gazettabyte is now launched. The website is my response to the July closure of FibreSystems Europe, a magazine I had been writing for since 2003.

The site is a resource for the optical industry, covering telecom and datacom. As well as in-depth features (click for the editorial calender), gazettabyte will cover industry issues, technological developments and company R&D.

First feature: photonic integration.

Operators are upgrading their subscriber data management systems, but as they learn more about their customers they also face privacy issues.

Operators know a considerable amount about their customers and are about to know a whole lot more. First, though, they must capture transactions in real time and service habits in general to determine what best suits each user. And they will also need a single view of the customer, rather than the fragmented one they have now. But as operators capture more data and start to pass it to third parties, they will also need to address the thorny issue of data privacy.