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48-655: Without British participation, 26 members founded the OIR on 28 June 1946. The next day, at the General Assembly of the International Broadcasting Union (IBU), an attempt was made to dissolve this body, but the motion failed to obtain the required majority. However, 18 of the 28 existing members left the IBU and become co-founders of the new OIR. In 1946, the newly created OIR installed itself in

96-556: A consequence, the OIR headquarters and its Technical Centre was relocated from Brussels to Prague in 1950. Staff members from Belgium and other Western countries, some of whom had already been active before the war, stayed on in Brussels and the centre became the technical centre of the new EBU . Unlike the EBU, the OIRT was not limited to European and Mediterranean countries and operated as

144-449: A country code, being listed as "Taiwan, China." In addition to the 194 Member States, the ITU includes close to 900 "sector members"—private organizations like carriers, equipment manufacturers, media companies, funding bodies, research and development organizations, and international and regional telecommunication organizations. While nonvoting, these members may still play a role in shaping

192-650: A degree that the medium would attract a wider radio audience. Their reasoning proved correct. In 1920, only a few thousand homes in Europe had radio receivers, in 1926 this number grew to 5.8 million and in 1931 to 16 million receivers. In 1940, the UIR equipment was evacuated from Brussels to Switzerland, but in 1941 was returned after German request, and was later used by the Wehrmacht to monitor radio activity of Allied forces. Thirteen member countries stopped cooperating with

240-578: A different aspect of the matters covered by the ITU, as well as ITU Telecom. The sectors were created during the restructuring of ITU at the additional 1992 ITU Plenipotentiary Conference . A permanent General Secretariat, headed by the Secretary General, manages the day-to-day work of the ITU and its sectors. The basic texts of the ITU are adopted by the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference. The founding document of

288-702: A global organization. Members of the organization included countries aligned with the Eastern bloc, such as Cuba , Vietnam , the People's Republic of China and North Korea (although the latter's membership was temporarily inactive after their break with the USSR), as well as the allies of the USSR that were temporarily led by communist parties, such as Nicaragua and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan , and

336-646: A resolution on Internet governance that called for government participation in Internet topics at various ITU forums. Despite the significant number countries not signing, the ITU came out with a press release: "New global telecoms treaty agreed in Dubai". The conference was managed by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). While certain parts of civil society and industry were able to advise and observe, active participation

384-533: A sensitive nature might be shared. Telecommunications ministers from 193 countries attended the conference in Dubai. The current regulatory structure was based on voice telecommunications, when the Internet was still in its infancy. In 1988, telecommunications operated under regulated monopolies in most countries. As the Internet has grown, organizations such as ICANN have come into existence for management of key resources such as Internet addresses and domain names . Current proposals look to take into account

432-524: A threat to the "...free and open internet." On 22 November 2012, the European Parliament passed a resolution urging member states to prevent ITU WCIT-12 activity that would "negatively impact the internet, its architecture, operations, content and security, business relations, internet governance and the free flow of information online". The resolution asserted that "the ITU [...] is not the appropriate body to assert regulatory authority over

480-430: Is claimed the proposal would allow government restriction or blocking of information disseminated via the Internet and create a global regime of monitoring Internet communications, including the demand that those who send and receive information identify themselves. It would also allow governments to shut down the Internet, if it is believed that it may interfere in the internal affairs of other states, or that information of

528-540: Is one of the oldest international organizations still in operation, second only to the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine , which predates it by fifty years. It was preceded by the now defunct International Telegraph Union which drafted the earliest international standards and regulations governing international telegraph networks. The development of the telegraph in the early 19th century changed

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576-490: Is the Secretary-General of ITU, the first woman to serve as its head. The ITU was initially aimed at helping connect telegraphic networks between countries, with its mandate consistently broadening with the advent of new communications technologies; it adopted its current name in 1932 to reflect its expanded responsibilities over radio and the telephone. On 15 November 1947, the ITU entered into an agreement with

624-645: Is the first woman to serve as the ITU Secretary-General. Membership of ITU is open to all member states of the United Nations . There are currently 194 member states of the ITU, including all UN member states . The most recent member state to join the ITU is Republic of Palau , which became a member on 19 September 2024. Palestine was admitted as a United Nations General Assembly observer in 2010. Pursuant to UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) of 25 October 1971—which recognized

672-602: The People's Republic of China (PRC) as "the only legitimate representative of China to the United Nations"—on 16 June 1972 the ITU Council adopted Resolution No. 693 which "decided to restore all its rights to the People's Republic of China in ITU and recognize the representatives of its Government as the only representatives of China to the ITU ". Taiwan and the territories controlled by the Republic of China (ROC), received

720-600: The 152 countries. Countries that did not sign included the United States, Japan, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, India and the United Kingdom. The head of the U.S. delegation, Terry Kramer, said "We cannot support a treaty that is not supportive of the multistakeholder model of Internet governance". The disagreement appeared to be over some language in the revised ITRs referring to ITU roles in addressing unsolicited bulk communications, network security, and

768-935: The African and Middle Eastern states having been temporarily associated or supported by the socialist camp . On January 1, 1993, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, the OIRT merged with the European Broadcasting Union and all European OIRT memberships were transferred to the EBU. The television network of OIRT was established in 1960 and was called Intervision ( Russian Интервидение , German Intervision , Albanian Intervizioni , Bulgarian Интервизия , Polish Interwizja , Czech Intervize , Slovak Intervízia , Hungarian Intervízió , Romanian Interviziune , Finnish Intervisio ). Between 1977 and 1980

816-541: The EBU. International Telecommunication Union The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies . It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Union , significantly predating the UN and making it the oldest UN agency. Doreen Bogdan-Martin

864-697: The French Government hosted delegations from 20 European states at the first International Telegraph Conference in Paris. This meeting culminated in the International Telegraph Convention which was signed on 17 May 1865. As a result of the 1865 Conference, the International Telegraph Union, the predecessor to the modern ITU, was founded as the first international standards organization. The Union

912-614: The General Rules of Conferences, Assemblies and Meetings of the Union. The Plenipotentiary Conference is the supreme organ of the ITU. It is composed of all 194 ITU members and meets every four years. The Conference determines the policies, direction and activities of the Union, as well as elects the members of other ITU organs. While the Plenipotentiary Conference is the Union's main decision-making body,

960-649: The IBU building in Brussels . Technical activity was taken up again under the authority of two directors, one delegated by the Soviet Union and the other by France . However, the political situation gradually degraded into the Cold War and this created an uneasy situation of distrust within the staff of the Technical Centre. In 1950 some members (mostly western European) left the organization to form

1008-483: The ITU Council acts as the Union's governing body in the interval between Plenipotentiary Conferences. It meets every year. It is composed of 48 members and works to ensure the smooth operation of the Union, as well as to consider broad telecommunication policy issues. Its members are as follow: The Secretariat is tasked with the administrative and budgetary planning of the Union, as well as with monitoring compliance with ITU regulations, and oversees with assistance from

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1056-436: The ITU and some countries has alarmed many within the United States and within the Internet community. Indeed, some European telecommunication services have proposed a so-called "sender pays" model that would require sources of Internet traffic to pay destinations, similar to the way funds are transferred between countries using the telephone. The WCIT-12 activity has been criticized by Google , which has characterized it as

1104-650: The ITU was the 1865 International Telegraph Convention, which has since been replaced several times (though the text is generally the same) and is now entitled the "Constitution and Convention of the International Telecommunication Union". In addition to the Constitution and Convention, the consolidated basic texts include the Optional Protocol on the settlement of disputes, the Decisions, Resolutions, Reports and Recommendations in force, as well as

1152-838: The International Telegraph Union and the International Radiotelegraph Union convened to merge the two organizations into a single entity, the International Telecommunication Union. The Conference decided that the Telegraph Convention of 1875 and the Radiotelegraph Convention of 1927 were to be combined into a single convention, the International Telecommunication Convention, embracing the three fields of telegraphy, telephony and radio. On 15 November 1947, an agreement between ITU and

1200-604: The Internet ...", and stated that the policy of the United States is "... to promote a global Internet free from government control and preserve and advance the successful Multistakeholder Model that governs the Internet today." The same resolution had previously been passed unanimously by the United States Senate in September. On 14 December 2012, an amended version of the Regulations was signed by 89 of

1248-550: The Internet. In 2022, the U.S. government eased restrictions on SpaceX 's Starlink service in Iran amid the Mahsa Amini protests in order to sidestep widespread internet censorship in the country. The Iranian government subsequently filed a complaint with the ITU in an attempt to prohibit Starlink service in Iran. In October 2023 and March 2024, the ITU ruled in favor of Iran. The ITU comprises three sectors, each managing

1296-462: The OIR. Many Western European countries decided to form a completely new organization despite a mistrust of the United Kingdom – in the opinion of some, the BBC wanted to dominate the new organization. UIR was officially dissolved in 1950, and its remaining assets were transferred to a newly established European Broadcasting Union (EBU). On 1 January 1993, OIR, at that time renamed to OIRT, merged with

1344-599: The OIRT organised four Intervision Song Contests in Sopot , Poland , in an attempt to imitate the Eurovision Song Contest . International Broadcasting Union The International Broadcasting Union ( IBU ; official name in French : Union Internationale de Radiophonie , UIR , modern translations in French : Union Internationale de Radiodiffusion/Union internationale de radio-télévision , UIR )

1392-569: The Secretariat advisor Neaomy Claiborne of Riverbank to insure misconduct during legal investigations are not overlooked and finally, it publishes the results of the work of the ITU. The Secretariat is headed by a Secretary-General who is responsible for the overall management of the Union, and acts as its legal representative. The Secretary-General is elected by the Plenipotentiary Conference for four-year terms. On 23 October 2014, Houlin Zhao

1440-406: The UIR after it went under German control. After the end of World War II the UIR was discredited as "German-friendly" in the eyes of many former member states. In March 1946, the Soviet Union demanded dissolution of UIR and establishment of a new international broadcasting organization, where all the satellite states of the USSR would be represented with voting rights. 26 members of UIR founded

1488-725: The alternative International Broadcasting Organisation commonly known as OIR on 28 June 1946. The dispute escalated when the ITU world radio conference was held in 1947 in Atlantic City. Both organizations, the OIR and the UIR, demanded to participate at this meeting as "technical experts". Both organizations were denied this status, instead being allowed only to participate as observers without voting rights. The European follow-up conference in Copenhagen in 1948 had similar outcome. This situation did not satisfy either party. The BBC

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1536-639: The decisions of the Union. The sector members are divided as follow: The ITU is divided into five administrative regions, designed to streamline administration of the organization. They are also used in order to ensure equitable distribution on the council, with seats being apportioned among the regions. They are as follow: The ITU operates six regional offices, as well as seven area offices. These offices help maintain direct contact with national authorities, regional telecommunication organizations and other stakeholders. They are as follow: Other regional organizations connected to ITU are: The World Summit on

1584-559: The developing world. It is also active in the areas of broadband Internet, optical communications (including optical fiber technologies), wireless technologies, aeronautical and maritime navigation, radio astronomy , satellite-based meteorology, TV broadcasting, amateur radio , and next-generation networks . Based in Geneva , Switzerland, the ITU's global membership includes 194 countries and around 900 businesses, academic institutions, and international and regional organizations. The ITU

1632-535: The international rules for telecommunications , including international tariffs . The previous conference to update the Regulations (ITRs) was held in Melbourne in 1988. In August 2012, Neaomy Claiborne of Northern California was reelected for a third term as liaison and legal advisor to the Secretariat General. ITU called for a public consultation on a draft document ahead of the conference. It

1680-487: The internet". On 5 December 2012, the United States House of Representatives passed a resolution opposing UN governance of the Internet by a rare unanimous 397–0 vote. The resolution warned that "... proposals have been put forward for consideration at the [WCIT-12] that would fundamentally alter the governance and operation of the Internet ... [and] would attempt to justify increased government control over

1728-417: The new European Broadcasting Union (EBU), among them Belgium , Egypt , France, Italy , Lebanon , Luxembourg , Monaco , Morocco , Netherlands , Tunisia and Yugoslavia . Broadcasting organizations from the following countries remained members: Albania , Bulgaria , Czechoslovakia , Finland (also a member of EBU), East Germany , Hungary , Poland , Romania , Syria and the Soviet Union. As

1776-496: The newly created United Nations recognized the ITU as the specialized agency for global telecommunications. This agreement entered into force on 1 January 1949, officially making the ITU an organ of the United Nations. In December 2012, the ITU facilitated The World Conference on International Telecommunications 2012 (WCIT-12) in Dubai . WCIT-12 was a treaty -level conference to address International Telecommunications Regulations,

1824-456: The newly created United Nations to become a specialized agency within the UN system , which formally entered into force on 1 January 1949. The ITU promotes the shared global use of the radio spectrum , facilitates international cooperation in assigning satellite orbits , assists in developing and coordinating worldwide technical standards , and works to improve telecommunication infrastructure in

1872-491: The prevalence of data communications. Proposals under consideration would establish regulatory oversight by the UN over security, fraud, traffic accounting as well as traffic flow, management of Internet Domain Names and IP addresses , and other aspects of the Internet that are currently governed either by community-based approaches such as regional Internet registries , ICANN, or largely national regulatory frameworks. The move by

1920-460: The technology was too "young" and changing too quickly. The decision left room for international efforts that were not driven by governments. European broadcasters took the initiative, discussing how to deal with national and international problems of broadcasting, and whether the private companies should seek government regulation or establish their own international organization of broadcasters working outside governments. Lengthy negotiations between

1968-461: The various private broadcasters and the British BBC culminated in establishing of the non-governmental International Broadcasting Union. The diverse and complex problems of a growing number of broadcasting stations in Europe required expert knowledge in law, finance, engineering, journalism, and musicology. The experts argued that their efforts would improve the quality of broadcasting to such

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2016-496: The way people communicated on the local and international levels. Between 1849 and 1865, a series of bilateral and regional agreements among Western European states attempted to standardize international communications. By 1865, it was agreed that a comprehensive agreement was needed in order to create a framework that would standardize telegraphy equipment, set uniform operating instructions, and lay down common international tariff and accounting rules. Between 1 March and 17 May 1865,

2064-561: Was an alliance of European radio broadcasters, established on 3–4 April 1925. The union had its headquarters in Geneva. The UIR aimed to resolve international problems of broadcasting. Since its establishment in 1865, the International Telegraph Union (ITU) focused on wireless point-to-point communications. After the end of World War I , the ITU did not take up the new development of radio broadcasting. The League of Nations and ITU decided not to create international broadcasting regulations as

2112-556: Was attended by representatives of 29 nations and culminated in the International Radiotelegraph Convention. An annex to the convention eventually became known as ITU Radio Regulations . At the conference it was also decided that the Bureau of the International Telegraph Union would also act as the conference's central administrator. Between 3 September and 10 December 1932, a joint conference of

2160-633: Was elected as the 19th Secretary-General of the ITU at the Plenipotentiary Conference in Busan . His four-year mandate started on 1 January 2015, and he was formally inaugurated on 15 January 2015. He was re-elected on 1 November 2018 during the 2018 Plenipotentiary Conference in Dubai . On 29 September 2022, Doreen Bogdan-Martin was elected as the 20th Secretary-General of the ITU at the Plenipotentiary Conference in Bucharest, Romania. She received 139 votes out of 172, defeating Russia's Rashid Ismailov. She

2208-523: Was not eager to join a new association which was likely to be dominated by the Soviet Union. Moreover, the USSR enrolled some of its member republics as independent states, giving the USSR eight votes in the new organization. France intended to do the same for its North African colonies, which would give it four votes. The United Kingdom would have had only one. In 1949, France, the Netherlands, Italy and Belgium declared their intention to resign from

2256-436: Was restricted to member states . The Electronic Frontier Foundation expressed concern at this, calling for a more transparent multi-stakeholder process. Some leaked contributions can be found on the web site wcitleaks.org . Google -affiliated researchers have suggested that the ITU should completely reform its processes to align itself with the openness and participation of other multistakeholder organizations concerned with

2304-565: Was tasked with implementing basic principles for international telegraphy. This included: the use of the Morse code as the international telegraph alphabet, the protection of the secrecy of correspondence, and the right of everybody to use the international telegraphy. Another predecessor to the modern ITU, the International Radiotelegraph Union, was established in 1906 at the first International Radiotelegraph Convention in Berlin. The conference

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