Technologies to Enable Mobility Will Shine in 2011

By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing Editor

To better understand what to expect in technology innovations in 2011, it is helpful to look back to 2010 to gauge the most significant trends in that year. In a recent TMCnet interview, Rich Tehrani spoke with Adam Conway, vice president of Product Management for Aerohive Networks (News - Alert).

When asked his opinion on the most significant technology trends in 2010, Conway pointed to the cloud, and specifically Amazon’s release of Virtual Private Clouds. As for the impact the continued growth of cloud computing will have on the communications industry in 2011, Conway noted it will be a significant impact and networks will need to adjust.When asked about the mobile winners in 2011, Conway stressed that we are in a two-horse race on modern smartphones and he suspects Apple (News - Alert) will run on revenue and Google with its software and service focus will win on volume. As for the impact mobile technology will have on the tech space in 2011, Conway pointed to the adoption of smartphones and the introduction of tablets to enable real applications for lightweight mobile devices. Conway was also asked his opinion on the best opportunities in the tech space, and he highlighted those technologies that will enable mobility.

Asked how technology can change the world for the better, Conway pointed to education. As for social media and how it has enabled him to interact with customers, Conway noted that it has allowed him to be more nimble in how he engages customers. For internal collaboration, Aerohive relies on Jive software. Asked his opinion on net neutrality, Conway stressed that he believes in a free and open Internet. He is hopeful for the commercial availability of fuel cells in 2011 and believes his ITEXPO East 2011 session is a must-see due to the special effects. As for what to expect from Aerohive in 2011, Conway noted that with the acquisition of Pareto Networks, the company has moved beyond wireless to VPN and networking.

Their entire conversation follows:

What was the most significant technology trend in 2010 and what impact will it have in 2011?

Undoubtedly the cloud – with Amazon’s release of Virtual Private Clouds (VPC), VMWare’s strong, albeit late, push into public cloud, and significant traction of cloud based apps, 2010 laid the framework for enterprises to nearly eliminate servers.

What impact will the continued growth of cloud computing have on the communications industry in 2011?

This is going to have a pretty significant impact – networks need to adjust from classic inside/outside networks with most resources on servers to most services being in the cloud – this means less focus on big-iron enterprise data center routers and switches and more focus on smart WAN planning.

Who will be the mobile winners in 2011 out of Google Android (News - Alert), Apple, Microsoft, Nokia and RIM?

Nokia who? Clearly we are in a two horse race on modern smartphones, and I suspect Apple will win on revenue and Google with its more software and service focus will win on volume. We can only hope that RIM can become the dark horse.

What impact will mobile technology have on the tech space in 2011?

Over the last several years, the adoption of smartphones and the introduction of tablets has enabled the introduction of real applications to lightweight mobile devices. Beyond basic games, document readers and the like – we are seeing things like Citrix and VDI making its way onto the iPad. This has the potential to be a real game changer in IT. While knowledge workers have taken to iPads for note taking and convenience tasks, the real opportunities are to cost effectively roll out enterprise applications in a mobile setting. With VDI, applications that are not ready for WiFi (News - Alert) or mobile handsets can be made mobile, and the beauty of VDI is that there is no data stored on the mobile device. Examples of applications we have seen are point of care applications for skilled nursing, picking applications for warehouses, line busting applications for retail and more. I am convinced we are just seeing the beginning of what will change the way that enterprise applications are delivered.

Where are the best opportunities in the tech space this year?

All of the interesting action is happening around mobility – almost everybody uses laptops rather than desktops, smartphone adoption is ramping, and cloud apps are available everywhere. Technologies that enable mobility, like wireless, are poised to reap the benefits.

How can technology change the world for the better?

In my opinion education is the best opportunity – as laptops and internet connections have dropped in price – accessibility to information is unprecedented.

What impact has social media had on how you interact with your customers?

How do you measure its effectiveness? Social media has allowed us to be more nimble in how we engage with customers. Using the most popular social media platforms – the Aerohive blog, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube – we are able to be a part of the online conversation throughout the day. Whether we are tweeting about a customer win, blogging about a cool new feature or commenting on a Facebook (News - Alert) post about hot industry trends, we’ve found that social media is allowing us to get our message out as we’ve never been able to do before.

How have you leveraged social networking as an internal collaboration tool?

We use Jive software to collaborate internally.

The FCC has recently voted to support net neutrality.  Is net neutrality necessary, or will it present more challenges than it will solve?

Personally, I believe in a free and open internet – of course I am not a service provider and they may have a different opinion.

What will be the greatest technological development in 2011?  Why?

Well – I am hopeful for commercially available fuel cells – really this is the next key step in mobility. Mobility has been hampered by battery life for too long.

Why is your session a must-attend at ITEXPO? 

Definitely the special effects -- lasers, flames and 40 foot robots; how can an attendee resist. But wait, it gets better; we will show enterprises how to spend less time, and less money deploying and managing their data networks.

What new and exciting products/solutions can we expect to see from your company in 2011?

With the acquisition of Pareto Networks, Aerohive has now moved beyond wireless to VPN and networking. You can expect to see new products and services delivered based upon the combined technology of the two companies.

To find out more about Adam Conway and Aerohive, visit the company at ITEXPO East 2011. To be held Feb. 2-4 in Miami, ITEXPO is the world’s premier IP communications event. Conway is speaking during “SMB Cloud Communications: What's Hot and What's Not?” and “Meeting the Demand for In-building Wireless Networks.” Don’t wait. Register now.

(source: http://hosted-exchange.tmcnet.com/topics/mobility/articles/139974-technologies-enable-mobility-will-shine-2011.htm)