Going to a data center show I frequently find I spend more time networking than watching the presentations. So to learn some new things I saw that GigaOm has a Mobilize conference in SF, Sept 26-27 that I decided to attend.

Here are a few talks that look interesting for a data center audience, and will keep my attention.

CAN INVISIBLE ALSO BE AMAZING? DESIGNING FLUID AND CONNECTED EXPERIENCES

Can we fall in love with things we cannot see? As the bond between mobility and the cloud increases, we will need to design invisible and seductive service experiences. Device-to-cloud interactions will yield new products that will adapt to device capabilities and context. But as bright and attractive as the future might look, we have to consider the ethics of money-making in this new age – who will own user data and is pushing advertising going to ruin user experience? This and more is covered by leading design firm, Fjord.

Speakers:Olof Schybergson - CEO, Fjord

...

TABLETS AND SMARTPHONES BY THE NUMBERS

The growing popularity of smartphones and tablets has opened up new opportunities for mobile content and apps – and raises critical questions, as well. Do different platforms and devices require different monetization strategies or does it depend on which demographic group you are trying to reach? How do different kinds of consumers respond to mobile ads? How much are consumers willing to pay for various types of content? How effective are mobile ads? These questions and more are revealed by audience research giant, The Nielsen Company.

Speakers:Jonathan Carson - CEO, Telecom, The Nielsen Company

...

BETWEEN THE CLOUD AND THE CONSUMER

There have been two major tectonic shifts in the communications services world - the shift to the cloud for technology infrastructure and the focus of the core business to be on innovating services. In the grey undefined area between the cloud and the consumer is middleware. Alcatel Lucent, industry giant and supplier of choice to the world's telcos, is laying down huge bets in this space. We talk with the company's leader as to why the industry's future for services innovation lays in the middle.

Moderated by:Chetan Sharma - President, Chetan Sharma Consulting and Analyst, GigaOM Pro
Speakers:Wim Sweldens - 2nd President, Wireless Product Division, Alcatel-Lucent

Iyad Tarazi - VP, Network Development, Sprint

...

ARCHITECTING FOR THE CONSUMERIZATION OF IT

There's a new force to be reckoned with: consumerization. The rise of mobile products like the iPhone, iPad and Android platforms, along with the accessibility of cloud computing services, is radically disrupting conventional IT infrastructures. Resistance may be futile, but as these advances turn the $20 billion/year security industry upside down, smart and agile enterprises stand to realize significant competitive advantages. This talk will delve deeper into the innovative responses demanded of IT departments.

Moderated by:Quentin Hardy - Silicon Valley Bureau Chief, Forbes
Speakers:Tom Gillis - VP and GM Security Technology Business Unit, Cisco

...

3 KEY PILLARS OF ENTERPRISE MOBILITY: APPLICATIONS, DATA AND PEOPLE

Virtualization and high powered smartphones are a match made in heaven for the Enterprise. Most of the arguments involving security and data integrity dissappear. We talk with the visionary CTO and thought leader at technology giant VMWare, about what he sees as being the real outcomes of virtualization on the handset and where VMWare will lead the industry next.

Moderated by:Om Malik - Founder, GigaOM
Speakers:Stephen Herrod - CTO, VMware

...

THE SHAPE OF (THE INTERNET OF) THINGS TO COME

The internet connected toaster never arrived, mercifully, but the continued success of the Kindle and some early internet connected objects points to larger consumer markets for the right product and the right applications. In the talk we hear from The leading thought leader in the In arena of "The Internet of Things"

Speakers:Mike Kuniavsky - CEO, ThingM

...

HOW DO WE CONNECT EVERYTHING TO EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE?

We are on the cusp of connecting everything to everything else. eReaders, tablets, netbooks, smart meters, smart cars you name it. But with high bandwidth comes high demands on the chipsets, batteries and the spectrum.Atheros pioneered some of the first chips in the wifi standard. Now they are betting it all onWe talk with their President about why they see WiFi as the way forward for everything being connected to everyone, everywhere and what else he sees being needed to make this grand vision a reality.

Moderated by:Stacey Higginbotham - Senior Writer, GigaOM
Speakers:Craig Barratt - President, Qualcomm Atheros