That time of year

Trade shows are simultaneously my favorite part of my job and something I absolutely despise. I love trade shows because they bring together a lot of people I otherwise wouldn't see regularly, and they give me a chance to pick the industry's brain, so to speak, in one brief period. What I learn through interviews at trade shows lives on for weeks and even months after the event, helping fuel other inquiries and reports.

I hate trade shows because they artificially organize a calendar year into chunks, creating a sense of urgency that also may be contrived. The investment made into trade show marketing can help create the need to over-hype technology, which can be damaging in the long run.

I love trade shows because the conference events that accompany them feature the telecom industry's best and brightest — individuals you don't get to see and hear every day. Every so often, one of these speeches is a real event that generates real news, and being there in person only adds to the excitement.

I hate trade shows because the conference events that accompany them feature the industry's top CEOs, and the bigger the title, the less likely the individual will say anything remotely risky or surprising. CEOs are like presidential candidates; they operate from a script, when they would be much more interesting talking off the cuff. Bob Dole and Al Gore are two of the best examples of people who became much more interesting when they were no longer running for office. I'm just guessing here, but I suspect a conversation with Edward Whitacre right now would prove more interesting than any of the speeches he gave in the two years before his retirement.

I love trade shows because I get to expand my personal collection of small foam objects, which currently includes a samurai, a whale, a wizard, two cows, a duck, a pair of dice, two vans and a butt set.

I hate trade shows because they too often use marketing gimmicks, such as magicians and give-aways, that draw crowds and clutter the aisles I have to walk through to get to interview appointments. I've never understood how getting a T-shirt would make anyone want to buy a multiservice gateway or softswitch.

All of this is leading up to reminding you that NXTcomm is coming up in June, and if you are still debating whether to attend, check out our preview. Also, Telephony is co-sponsoring a very special one-day conference for Independent telcos, in conjunction with NXTcomm, which you can learn more about here.