Area Vice President, Product Marketing, Revenue EDGE, Calix

 linkedin.com/in/naylorgray

We announced four exciting new updates to Revenue EDGE in our 21.2 release—these will help you beat any competitor, even the consumer giants. Here are four highlights.  

1. Simplify your systems integration and deployment with the world’s first universal Wi-Fi 6 system.

Offering unprecedented bandwidth options (up to 10 Gbps), improved operational simplicity, and seamless upgradeability, the newly launched GigaSpire® BLAST u6x is the obvious choice for service providers that want ultimate flexibility. The new GigaSpire BLAST u6x, available in two form factors and colors, is the world’s first carrier class, universal Wi-Fi 6 system designed to have a 10-year lifespan.​

2. Our new product portfolio roadmap will help you grow value for decades.

The new systems portfolio roadmap for GigaSpire BLAST provides a blueprint for the planned evolution of the GigaSpire BLAST portfolio. Critical to the roadmap are new products and features that will help broadband service providers (BSPs) plan their own transformation and growth. These future systems will offer:

• Wi-Fi 6E  Systems: BSPs that adopt the Revenue EDGE will be even more prepared to support exciting, high-bandwidth applications, such as augmented and virtual reality.
• Hardened Systems for Extreme Environments:  Expand Wi-Fi coverage into the great outdoors with systems capable of powering through extreme conditions.
• Power-Over-Ethernet Systems: Deliver Ultimate Wi-Fi into a variety of applications and locations, including small business settings.
• Universally  Flexible  Systems: The GigaSpire BLAST u6x system provides universal WAN connectivity in the form of an easily swappable SFP that can support everything from 1G to 10G Ethernet or 1G to 10G PON services. This means you’ll get unrivaled simplicity, flexibility, and upgradability. The GigaSpire BLAST u4 provides consumer cool design with flexible mesh coverage.

3. Find new ways to lower support costs with enhancements to Calix Support Cloud.

Unrivaled new features released in Calix Support Cloud enable customer support reps (CSRs) and marketers to deliver a superior customer experience with a focus towards subscriber self-service and self-help. By combining the power of the CommandIQ® app and the EDGE Suites services ProtectIQ™ and ExperienceIQ™ with Calix Support Cloud some customers are achieving amazing results, such as 74 percent first call resolution rates and 26 percent reduction in truck rolls. One customer reports a 64 percent reduction in truck rolls—thanks to these new integrated features.

• Home Network Settings:  CSRs now have direct visibility into subscribers’ “My Priorities” settings in ExperienceIQ. This feature of CommandIQ enables reps to easily work with subscribers to view or change their device or application prioritization settings.
• SSID Pool Management:  CSRs can help subscribers optimize their home network experience by guiding them in setting up SSIDs for work-from-home or custom wireless networks that are isolated from their primary and guest networks.
• Wi-Fi Performance:  A new Wi-Fi performance dashboard simplifies the process for CSRs to identify and resolve common issues such as signal strength, interference, and channel utilization to reduce inbound calls.

4. Supercharge your marketing ROI thanks to new Mailchimp integration with Marketing Cloud.

The email marketing software most popular among Calix customers, Mailchimp, now integrates directly with Calix Marketing Cloud. This is the first of many planned integrations with other common marketing technologies used by BSPs. These integrations position Marketing Cloud as an actionable tool, capable of helping you achieve the following.

• Automate marketing to deliver timely, relevant experiences:  No more manual exports and spreadsheets to track campaign audience lists. Build your audiences in Calix Marketing Cloud and then with a push of a button automate the delivery of those audiences to your Mailchimp platform and beyond.
• Adopt an omnichannel approach to reaching subscribers:  In-app Mobile Notifications from CommandIQ® and email capabilities integrated from Mailchimp provide the first omnichannel capabilities for BSP marketers. Planned integrations with major social media platforms will continue to put marketers in front of an omnichannel approach to reaching their subscribers.
• Maximize return on investment (ROI):  It has never been easier for BSP marketers to drive take rates on new offerings while growing their business through acquisition, cross-sell and upsell opportunities, and reduced churn.
• Elevate marketing campaigns with actionable insights: A new campaign dashboard, including actual campaign data from Mailchimp, will make it easier for marketers to make data-driven decisions and deliver high impact, revenue generating offers to their subscriber audiences. Access to campaign open rates, bounce rates, click-throughs and conversions will connect the dots between key messages, timely offers, and active subscribers which allows marketers to optimize campaign performance.

Your Recommended Action Plan

• Register: “New Innovations Set to Drive Optimal Wi-Fi Performance" (webinar replay) 

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Product Marketing Director (Premises), Calix

linkedin.com/in/owensgreg

Many broadband subscribers happily purchase Wi-Fi systems, gateways, and extenders at big-box stores—only to have deep regrets. Why? First, much of this hardware becomes obsolete much faster than they imagined. Second, when they call you to help troubleshoot and service, support options are severely limited. It’s a frustrating scenario.

Keep Your Subscribers Out of Big-Box Stores 

The problem is not the hardware itself. Rather, it’s the changing subscriber needs and the ability of service providers to scale new options and services into the subscriber home via hardware that is fixed to moment in time.

At Calix, we believe there is a solution to this. That’s why we created the Experience Innovation Platform, which allows our customers to pair superior equipment in the home with the ability to endlessly grow with our customer’s needs and, most important, subscriber needs. Here are five critical benefits.

The Experience Innovation Platform: Five Critical Benefits for You 

1. Simplify your operations: Thanks to the platform all GigaSpire® BLAST hardware is pre-integrated which simplifies both set up and installation.
2. Streamline integrations  with other systems: The platform provides a common point for Support Cloud, Marketing Cloud and CommandIQ® to gather data and insights, which provides the BSP with a powerful predictive engine that can reduce churn and support calls, and increase the take rate on value-added services like EDGE Suites.
3. Deliver insights for customer support reps: With all the subscriber data integrated into Support Cloud, you can improve first call resolution and decrease unnecessary truck rolls because the CSR can troubleshoot and diagnose issues with subscribers in real time.
4. Unlock data for subscriber insights to marketers: Build new audience segments and even micro-segments by unlocking the power of the subscriber data. Use these audience insights to acquire, upsell, reduce churn and increase loyalty,
5. Use the platform to scale by offering new services and building revenue streams: Because the platform is constantly being updated from the cloud it is very easy to scale new services without the hassle of building new integrations. Grow ARPU and differentiate your brand with new, premium services that excite your subscribers.

Your Recommended Action Plan

• Download: “Calix Experience Innovation Platform” (solution brief) 

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Area Vice President, Access and Field Marketing, Calix

linkedin.com/in/teresamcgaughey

Whether you are focused on the architecture or the operation of your network, the Intelligent Access EDGE is bringing to you some great new capabilities to simplify how you deliver services that excite your subscribers.

For those of you focused on the architecture and design of your network you’re probably really interested in these top three new capabilities.

1. Simplified, Future Proof In-Premises Deployments:  The launch of the GigaSpire® BLAST u6x and its support of swappable WAN SFPs brings the Intelligent Access EDGE and Revenue EDGE together. The GigaSpire Blast u6x with the GPON SFP ONT enables you to install a single system in a subscriber’s home and upgrade that subscriber easily to XGS-PON in the future with a swap of the SFP.

2. Scalable and Secure VLAN Deployments: The new S+C+MAC Switching capability enables VLAN switching across the Service Provider VLAN (S-VLAN), the Customer VLAN (C-VLAN) and the MAC address providing a more scalable network due to increased VLAN combinations and a more secure Layer 2 network with traffic tied to the customer via the MAC Address.

3. Intelligent, Scalable Routing: Enabling Layer 3 Routing with IPv6 ensures you have a secure network with the built in Internet Protocol Security (IPSEC) capability of IPv6 as well as a scalable network due to the substantially larger pool of IP addresses available to you.

If you’re focused on the operation of your network, we have some great new capabilities for you as well.

4. Streamlined SMx Workflows: We really appreciate all the great feedback that you are providing. In this release we have incorporated several changes that streamline the service provisioning and management process. One of those is that when you look at a subscriber’s service you will find hot links to the provisioned ONT, as well as new searchable fields to make it easier to see all the attributes of a subscriber’s service associated with that ONT.

5. Simplified Migration of Legacy Services: Traditional DSL networks began deployments utilizing Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) as the means to authenticate subscribers, as fiber-based networks have been deployed you have likely also transitioned to utilizing DHCP (Dynamic Host Control Protocol). By enabling the ability to combine both PPP and DHCP subscriber-based traffic on a single VLAN, the process of managing your networks and migrating subscriber services to next generation services has become substantially easier.

6. Reduced Network Downtime During Upgrades: When you upgrade an E7-2 shelf that is aggregating additional shelves of subscriber traffic, the system will ensure downstream services remain operational even during the upgrade of the aggregation shelf.

These are just a few of the great new capabilities in release 21.2 focused on simplifying your network and the operation of it.
 

Your Recommended Action Plan

• Watch: “How to Bring Network Reliability, Security, and Simplicity Within Reach” (webinar replay)
• Download: “A Fast-Moving World Creates New Challenges” (solution brief) 

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Director, Intelligent Access EDGE Product & Solution Marketing, Calix

www.linkedin.com/in/kevinkuo

The E3-2 Intelligent PON Node, powered by the AXOS platform, dramatically simplifies network deployment and is ideally suited to connect rural areas quickly. With its simplified management model and a stateful, Always-On operation, the AXOS E3-2 Intelligent PON Node solution will help you realize up to a 50 percent reduction in total cost of ownership over a cabinet-based solution while also eliminating many of the challenges associated with deploying a remote cabinet, such as land acquisition and securing construction permits.

A Field Serviceable Solution You Can Deploy in Any Type of Environment

A revolutionary cost-effective sealed system, the E3-2 features an environmentally hardened, modular “deploy anywhere” design that can be mounted aerially, on a wall, in a pedestal, or on a pole. This flexibility dramatically reduces costs while accelerating construction and service activation.

In addition, it enables broadband service providers (BSPs) to simplify network architectures and operations while delivering the versatility to run and support everyPON technology on a single network. The E3-2’s modularity enables rapid migration from GPON to XGS-PON-based services since every module can be quickly removed and replaced in the field, thus providing a completely cost-effective, field serviceable future-proof solution. By operating in the most challenging operating environments, you can reach more subscribers by adding resiliency to your network and ensuring reliable connectivity within diverse geographical areas. Just ask North Carolina-based SkyLine Membership Corp.—they realized the value and versatility of the E3-2 system extended their reach by delivering a reliable, adaptable solution simply and quickly.

Eliminate System Troubleshooting and Unnecessary Truck Rolls To Remote Areas

With the 21.2 release, Calix enabled BSPs to protect their network investments even further by introducing an Intelligent System Monitoring capability that makes system troubleshooting and rolling service trucks out to remote areas a thing of the past. Imagine a system that senses when critical internal temperature thresholds are exceeded, automatically takes preventative measures to avoid any hardware damage from occurring, and intuitively self-recovers and re-connects to its management system. Not only does this keep equipment from overheating to the point of permanent failure, but also drastically reduces operational expenses by not having to initiate truck rolls to those very remote areas.

Lastly, with the infusion of capital via the recent RDOF auctions, the AXOS E3-2 is the optimal deployment solution for BSPs to address those remote areas in their serving areas where it’s not economically feasible to deploy fiber-to-the-home or build out a cabinet.
 

Your Recommended Action Plan

• Watch: “10G Fiber Networks For the Future: Top Considerations From the Experts” (webinar replay)
• Explore: AXOS E3-2 Intelligent PON Node

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Senior Director, Services Marketing, Calix

linkedin.com/in/thomasschroer

With competition from new competitors looming on the horizon, Mountain Rural Telephone Cooperative (MRTC) is taking a proactive approach. That meant looking to their Calix Customer Success Manager for help with bolstering their managed Wi-Fi offering and improving the subscriber experience.

How the Customer Success Manager Helped MRTC Make Its Broadband Tiers More Attractive

The team wanted to improve the value and stickiness of MRTC’s broadband tiers. The Customer Success Manager helped them leverage insights from Calix Marketing Cloud and guided them in integrating this information into their analysis. In consultation with their Success Manager, the team also decided to bundle the EDGE Suites into MRTC’s existing managed Wi-Fi service to make their current offering more attractive to subscribers.

“The appealing message to me with the EDGE Suites was really about more control for our members with managed Wi-Fi and giving them the power of being able to manage their own service. That resonated with our subscribers,” observed Lisa Fannin, director of marketing for MRTC.

Central to the Premier Success offering is the Calix Customer Success Manager. As your designated expert resource, the Success Manager guides your team with field-proven best practices so your organization can better leverage the tools and insights provided by the Calix Cloud.

In Release 21.2, Calix Services has improved the features and capabilities that enabled MRTC and to increase ARPU 12 percent in six months. Updates include Marketing Campaign Guidance, which expands the program with Mailchimp integration, and Best Practices Change Management, which helps BSPs segment subscribers and reach them more effectively using omni-channel campaign approaches.

Reap the Benefits of Calix Marketing Cloud and Customer Success

MRTC has seen the partnership with Calix blossom by using Calix Marketing Cloud and Customer Success, both of which have had a significant impact on their business.

If you’re looking for results like MRTC, find out about the features of Calix Premier Success by following the recommended Action Plan links below.

Your Recommended Action Plan

• Watch: “Bring New Features to Subscribers in Record Time: Learn From Mountain Telephone's Success” (webinar replay)
• Engage: Set up a consult to find out more about Premier Success 

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Director, Solution Marketing, Calix

linkedin.com/in/gregbathrick/

Proposals for government funds to support broadband projects have reached as high as $100 billion. That’s great—after all, who doesn’t want “more” broadband? That said, have policymakers done the hard work of precisely identifying the gaps in availability and accessibility and then targeting policies to address them?

How Should Broadband Funding Be Allocated?

If not the money is apt to be wasted. Even worse, the money could be used to overbuild existing providers, driving out private investment which has propelled deployment of world class broadband networks for years.

So, what is next? As Calix experts mentioned in our recent webinar, “Missed RDOF? Sharpen Your Pencils, There Is More Funding Coming!,” (see the link in Your Recommended Action Plan, below, to watch the replay) there is a good chance Congress will recognize that the ideas on the table are still half-baked, and they need to roll up their sleeves. If so, you can expect many hearings leading to new drafts of legislation. Beware, the worlds of politics and telecommunications are not always aligned. And the political dynamics today do not lend themselves to consensus. So, unusual outcomes are likely.

How Can You Prepare for Funding?

1. Protect yourself from being overbuilt. The threshold for determining whether an area is going to be declared unserved is going “up”—possibly to 100/20 Mbps. If you have not upgraded your network, now is the time.
2. Assuming you’re interested in getting funding, develop and propose to policymakers’ what they would consider valuable solutions about the type of network government funding should support. Working with Calix experts, you can craft a successful proposal about how the money should be awarded.
3. If you are a current CAF or RDOF recipient, be sure you have a strong performance testing strategy with Calix’s comprehensive Broadband Performance Testing solution, comprised of Calix Support Cloud, GigaSpire® BLAST systems, GigaCenter systems, and the Broadband Performance Testing Service. This combination of offerings is the most scalable in the industry, enabling broadband service providers to efficiently identify, analyze, and rectify network issues that impact broadband performance testing, allowing their teams to remain compliant with intricate Federal Communications Commission (FCC) testing requirements.

What’s on the table is certain to evolve over the coming months and Calix is here to help. Stay informed by regularly checking the Calix funding webpage.  

Your Recommended Action Plan:

• Watch: “Missed RDOF? Sharpen Your Pencils, There Is More Funding Coming!” (webinar replay) 
• Watch: ”Overcome Performance Testing Challenges: Find Out How From Wittenberg Telecom and Calix ” (webinar replay)  

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