ITU – International Telecommunication Union

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) was established on 9 December 1932 as a merger of two predecessors, the International Telegraph Union, founded in Paris in 1865, and the International Radiotelegraph Conference, which had been founded in 1906 in Berlin. The main objective of the ITU is to guarantee international cooperation and economic and social development by setting up and extending efficient telecommunication services, and by planning the structures of telecommunication services. Since the ITU reform in 1992, its scope of tasks comprises three sectors: a) radio communication; b) standardization of telecommunication; and c) development of telecommunication. More than any other specialized agency of the UN, the ITU has been forced to address new technological developments (satellite radio services, telefax services, digital radio and television, the Internet) and has had to deal in this context also with the economic and political aspects of these developments. Keywords: International Telecommunication Union (ITU); telecommunication services