, bringing internet services to customers‘ homes. The first five years were hard. I was somewhat slow in fieldwork, but it showed early on that I was the kind of person who could explain how things work. Being able to finish my doctorate degree at the University of Darmstadt in conjunction with my work as a managing director of a medium-sized multimedia network, completed the academic foundation necessary for later work with both SCTEs (UK & US) and CableLabs. You’ve had a varied career across engineering and in academia and you clearly have a lot of strings to your bow. How would you best describe what you do, and what do you enjoy best? 25 years in communications have left their mark. I have done a lot of jobs in the broadband industry over the years: engineer, project leader, managing director, auditor, chief science officer, chief technical officer, subject matter expert, instructor and professor. Most of these were connected to teaching engineers and technicians in the industry or at university, next to the daily work of running a project or business. When the DOCSIS 3.1 standard was conceptualised in 2014, I started working with SCTE US and devised an industry training to be taught to network operators in the USA and worldwide. Consequently, I have become known in the industry as a ‘cable professor’, a specialist for modern communications technology. A couple of years ago, I was tenured as a professor for communication systems engineering and now focus on training engineers
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specially for industry partners, next to running my own little consulting business. That is what I truly love, that is my calling. I enjoy nothing more in my professional life than teaching communications engineering. What was it like working in Hawai‘i - not many of us in the telecoms sector get to boast about that. I did my complete bachelor and master studies in the Islands. The University of Hawai’i is a good school for electrical engineering: it’s up there in the rankings. Consequently, the first three years in college were extremely work-intensive. After that I was thinking like an engineer which made it easier. That’s when I started learning how to surf and became quite a beach boy. During graduate school I was a research assistant; I was working on fly-by-wire systems for the Boeing 777 and 787, as well as the F-22 aircrafts, which also became my thesis topic. So, as far as work is concerned Honolulu is just another American city. However, it’s not far to the beach when you ‘stay pau hana’, when you are done with your work. I return often; my oldest daughter is born and raised Hawaiian, and I have a lot of friends there. What memories really stand out for you over the years you’ve been involved in this industry? When I started out, we were trying to get an upstream implemented and DOCSIS running. Today we are dealing with converging architectures delivering gigabit throughputs. Hardly anything is not tied into networks, even baby diapers are online these days. A long journey across a quarter of a century, but every step along the road techies like us were looking forward to that next step which was going to be even cooler. That somewhat boyish glee in innovation within the industry stands out. Most and above all, I remember my students, no matter whether I taught them a day or a semester. The longer I am in the industry, the more of my students I get to meet again as a part of this industry. It gives me joy and a little pride to see them strive, and sometimes I even hear that I taught them something useful along the line.
Telecoms has changed a lot over the last 10-20 years; what for you is the biggest shift? Communications technology needs to evolve in a constant fashion. After an upgrade is before an upgrade in the broadband industry. Jakob Nielsen stated many years ago, that data throughput increases by about 50% per year, an observation that holds to this day. Network operators need to accommodate for this fact. One of the game changers in this respect was the introduction of OFDM into the coaxial footprint, as well as coherent optics into the fibre-lines. The biggest difference however seems to be the convergence of technologies and architectures in the industry. 15 years ago, we were dealing with separate networks; today we are dealing with our world being one network, consisting of interfaced segments of different architecture and topology, sporting a lot of AI-application. What do you get out of being a member of the SCTE? What would you like to see more of? Both the European and American SCTEs had to evolve just like the industry they represent. Starting out as societies for cable engineers, they need to cover a much broader field of topics and interests now. We are not simply cable engineers anymore; we are communications engineers. I am a big fan of the magazine and the lectures, because they do reflect the convergence of networks and technologies currently experienced very well. Please keep it up and keep up with the pace of development. The SCTE’s annual Gala Dinner is my absolute industry favorite. My American daughter Lianda loves to take the opportunity to come to Europe to dress up like a princess. So, for me the SCTE combines my family with my cable family in a wonderful manner.
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scte member focus
he let me know that he’d be retiring and where I could find a link to the application if I were interested. What would you tell a young entrant just about to get started in this industry? First, I would congratulate them on the choice of profession. Then I would point out, that engineering consists of project- oriented endeavours and therefore there might be some busy days ahead. So, work precise, work hard, apply yourself. Never give up. Learn to love it and try to keep a holistic view of the industry. It is easy to lose yourself in the details. See the forest, not just individual trees. Those who see the bigger picture can act more wisely. Cable’s advantage is the collegiate way the industry interacts; they say cable never loses anyone. It is easy to build networks across companies in this industry, which is important. Ask questions, find friends, people who share your vision. The challenges of the future are not solved by one alone. You are entering an edge-of-technology industry, second to none. But before you get started, you should become a member of the SCTE, for that is your professional family throughout your career.
AI and ML - what are your thoughts? Overhyped bubble leading to not very much in the end or the end of the world as we know it? AI used algorithms and special parallel processors to identify patterns within large amounts of data; it sorts existing data in new fashions and very fast, it’s elaborate data-crunching. AI can improve processes to make the existing workforce more efficient and existing systems more potent. It is a great tool to have at hand. AI-systems can process a lot of information and do amazing things on specific applications but lack understanding of what they process. Without realising it, our human world is one of artificial concepts that only work because everybody believes in them working. Money is a prime example, so is the stock-market or the concept of a national state. The world most likely will not end when machines learn to think in concepts like humans, but at this point there exists no technology that enables them to do so. Therefore, we could be looking at a bit of a hype, because I wonder a bit whether the institutions currently financing the construction of massive AI-data centres are fully aware of this fact. How has your academic career intersected with the commercial one, and what have been the benefits? My father had started his engineering company in 1990 after a decade of being
a communications engineering professor. That combination proved to be very potent, because his students would do their practical training in the company, work on projects and then do their thesis work on broadband-related topic. We could hence train our own specialists who needed no onboarding time after graduation, which gave us the edge. Over the course of more than 30 years we supplied the German and international communications industry with well over a hundred trained communications engineers who learned this business from us. I quickly got involved in teaching university classes after entering the industry, slowly taking over my father’s work in this respect, as of 2016 as an associate professor. Have you had any mentors over the course of your career and how did they help you? Next to my dad who was my first teacher, I have had three mentors who have profoundly changed the course of my career. There is Günther Stein, at that point in 2009 CEO of a large engineering and integration company called Cableway, who was the first to entrust me with a position of responsibility (CTO) in the active industry. Then there is Daniel Howard, in 2015 CTO of the American SCTE, who believed in me, motivated me, and got me involved with content creation and training of DOCSIS 3.1 in the United States and worldwide. And finally, there is Prof. Dr. Dieter Schwarzenau, who preceded me at my current position in Magdeburg and who was of wonderful assistance during my onboarding, after
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scte PRESENTS
SCTE ® PRESENTS: THE FUTURE OF TECH
18 MARCH 2026 The Institution of Civil Engineers, One Great George Street, London
Julian Clover, editor of Broadband TV News, reportS on our very successful SCTE ® Presents: FUTURE OF TECH event in MARCH.
nuclear energy, media technology, AI investment, circular economy practice and critical minerals which was a line-up that reflected just how far the questions facing broadband professionals now extend beyond broadband itself. The panels covered the convergence of fibre and AI in network evolution, the infrastructure and energy realities underpinning the AI boom, the sustainability pressures created by rapid digital growth, and a closing open session that moved the AI debate firmly on from novelty to governance and value. Threading through all of it was a shared sense that the time spent preparing for disruption is behind us now; we are living through it and peering into the future, with some trepidation by Melissa Cogavin. What follows is Julian Clover’s account of the day’s discussions, drawing on all four sessions. The full event, including video of each panel, is available at thescte.eu.
On 18 March, the SCTE® brought together more than 80 delegates from over 60 companies at the Institution of Civil Engineers for one of the most wide- ranging events in its calendar: SCTE® Presents: The Future of Tech. From the energy demands of data centres to the race to roll out full fibre, from critical minerals to the governance of artificial intelligence, the day’s four sessions covered ground that felt both urgent and at times, uncomfortable. That breadth was deliberate. As SCTE president Dr Anthony Basham put it in closing: “Today hasn’t been about a single technology. It’s been about something bigger: it’s been about systems.” Eighteen speakers addressed an audience that had come not for reassurance, but for the kind of frank conversation the industry increasingly needs. Sponsored by VIAVI, Fibreplus, ABLOY, Frame Communications and Allwright Advisory, the event drew on expertise spanning telecoms infrastructure,
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FUTURE OF TECH Panel 1: AI usage in both B2B and B2C
work. Describing work already under way in that area, he said: “We found those problems and it saved us roughly 94% of the cost and time it would have taken to do the exact same work by hand.”
deployment. “None of this works without the plumbing underneath,” he said.
AI success will depend on power and people, not hype Artificial Intelligence may dominate the technology conversation, but speakers on the opening panel at The Future of Tech argued that its future will depend less on software breakthroughs than on the more difficult questions of infrastructure, energy, governance and trust. AI usage in both B2B and B2C brought together perspectives from nuclear energy, telecoms infrastructure, media technology and AI investment. While a speaker from the nuclear industry might feel outside of the SCTE’s normal area of interest, the central point remained the same. AI is no longer just a tool sitting on top of existing systems. It is rapidly becoming part of the underlying infrastructure that industries and public services will rely on.
He argued that while AI platforms can evolve in weeks or months, the networks, energy systems and support infrastructure beneath them operate on far longer timescales. “AI isn’t actually the hard part. Software is really, really easy. The infrastructure that supports it is the limiting factor,” he said. “The lowest common denominator is always the limiting factor.”
Rich Welsh, the Chairman and Co- Founder of Volustor, warned against anthropomorphism and treating AI systems as though they reason like
humans. Welsh said his business wasn’t an AI company more that AI was the tool that facilitates what Volustor does. “People attribute human qualities to AI all the time, especially chatbots, especially agents,” he said. “They’re not people. They are statistical algorithms making decisions.” That distinction matters, he argued, not only for consumer applications but also for enterprise adoption, where businesses may begin to rely too heavily on systems that appear confident and human-like but remain unpredictable at the edge cases. Welsh said that risk becomes particularly serious when organisations start using agentic systems in customer interaction, internal decision-making or sensitive support scenarios. He also warned that intellectual property protection is becoming a much bigger issue as AI systems become more capable of reproducing style, structure and commercially valuable creative assets. “Protecting your IP is your problem — it is not a legal problem,” he said, arguing that companies will increasingly have to think of AI as both “a threat and an asset”.
That infrastructure challenge was picked up by Michael
Drury, who linked the AI boom to the enormous increase in power demand from data centres. Representing
nuclear technology firms Terra Praxis and Lucid Catalyst, Drury set out the demands of data sector amid challenging projections in future decades. “2050 is not that far away, and that is an awful lot of energy to start providing to data centres,” he said. Drury’s central argument was that the debate should move beyond abstract arguments over whether nuclear power is desirable and towards the practical issue of whether it can be deployed in ways that suit the timescales, economics and operating models of fast-growing industries such as data centres. “The real challenge isn’t whether nuclear is good or bad. The real challenge is getting it to align with the type of industry you’re trying to align it to,” he said. The issue is not just generation capacity, but also grid connection, long lead times for transformers and substations, planning and licensing cycles, and the difficulty of matching large, capital- intensive energy projects with fast-moving digital businesses. “It takes nearly 10 years to licence it, so we have to find ways to speed things up,” he said. Drury argued that AI itself could play a role in reducing those delays, particularly in accelerating planning and licensing
“AI is becoming infrastructure – the infrastructure that runs our country,” said Mike Hewitt, founder of Breakwater Technology, arguing
that organisations need to stop treating AI as a bolt-on. “AI cannot be a bolt-on. We have to change the way we run our organisations.” Hewitt said the biggest mistake businesses make is to approach AI as a technology project delegated to a single department, rather than as an operating model question that has to be addressed at leadership level. “If we want to be AI-native organisations over the next five years, you need to step back and ask: how am I going to structure my organisation?” he said. In his view, the issue is not simply deploying tools but deciding what should be automated, what should be redesigned and what processes may no longer make sense at all.
Concern over rights and provenance was echoed by Dr Emma Young, Senior Director of AI Production Technology
at Deluxe. Young described how AI is already being used in media workflows to support time- consuming localisation, mastering and production tasks, and how generative tools are increasingly helping creative teams move faster in pre-production.
Phil Scott of Technetix highlighted the
gap between the speed of software
development and the much slower pace of
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scte PRESENTS
likely to fail when organisations pursue them as cost-cutting exercises, leadership slogans or stand-alone technology initiatives detached from operational reality. Instead, the session suggested that successful AI deployment will depend on some less fashionable disciplines: resilient infrastructure, realistic planning, clear governance, secure handling of intellectual property and an honest
“Studios are massively worried about their content getting into the wrong hands,” she said. “Protecting IP is a massive thing.” Like other panellists, Young did not present AI as a replacement for those who hold the skills. Instead, she placed it as an accelerator for human creativity rather than a substitute for it. “You need the human in the loop. We are artistic animals – you can’t just hand that over to AI,” she said. Young’s final point brought a broad consensus across the panel. Speakers differed on tone and emphasis, but there was agreement that AI projects are most
“AI is currently being used to help with some of these painstaking, time- consuming tasks,” she said. Young outlined the potential for generative AI to speed concept development, previsualisation and other iterative stages of film production. “If you give a concept artist access to generative AI that understands your franchise, your characters and your environments, they can generate hundreds of ideas that simply weren’t possible before,” she said. But she also stressed that media companies remain deeply cautious about the exposure of high-value content and franchise assets to model training.
understanding of where human judgement remains essential.
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FUTURE OF TECH Panel 2: Technical Transition
networks is already here. Speakers pointed to the rapid transition from legacy copper to full fibre, alongside the increasing role of AI in planning, optimisation and customer experience.
legacy devices and customer awareness remain significant hurdles, amid the fast- paced deployment. Alongside infrastructure, the panel placed strong emphasis on data quality as a critical enabler of future networks. Poor records and inconsistent documentation
Convergence of fibre, AI and infrastructure reshaping networks The telecoms industry is entering a period of accelerated transformation, driven by the convergence of full fibre, artificial intelligence and evolving infrastructure demands.
At Openreach, that transformation is being delivered at scale. Juliette Scott highlighted the urgency of moving
were identified as a major source of inefficiency, particularly in fibre deployment and maintenance.
Ben Allwright’s session Technical Transition heard voices from across the ecosystem highlighting both the scale of change and the
away from ageing infrastructure, noting that the UK’s legacy network is no longer sustainable. “WLR is no longer fit for purpose and we need to help people move,” she said, referencing the ongoing programme to switch off wholesale line rental services by 2027. She added that the wider goal is not just a technology upgrade, but enabling the next generation of services. “The majority of tech we see relies on stable, fast, easy internet connection and that’s exactly what we’re building for the UK.” The discussion also looked at the complexity of migrating millions of customers while ensuring no one is left behind. Issues such as vulnerable users,
David Cottingham, CTO of Cambridge- based fibre planning firm IQGeo, warned that layering AI onto flawed data could exacerbate existing problems rather than solve
upcoming challenges.
Allwright, who until last September was CEO of Welsh fibre provider Ogi, said the industry is no longer discussing distant scenarios, but dealing with real- time disruption. “We’re living through a moment where several major shifts are converging at once,” he said, pointing to the combined impact of fibre rollout, AI adoption and the rapid growth of cloud and data centre infrastructure.
them. “If you have bad data to AI… you don’t end up with wonderful insights that make you money,” the panel heard. “You end up with something… more catastrophic and costly.” At the same time, there was optimism about how AI can be applied in targeted, practical ways. Rather than relying solely on large-scale models, speakers highlighted the value of using
A recurring theme throughout the discussion was that the “future” of
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AI to support field operations, such as validating installations through image recognition and improving “right first time” performance. This was seen as particularly important in the context of skills shortages. By acting as a real-time guide for engineers, AI could help bridge experience gaps and reduce reliance on highly specialised personnel. Innovation in fibre technology itself also featured prominently, with discussion around hollow core fibre as a potential enabler of next-generation networks. While still at an early stage, the technology is attracting interest for high-performance applications such as AI-driven data centre interconnects.
The conversation also covered challenges within the workplace. As networks become more complex, the skills required to build and operate them are rapidly evolving. Training and reskilling were identified as critical priorities, particularly in areas such as high-speed fibre deployment and advanced testing. At the same time, concerns were raised about the potential impact of AI on entry-level roles, which traditionally provide pathways into the industry. Despite the challenges, the panel was cautiously optimistic. The industry is not only aware of the issues it faces, but actively working to address them through innovation, collaboration and new ways of thinking. Allwright noted that expectations across the sector are being redefined. The technologies discussed are no longer optional or experimental, but central to how networks will operate in the coming years.
philosophy on how to guide the light through the hollow core.”
Security and system integration formed another key pillar of the discussion. As networks become more software-driven and interconnected, the number of potential vulnerabilities is increasing.
Ricardo Balla of ASSA ABLOY highlighted the growing
fragmentation across systems, noting that operators are often managing multiple disconnected platforms. “We are now actually drowning in innovation,” he said. “But it has also left us more fragmented than ever before.” The shift towards integrated solutions was seen as essential, but not without risk. Greater interconnection can increase the potential impact of failures or cyber attacks, requiring more robust planning and layered security approaches. Panellists pointed to the need for stronger collaboration between vendors, operators and regulators, as well as continuous testing and adaptation. While AI introduces new threats, it also offers new defensive capabilities, particularly in areas such as automated security testing. There was also recognition that regulation is struggling to keep pace with the speed of technological change. As one speaker noted, even well-intentioned frameworks risk becoming outdated quickly in such a fast-moving environment.
“There’s now a desire and appetite to look at hollow core fibre technology to address many of the challenges that we’ve got in connecting
AI data centre spaces,”
explained VIAVI’s Jason Holroyd.
As Cottingham put it: “the future is actually coming far faster than you think”.
However, adoption is not without challenges. The panel noted issues around cost, standardisation and deployment complexity, with Holroyd acknowledging that the ecosystem is still evolving. “There isn’t a standard for hollow core at the moment. And conversations with my colleagues will clearly state that the construction that we show is not the same for everybody. From manufacturer to manufacturer, there are different aspects and a different
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