On 12 December 2016, ITU will celebrate the 110th anniversary of the ITU Radio Regulations, the essential international treaty governing the use of the radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits for ubiquitous wireless communications.

The ITU Radio Regulations ensure interference-free operation of radiocommunication systems and provide all countries with equitable access to the radio spectrum — a scarce natural resource that does not distinguish national borders and needs to be harmonized globally.

In an increasingly “wireless” world, the Radio Regulations enable all radio services to share the spectrum while satisfying their evolving requirements, protecting incumbents, and providing high quality services to an increasingly growing number of users and applications.

The Radio Regulations have come a long way since 1906, when the first International Radiotelegraph Conference gathered 29 states in Berlin to sign the International Radiotelegraph Convention establishing the principle of compulsory radio communication between vessels at sea, and between them and coast stations. The annex to this Convention contained the first regulations governing wireless telegraphy. These regulations, which have since been expanded and revised by numerous World Radio Conferences (WRCs), are now known as the Radio Regulations.

What: Celebration of 110 Years of ITU Radio Regulations, marking the first signing of international Radio Regulations at the 1906 Berlin Convention.

When: 12 December 2016 (from 08:30 hours UTC, 09:30 Geneva time).

Where: Geneva International Conference Centre (CICG), Room 1.

Why: ITU is celebrating this year the 110th anniversary of the Radio Regulations, the global treaty behind your mobile communications and a success story of international cooperation among Members States with the inestimable support of telecommunication industry partners.

Who: Keynote speakers: Mr. Malcolm Johnson, Deputy Secretary-General, ITU; Mr. François Rancy, Director, Radiocommunication Bureau, ITU. Moderators: Mario Maniewicz, Deputy Director, Radiocommunication Bureau (BR), ITU and Julie N. Zoller, Senior Deputy Coordinator and Director; Multilateral Affairs (EB/CIP/MA); International Communication & Information Policy, U.S. Department of State.  Panelists:  John Giusti; Chief Regulatory Officer, GSMA; Rupert Pearce; Chairman, ESOA; Ingrid Deltenre; Director-General, EBU; Joe Barret; President, GSA; Philippe Horisberger; Deputy Director, OFCOM, Switzerland; Tony Azzarelli, Vice President Regulatory Affairs, OneWeb; Christopher Weasler; Director of Global Connectivity, Facebook; Cath Westcott; Communications Regulations Specialist, BBC. Participants: Special guests to include former elected officials of the ITU, current and former members of the RRB, IFRB, CCIR and ITU-R Study Group Chairs. WRC-16 delegates, ITU staff, media.

For details of the event programme, click here.  Live webcast will be available here.

About ITU

ITU is the leading United Nations agency for information and communication technologies, driving innovation in ICTs together with 193 Member States and a membership of over 700 private sector entities and academic institutions. Established over 150 years ago in 1865, ITU is the intergovernmental body responsible for coordinating the shared global use of the radio spectrum, promoting international cooperation in assigning satellite orbits, improving communication infrastructure in the developing world, and establishing the worldwide standards that foster seamless interconnection of a vast range of communications systems. From broadband networks to cutting-edge wireless technologies, aeronautical and maritime navigation, radio astronomy, oceanographic and satellite-based earth monitoring as well as converging fixed-mobile phone, Internet and broadcasting technologies, ITU is committed to connecting the world. www.itu.int