Month: August 2021

When the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) opened World TELECOM 1971 in Geneva 50 years ago, officials proclaimed the dazzling new conference and exhibition a “message to the 21st century.”

“All those who had the opportunity to visit the various stands were able to appreciate the fundamental role played by ITU in the spectacular evolution of telecoms techniques and in the rapid expansion of the world,” observed the ITU Secretary-General of the time, Mohamed E. Mili.

The event launched a global platform for leading industry players, ITU members from the public and private sectors, international organizations, and academia to meet and greet, showcase innovation, and share knowledge.

Inauguration of Telecom 1971: Mohamed E. Mili, Secretary-General of ITU (left) with Robert Galley, France’s Minister of Posts and Telecommunications (right). Image credit: ITU.

 

Fifty years later, the now annual series achieves the same goals.

But much, of course, has changed.

18 cities around the world have hosted Telecom over the years, with several acting as hosts more than once.

The event changed format and name several times to meet the evolving needs of the industry. And for the past two editions, it has moved online in response to the global pandemic.

More substantially, people’s access to communications technology has blossomed, the structure of the industry and role of governments is radically different, and the technologies themselves are evolving faster than ever before.

The landscape then

Back in the 1970s, the telecommunication landscape was all about sending the voice over a fixed infrastructure, which was run by national operators out of government departments.

The cutting-edge technology exhibited at the very first Telecom included switching and transmission equipment, audio-visual equipment, and high-capacity submarine cables, along with wave guides and radio relays, data transmission equipment and a new generation of computers.

An impressive videophone demonstration included the ambitious prediction that at least 150 million such devices would be in use by the year 2000.

Satellites had already become a key part of public telecommunications, research, and television broadcasting services. The importance of satellite communications to reach remote and rural communities, no matter how challenging the terrain, would become increasingly clear over the decade.

By 1974, space radiocommunications systems were helping communities hit by natural disasters, keeping channels open with support centres and aiding the flow of emergency relief.

World TELECOM 1979 heralded a major technical breakthrough: electronic telephone switching.

System X, the result of industry-wide collaboration, made its public debut as an electronic system integrating telephone switching and transmission. The system allowed for the additional use of advanced electronic modules, which could expand the basic exchange into a highly sophisticated network operator. By replacing electro-mechanical switching systems with computers, System X provided the basis for a modern, flexible telecom system.

A force for growth

After the success of the 1971 inaugural event, ITUs Member States opted to carry on with Telecom on a regular basis – initially every four years – to gather “all the members of the great family of telecommunications,” in the words of Mr Mili.

Linking countries and companies would stimulate international trade, allow for the exchange of ideas and knowledge, and help to bridge the development gap, he said.

Telecommunications in the 1970s represented progress and a force for social, economic and cultural growth that could be applied universally for the benefit of all.

ITU Telecom continues to uphold those aims today.

 

In this new series of blogs marking the 50th anniversary of ITU Telecom, we look back at five decades of change for the industry, ITU and the flagship conference and exhibition series. The next episode revisits the 1980s and the dawn of mobile and e-mail.

Find out more on the 50th anniversary of ITU Telecom events – and on this year’s edition, ITU Digital World 2021, taking place online from September to December.

Header image from Telecom 1971: Telephone sets from the International Telephone and Telegraph (ITT) Corporation. Image credit: ITU

This blog was originally published on ITU News.

One of the key annual events of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has just turned 50. ITU Telecom has evolved over the years to reflect a rapidly evolving industry ecosystem. But international cooperation to connect the world remains at the core of the conference and exhibition series.

The first-ever Telecom, featuring a high-level conference combined with a major international telecommunications exhibition, happened in June 1971.

World TELECOM 71, as it was called, launched a regular series of key global gatherings of the ITU family. Governments, industry, academia and international organizations came together to trade insights, showcase and share technological innovations, exchange knowledge – and work together to ensure everyone, everywhere could benefit from technology’s enormous potential.

The past half century has seen rapid advances in telecommunications, including the emergence of unprecedented technologies, sector-wide privatization, and new facets of regulation. New markets, competitors, and partnerships have made the industry, along with the world of ITU, look very different today than they did in the early 1970s.

The key areas of ITU’s work back then, as the name of the event implies, were telephony and telecommunications. Telecom’s focus has since shifted, in line with the industry, to information and communication technologies (ICTs), reflecting the irreversible convergence of two separate sectors. Digital technologies and services are now at the forefront, with the annual Telecom event provisionally rebranded since last year as ITU Digital World.

But even as ITU’s membership has diversified and the scope of Telecom events has broadened, much has stayed the same.

Enduring engagement

The people who come together through ITU – in all its initiatives, study groups, focus groups, conferences, and events – represent every part of what is known as the industry ecosystem: government, regulatory bodies, academia, international organizations, private sector companies (from multinational corporates to small and medium enterprises) and media. They are still truly global, drawn from all 193 member states. They still span industry sectors, from satellite to mobile, broadcasting to broadband, fintech to smart cities, artificial intelligence and beyond.

Through the second decade of the 21^st century, ITU Telecom events have continued to engage on key industry issues, including connecting the unconnected and narrowing the digital divide. Today, as in 1971, this means sharing knowledge and resources, exhibiting innovative technologies, projects and products, and networking across private and public sectors.

What connecting the unconnected means in practice has arguably changed over the years. It is no longer just about ensuring affordable devices and access, along with infrastructure and coverage worldwide – whether in the form of telephony, satellite services, mobile telephony, or even broadband Internet.

Nowadays, it is increasingly about fostering digital skills and awareness, driving demand through relevant content and services, and providing vital information and updates in local languages.

Bringing these benefits to underserved people and communities depends on cooperation and collaboration, cross-sectoral and cross-border partnerships – to meet the challenges and explore the opportunities of an industry upon which the world now relies more than ever.

Interactive exhibits in 1979

A platform for innovation

Throughout the years, Telecom has provided a platform for innovations on display in its renowned world-class exhibition to the policies, strategies and technologies shaping the industry.

Important topics echo down the decades: the incredible potential of exponential technological growth; bridging the digital divide to leave no one behind; the role of regulators in balancing industry competition and consumer needs; the influence – both positive and negative – of ICTs on our environment and climate; the importance of empowering women and girls, youth, persons with disabilities and the marginalized throughout the world; the critical need for skills, training and expert personnel; the social and cultural impact of technology; the interplay and partnerships between public and private sectors; rights and responsibilities in a global, networked world where no country, industry or organization can act alone.

Annual Telecom events continue to provide a window on the increasingly complex world of ICTs. Another 50 years from now, technology may well have reshaped our societies and economies beyond imagination. As the world and the industry keep changing, however, ITU remains committed to improving lives everywhere through technology.

Explore the history of ITU Telecom on the 50^th anniversary page.

Find out more on this year’s ITU Digital World 2021. And follow our blog series looking back at the highlights of ITU Telecom over the decades

Photo credit: ITU