Each year over 150 presentations are made at Telecom Council meetings, and we note that certain factors increase the effectiveness of any given presentation: the quality of the audience, the content and location of the meeting, and historical success of the organizers. These factors are why Telecom Council meetings are much more powerful than most speaking opportunities.

We tailor our meetings to deliver specific information and thus providing the most well-suited information to our members, while ensuring the right audience for our presenters. While some Council meetings are available to the complete list of over 6,000 telecom professionals, others break into 6 different groups which we call Forums.

Although US Telecom investment as a whole has decreased over 20% in the last year, the Silicon Valley remains the center for telecom innovation. In 2007, telecom start-ups in the Silicon Valley received over $642 million investment dollars which was 30% of the US industry total. In 2008, the US telecom industry witnessed an over 20% decrease in total dollars invested yet the Silicon Valley’s witnessed an increase. With the local industry trends all on an upward incline, there is no better place to be.

Along with the success revealed in member and sponsor testimonials, other benefits are Forum specific. Here a few statistics which illustrate successes of past SPiF presenters:

1. The telecom industry in Silicon Valley includes over 250 telecom companies, employs over 100,000 people, and attracted 30% of all telecom venture capital investment in the U.S. last year.
2. 70% of telecom investors manage funds in excess of $80 million.
3. Nearly 50% of firms investing in start-ups with funds over $80 million are in the manufacturing sector.