Squeezing in between TM Forum’s Digital Transformation World and MWC Las Vegas, Rakuten’s annual Optimism event might not have received the attention it deserved from the telecom community. But make no mistake: the update on Germany’s 1&1 offered important new insights on Rakuten Symphony’s progress in enabling telecom industry disruption beyond its native Japan.

In conversation with Symphony CEO Tareq Amin, Chief Revenue Officer Rabih Dabbousi, 1&1 CEO Michael Martin gave new details of 1&1’s progress and thinking on key aspects of its plans.

As well as highlighting achievements to date at 1&1, the discussion offered insights into industry-wide concerns including security and energy optimization.