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ITU-T/OGF Workshop on Next
Generation Networks and Grids |
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Opening Remaks |
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H. Zhao
Director, TSB/ITU
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Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good morning.
Let me introduce myself. I am Houlin Zhao, Director of the Telecommunication
Standardization Bureau of ITU. To my side is Mr. Mark Linesch, Chairman of
the Open Grid Forum (OGF). I would like to welcome you to this workshop on
NGN and Grids which has been jointly organized by our two organizations.
As you might have noted, ITU-T has held many workshops over the last years.
Many were held by ITU-T alone, and some were held by ITU-T in cooperation
with Forums or SDOs. For example, in May last year, ITU-T jointly organized
a workshop on NGN together with IETF. In March 2006, ITU-T and ATIS jointly
organized a workshop on NGN in Las Vegas. Last week, ITU-T and OASIS
organized a workshop together on public warning for disasters. I am very
pleased to work with OGF on the organization of this workshop.
The first contacts between ITU-T and what was then called the Global Grid
Forum, GGF, go back to early last year. In May 2005, we received a
presentation from the Global Grid Forum at a meeting of ITU-T Study Group
13. With the bond between ITU-T and the Global Grid Forum established, plans
for a joint workshop took form. Today and tomorrow we will see the fruits of
this joint collaboration between ITU-T and what is now called the Open Grid
Forum, OGF. In a nutshell, the workshop will address the questions "How can
the telecoms industry benefit from Grids, and what can the Grid community
learn from NGN." ITU-T’s Global Standards Initiative on Next Generation
Network (NGN-GSI) is well under way and is responding to urgent market needs
for global NGN standards. NGN offers increased quality and service features
for users, independent of the underlying transport technology. Right after
the workshop, NGN-experts will continue to meet until the end of next week
to advance the work on NGN.
You may be surprised to learn that ITU has already made use of Grids! Just a
few months ago we had a huge conference with over hundred countries
participating in ITU’s Regional Radiocommunication Conference. The goal of
this conference was to adopt a frequency plan for digital broadcasting (TV
and sound). During five weeks of deliberations and through the iterative use
of complex software tools, the conference was able to take decisions that
would facilitate the coordinated and timely introduction of digital
broadcasting. Whereas at the beginning of the conference, only about half
the requirements from more than 100 countries could be taken into account,
at the end more than 90 per cent of the requirements (more than 70,000) will
become a reality within the planned area. To do the complex calculations,
ITU ran two systems in parallel, one internal to ITU, and the other on
CERN's grid facility. Our colleagues from the Radiocommunication Bureau have
set up a poster in the hallway that summarizes this complex work. In
addition, CERN has set up a demonstration, also in the hallway, that shows
some of the uses of grids. I would like to thank CERN, our neighbor
so-to-speak, and the Radiocommunication Bureau for being part of this
workshop. During breaks I invite you to visit both booths and discuss with
grid experts.
Ladies and gentlemen, I do not want to take up too much of our precious
time. To conclude my short remarks, I would like to express my sincere
thanks and appreciation to speakers and session chairs and moderators. I am
very grateful for their kindness in joining us at this workshop, despite the
heavy schedules they have at home. I would like to express my appreciation,
also, to the members of the steering committee who have worked very hard to
set up the programme. My appreciation must also go to the secretariat staff
from both OGF and ITU who have spared no effort to coordinate and bring this
workshop into reality. It will be a pleasure for me to invite you all to a
reception this evening at the Montbrillant Cafeteria.
Ladies and gentlemen, I sincerely hope that you will find this workshop very
useful and enjoy it.
Thanks for your attention.
Now, please allow me to invite Mr. Linesch to make his opening remarks.
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