Dennis F. Strigl, President and CEO of Bell Atlantic Mobile and one of the most prominent architects in the wireless communications industry, is the moderator and the leader of this panel. Strigl’s experience provides a unique vantage point: from launching the nation’s first cellular telephone network and managing two of the largest cellular mergers in the industry, to today leading one of the world’s preeminent wireless portfolios, with domestic operations in 19 states and international investments spanning Latin America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim. Strigl has held many important positions, including the presidency of Ameritech Mobile Communications, where he was instrumental in launching the nation’s first cellular telephone network. In addition, Strigl was the recipient of the Achievment Award for Outstanding Leadership at the Fourth Annual Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA) Conference. The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association also recognized Strigl as an important contributor to the wireless industry by appointing him chairman of its Board of Directors for 1996–1997. Strigl has provided expert commentary on building an industry and on the wireless evolution for several leading business publications and broadcast talk shows. Strigl has also addressed business audiences at the National Association of Business Economists, the Association for Corporate Growth, the Radio Club of America, and The Conference Board.

Robert Verrue will address the past, present, and future of wireless communications from the viewpoint of the European research community. He will emphasize issues concerning the new trends in research under the umbrella of the European Commission and their impact on the extremely successful European cellular industry. Verrue is the Director General DG XIII: Telecommunications, Information Market and Exploitation of Research of the European Commission. Before assuming this position, Verrue held several other important positions in the European Commission, including Deputy Director General for External Affairs; Director General for Industrial Affairs and Internal Market; and Division Head for Economic and Financial Affairs. In these positions, he was responsible for relations with central European countries, CIS republics, and other European countries; coordination of monetary policies, and borrowing and lending policies; and problems related to the steel sector. Verrue was born in France in November 1947. He attended the École Supérieure de Commerce et d’Administration des Entreprises, Lille, France; and the College of Europe—International Economics Section, Bruges, Belgium. He also earned an MBA from the European Institute of Business Administration (INSEAD), Fontainebleau, France.

Chi-Kuo Mao will discuss trends in the mobile and wireless communications industry in the Republic of China and in the Far East. Mao is the Vice Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications for the Republic of China, responsible for telecommunications and post affairs of the Ministry. His major contributions include reform of the telecommunications regulatory regime and programming of the concession process for mobile and fixedline services. He also played a key role in the amendment process of the Telecommunication Act, the DGT Status, and the Chunghwa Telecom Corporate Status, which were all passed in January of 1996. Before joining the Ministry as Secretary General in 1987, Mao was a professor of management at the National Chiao-Tung University in Hsinchu. He is a member of the National Information Infrastructure (NII) Program Committee, the Chunghwa Telecom Board of Directors, and the Yangming Marine Transportation Board of Directors. Mao received a BS degree from National Cheng-Kung University; an MSE degree from the Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand; and a PhD degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Tom Rowbotham will present his view of trends in the mobile and wireless communications industry in Europe. Rowbotham has been the Director of Technology at British Telecom since 1995, where his responsibilities include all research and standards activity for the corporation. Prior to assuming this position, Rowbotham held several other important positions, including Senior Vice President of Product Development and Engineering at Concert, the joint venture company formed by BT and MCI; and Director of BT Laboratories, with responsibil-ity for 3,000 graduate engineers working on telecommunications R&D, located mainly in the UK but with centers in the US and Australia. Rowbotham has just completed a lead technology assignment for BT in connection with the recently announced alliance with AT&T. Rowbotham received a BSc from Queen’s University Belfast, an MSc in Microwave Phys-ics from the University of Surrey, and a PhD in Modelling of Transient Phenomena from the University of Nottingham. He is a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering; the founding President of the TINA Consortium; a recent Vice President of the IEEE Communications Society; a Visiting Professor at King’s College, University of London; and a member of the Electronics Divisional Board of the IEE.

Russ Johnsen will address the future directions of the industry from the viewpoint of a device manufacturer. He is the Vice President and General Manager of the Communications Division of Analog Devices, a silicon solutions-oriented provider of value-added semiconductor products for wireless and broadband communications. Johnsen has been with Analog Devices since 1993, when he started as Vice President and General Manager of Analog Devices’ Semiconductor Division. Since then, the Communications Division has been the fastest growing organization in the company, and is now one of the largest revenue generators at ADI. Under Johnsen’s leadership, Analog Devices has become a leader in software and integrated circuit solutions for wireless communications and broadband access technologies. Before joining Analog Devices, Johnsen was General Manger of the Wide Area Networks Division of National Semiconductor, where he led that company into efforts in the telecom markets and started up their development of products for wireless communications. His international experience includes the management of one of NSC’s factories in Malaysia, and also the successful startup of an equipment manufacturing company in Manila, Philippines. Johnsen is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Special Presentation Wednesday, September 9, 12:15 p.m.–1:15 p.m.
Bluetooth
The open specification for an innovative technology, code named “Bluetooth,” is being developed through the combined contributions of members of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). Bluetooth utilizes a short-range radio link to exchange information, enabling effortless wireless connectivity between mobile phones, mobile PCs, handheld computers, and other peripherals. The radio will operate on the globally available 2.45 GHz ISM “free band,” allowing international travelers to use Bluetooth-enabled equipment worldwide. The Bluetooth SIG was formed in early 1998 as a result of the global commitment of the five founding companies to develop the concept toward a technology standard. By working together closely, the five companies have combined their individual specialized expertise to create Bluetooth. Ericsson contributed the basic radio technology expertise; Toshiba and IBM are developing a common specification for integrating Bluetooth technology into mobile devices; Intel is contributing its advanced chip and software expertise; and Nokia contributes expertise in radio technology and mobile handset software. This special presentation was organized by Mahmoud Naghshineh, a member of the Bluetooth SIG. He currently manages the communication systems group at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York.

Wednesday, September 9, 12:15 p.m.–1:15 p.m.
IMT-2000
The international focus and collaboration on IMT-2000 will affect the future of wireless communications well into the next millennium. An overview of leading proposals and the technical challenges to fulfill the promise of IMT-2000 and develop truly global standards accommodating regional needs will be presented. There are significant similarities among these proposals, and an ongoing harmonization process is bringing the leading proposals together. In this panel discussion, representatives of the key international bodies behind these proposals will address and debate their views on how IMT-2000 should shape and impact the future of the wireless communication industry. The moderator of Technology Panels this panel is Gerry Flynn, who is co-chair of a TIA TR45 IMT-2000 Ad Hoc on harmonization. Panelists are John Marinho of Lucent Technologies; Mark Epstein of Qualcomm; and John Martin of IDO Corporation.

Thursday, September 10, 12:15 p.m.–1:15 p.m.
Future of Wireless Data Communications
The wireless data industry covers both wide area mobile data services and wireless local area networks. In the past decade, we have witnessed numerous innovative technologies and standards attracting tremendous attention. However, in spite of many optimistic predictions, a market for the wireless data industry comparable to that of the cellular phone market has yet to evolve. In this panel, representatives of different sectors of the wireless data industry will present their views on the past, present, and future of this industry. The panel will open with a talk by Tom Freeburg of Motorola, one of the most experienced wireless data architects in the industry. Other invited participants are Shuzo Kato of Mitsubishi, who will present the Japanese view of data communications; Tero Ojanperä of the Nokia Research Center, who will give the European view; Dipankar Raychaudhuri of NEC, who will address wireless ATM; and Ahmad Bahai of ALGOREX, who will address Internet applications. The moderator for this panel is Craig Mathias of the Fairpoint Group. The panel was organized by Kaveh Pahlavan of CWINS, WPI.

Thursday, September 10, 12:15 p.m.–1:15 p.m.
Radio Access for Third-Generation Mobile Systems
ETSI, ARIB, TIA, and other regional and national standards bodies are in the process of completing the definition of radio access for IMT-2000. Proposals, which were due to ITU by June 30, 1998, will be evaluated, and a final decision on whether the world will have a common radio access technology, or several, will be made by March 31, 1999. The focus of this panel will be to describe and discuss the main proposed radio access technologies, including UTRA from Europe (supported by Japan) and CDMA-2000 from North America. The possibility of a single global standard will then be debated. This panel was organized and will be moderated by Hamid Aghvami of King’s College. Panelists are M. Sawahashi of NTT DOCOMO; W. Mohr of Siemens, Germany; and C. Vinodrai of Bell Mobility, Canada.