Washington - The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) announced on Thursday plans to add a new conference series and exhibition for telecom professionals and network operators as part of its annual NAB trade show. Co-produced by NAB and Lightbulb Communications, Telecom@NAB2007 will focus on video deployments by telecom operators, including IPTV and other broadband video. The event is scheduled for April 16-18, in conjunction with NAB2007 in Las Vegas.

The first time I learned about Verizon's new FiOS service, I was not online (though they have a great site), but at a festival event near where I live in Virginia.  At the event they had the typical basketball games to win a prize, balloons, and an internet connection to let people find out if the Verizon FiOS network is available in their area.  Unfortunately for me, my home is not in their range yet - but like many cable consumers I would gladly switch if I could.  With a large percentage of US consumers feeling trapped in a cable monopoly with no alternatives, anyone offering the possibility of a choice is likely to be welcomed into the community.  For a company like Verizon which has had to deal with the defection of their telephone customers who are ditching their landlines to switch to VOIP - this welcome from the community must be particularly sweet.