The International Telegraph Union was founded in
1865 by twenty States: Austria, The Netherlands,
Baden, Portugal, Bavaria, Prussia, Belgium, Russia,
Denmark, Saxony, France, Spain, Greece,
Sweden-Norway, Hamburg, Switzerland, Hanover,
Turkey, Italy and Württemberg.
In 1924, in Paris, the CCIF (International
Telephone Consultative Committee) was created
followed in 1925 by the CCIT (International
Telegraph Consultative Committee).
At ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference held in
Madrid in 1932 the International Telegraph Union
changed its name to the International
Telecommunication Union and in 1947, after
World War II, the ITU became the United Nations’
specialized agency for telecommunication.
In 1956, the two separate ITU committees,
the CCIF and the CCIT were
joined to create the CCITT to more effectively manage telephone and
telegraph communications.
In 1993, the ITU underwent a reorganization and
the CCITT was replaced by the new structure as
ITU-T, the ITU's Telecommunication Standardization
Sector.
Global strategy consulting firm Booz Allen
Hamilton awarded ITU with the accolade of being one
of the world’s top ten most enduring institutions in
December 2004. |
Stamps issued by the United Nations
in honour of ITU, 1956 |
At present, more than 3000 ITU-T Recommendations
are in force with a speed of an average time to
approve its technical Recommendations as quick as in
less than two months.
Members
In 1956 the CCITT membership was of 50 Members
(43 of which are still present)
Recognized Operating Agencies (ROAs): 18 (15 of which are still present members):
American Cable and Radio Corp.; AT&T; Cable &
Wireless; Compagnie française de câbles sous-marins;
T.S.F.; Companhia Portuguesa Radio Marconi; Compañía
de Teléfonos de Chile; Telefónica; Cuban Telephone
Company; Deutsch-Atlantische
Telegraphengesellschaft; Grande Compagnie des
télégraphes du Nord; KDD; NTT; Radio Austria; RCA
Communications; Societa Italcable; Teléfonos de
México S.A.; Telephone Association of Canada.
Scientific or Industrial Organizations (SIOs): 6
Automatic Telephone and Electric Company; Felten
& Guilleaume, Carlswerk; Felten & Guilleaume,
Fernmeldeanlagen; N. V. Philip’s Telecommunicatie
Industrie; Siemens & Halske A.G.; Telefunken
G.m.b.H.
International Organizations: 3
IATA; WMO; IRU.
Today membership consists of 190 Member States,
354 Sector Members and 107 Associates.
Assemblies,
Directors and
Chairmen of Study Groups and other groups since 1956
