Recent advances in ADSL2+ have maintained the technology's dominance in the broadband services offered by carriers over their existing copper plant. However, other technologies such as VDSL2 are coming on strong. In the race to offer multiple and simultaneous IPTV and HDTV services, carriers such as SBC, Bellsouth, DT, and Swisscom have bet billions on VDSL2 without waiting for the technology to prove its maturity and stability. Can it deliver "the goods"? What happens in real deployment, with all the inherent interference of the copper plant?

This session examines recent advances in DSL and how these will affect service providers' networks. What are the challenges of ADSL2+ and VDSL2 coexistence, and how can they be overcome? What about xDSL technologies beyond VDSL2? Developments in dynamic spectrum management (DSM) technology are holding out the promise of gigabit-per-second transmission speeds for subscribers over legacy copper plant. What exactly is the reality here? What should be the investment strategy for service providers looking to exploit such advances to the fullest? Are these developments making FTTH less appealing? Join this panel of technology and service provider experts as we examine the current state and future prospects of DSL technologies.

Bruno Orth Group Headquarters, Technology & Innovation Deutsche Telekom AG

Mr. Orth is responsible for implementation-related questions of new technologies and production-related strategies on Deutsche Telekom AG's group level. Mr. Orth received his degree in communications engineering from FH Kaiserslautern in Germany in 1984. Since 1985, he has been responsible for various topics at Deutsche Bundespost and later at Deutsche Telekom. In particular, he was in charge of different strategic and technical concepts in the area of access networks. In this context, he was involved in international standardization activities. He was a member of International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) Study Groups 13 and 15. Furthermore, he was chairman of a Technical Committee of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute for transmission and access architectures (ETSI TM3) and has extensive management and engineering experience in the telecom industry. Now he is responsible for implementation-related questions of new technologies and production-related strategies on Deutsche Telekom AG group level.

Marco Burzio Wireline Access Infrastructure Innovation Telecom Italia

Mr. Burzio studied electronic engineering at Politecnico di Torino in Italy. He joined CSELT Switching and Network Service Department in 1992, focusing on high-throughput switching architectures based on fast-packet optical switching, high-speed optical and electrical interconnections for telecommunication systems, and the design of related CMOS high-speed ASICS. In March 2000, he joined ARTIS Software Corporation, where he led the definition and development of network and protocol modeling tools in the VP Artifex Product unit. In October 2001, he joined Telecom Italia, where he focuses on fixed access network and copper- and fiber-based technologies. He holds 11 patents and has co-written a number of publications.

Jochen Knapp Local Loop Spectrum Management, SSC Engineering Networks, Products & Services T-Systems Enterprise Services GmbH

Mr. Knapp is leading a team of experts at T-Systems dealing with local loop spectrum management, comprising simulation, performance test, spectral compatibility measurement, and research on future DSM technologies. Mr. Knapp has been working as project manager in the area of broadband access and transport networks, next-generation networks, and corporate solutions for public authorities. He studied electrical engineering and information technology at Technical University of Darmstadt and joined the former R&D center FTZ of Deutsche Telekom in 1997.

Ariel Shuper Director of Product Marketing, Broadband Access Division ECI

Mr. Shuper is responsible for DSL technologies product marketing. Mr. Shuper brings more than eight years of extensive and varied experience in the telecommunication industry. In prior positions, he has served as software engineer and product marketing manager. Currently, Mr. Shuper leads a unique DSM research consortium that incorporates leading European telcos and system vendors.

Luis Fernandez Vega Director of Broadband Access Technologies Telefonica Technology Telefonica de Espana

Mr. Fernandez Vega has occupied different positions at Telefonica. In the recent past, he was the manager of Technology and Planning for Transmission Services Division, leading the transport network and services strategy and evolution, which included Telefonica's strategies for the Metro Ethernet deployment. He was named Manager of Technology for Access Solutions and Services Division in January 2006. He is in charge of gearing the access network and services strategy and evolution, which includes Telefonica's policies for the product lines of DSL and FTTx. His responsibilities include identification of product requirements, service definition, market survey, product validation, product prescription, and operations support.