NTT, Intel and Sony Create New Global Forum to Drive Future Communications

In a truly intelligent and connected world, we will enjoy an environment that improves the way people live and interact with technology, but to realize this promise, major innovations in computing, communications and network infrastructure are needed. Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT), Intel Corporation and Sony Corporation announced that they will jointly establish a new industry forum - the Innovative Optical and Wireless Networks (IOWN1) Global Forum.

The goal of the Global Forum is to accelerate the adoption of a new communications infrastructure that will integrate all photonic network infrastructure including silicon photonics, edge computing and interconnected computing to meet our future data and computing needs by developing new technologies, frameworks, specifications and reference designs in the following areas:

• Photonics R&D, including future photonic devices, photonic network equipment and end-to-end architecture, is driven by advances in photonic-electronic fusion technology, which will significantly reduce power consumption and enable instant access and response by reducing latency and expanding transmission capacity.

• Interconnected computing, leveraging artificial intelligence and dynamically distributed loads, will become increasingly important for computing across networks.

•  Use cases and best practices for the smart world and enabling technologies, including digital twin computing (a computing paradigm that recreates people and things in the real world and interacts without the constraints of cyberspace), human behavior and social modeling R&D, large-scale simulations, and next-generation “real” UI/UX device technologies.

Next-generation communications are expected to improve many aspects of life, including telemedicine, disaster prevention, education, autonomous driving, finance, entertainment, sports and industrial manufacturing. IOWN aims to provide the next-generation communications infrastructure so that as many people as possible can benefit from it.

Technology, telecommunications and other industry organizations will be invited to join the forum. With their industry leadership and expertise in these technology areas, NTT, Intel and Sony will become founding members of the forum. In the coming months, NTT, Intel and Sony will select the initial board members of the IOWN Global Forum and jointly launch the forum's operations.

“NTT has a long history of photonics-related R&D and has achieved leading results in areas such as silicon photonics and optoelectronics convergence. Based on these technologies, NTT aims to drive next-generation technological innovation and address many of today’s societal challenges, such as increasing energy consumption,” said Jun Sawada, President and CEO of NTT. “We will leverage our leading R&D expertise to drive the photonics revolution and unlock new technologies to ultimately enable a smart world, where technology becomes so ‘natural’ that people are not even aware of its presence. NTT looks forward to working with best-in-class partners in the industry to realize the smart world.”

“Digital transformation and the growth of data are driving an infrastructure expansion that dwarfs the first cloud era defined by hyperscale data centers,” said Bob Swan, CEO of Intel. “We are now using information technology in entirely new ways that require us to move, store and process data faster, more securely and often closer to the users of the services. The integration of ultra-fast networks and ubiquitous high-performance computing – the edge infrastructure that delivers intelligent services everywhere – will only become a reality if there is a global ecosystem consensus on a new way of thinking. Collaborating to create the IOWN Forum is an important step forward. A vision of this magnitude can only be realized when global leaders from across industries come together. Intel is honored to join forces with NTT and Sony on this industry-wide journey to help define the future of technology.”

"As part of Sony's mission to 'moving the world through the power of creativity and technology,' we work closely with creators to help them realize their visions through technology and deliver engaging content to their fans around the world," said Kenichiro Yoshida, President and CEO of Sony Corporation. "The high capacity, low latency, power efficiency and flexibility offered by IOWN opens up exciting new possibilities for connecting creators and users, bringing people together and sharing highly realistic entertainment experiences in real time. We are honored to be working with NTT and Intel to build this forum and look forward to working with them and other partners to create new value."