Day 1 of CTIA WIRELESS 2006 started with a bang! The keynote session was kicked-off by CTIA - The Wireless Association Chairman Len Lauer, who warned that high wireless taxes and costly state regulation were potential threats to future wireless growth and innovative.

Disney also launched their new wireless service that brought fireworks and the one-and-only Mickey Mouse to the CTIA WIRELESS stage.

The keynote session concluded with the presentation of a lifetime achievement award to Nokia President and CEO Jorma Ollila. In his more than twenty years at Nokia, Mr. Ollila transformed the company from a industrial conglomerate that was making rubber boots and toilet paper into a global leader in telecommunications. In June, Mr. Ollila will become Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.

The day also featured Educational, Policy, and Plenary sessions that covered a wide range of issues and provided a wealth of information on what’s going on in the industry today. During the Wireless Industry Regulatory Hot Topics plenary session, key Federal and State regulators discussed regulatory hot topics and answered questions about what policies they think will best facilitate the continued growth of the wireless industry.

Issues of integration, capacity, cost, bandwidth, security, QoS, ownership, and more permeate every decision surrounding the future of the network. Today’s CTO Plenary Address, Defining the Future of the Network, comprised a slate of network architects and visionaries who outlined the future of the network, from personal to home, local area, wide area, and to the Internet--wired and wireless.