MEDIA RESOURCES

CONTACT: communications@mail.cox.smu.edu

DALLAS (SMU) -- SMU's Cox School of Business will host the 9th International Conference on Telecommunications Systems - Modeling and Analysis, March 15-18, 2001. The four-day conference will focus on new technological developments and their implications in the telecommunications sector. Bezalel Gavish, chair of Cox's Information Technologies and Operations Management (ITOM) department, is general chair of the conference.

The conference attracts participants from more than 25 countries around the globe. Keynote speakers include Mark Epstein, senior vice president of development for Qualcomm, and Patrick Reilly, director of the wireless computing enhancement architecture lab of Intel's Cellular Communications Division.

Sessions include panels and presentations on the configurations of ATM networks, Internet and Intranet, LAN/WAN global network interconnection, configuration and analysis of cellular and wireless networks, performance evaluation of telecommunication systems, pricing and economic analysis of telecommunication services, network design problems, and security and privacy issues in telecommunications. The conference combines research tracks in which technical papers will be presented with industrial tracks consisting of panels, plenary speakers, and exhibits. Both industry and academic leaders will attend the conference.

Last year, the Cox School expanded its ITOM department with the addition of four faculty members. Professor Bezalel "Ben" Gavish and ITOM faculty members are developing a unique program in telecommunications and e-business at the Cox School. This program is the first of its kind in the nation, with an objective of producing graduates who can manage both telecommunications and e-business functions. The Cox School recently hosted the 3rd International Conference on Telecommunications and Electronic Commerce in November of 2000.