Professional societies serving the global industry

The modern telecom industry’s operation is based on the use of global standards. Standardization is the culminating phase of the technology value chain. The industry enjoys a plurality of Standards Development Organizations (SDO’s) that range in their scope, mission, and organizational structure. The creation of telecom standards, particularly in core technologies, is fueled by the intellectual power of the global R&D community. A special role in this is played by SDO’s associated with professional societies, such as the IEEE. IEEE and ITU are correspondingly at the root and apogee of the global standardization process. The IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) has over the 50 years of its existence mainly supported scholarly precompetitive research. Now, however, ComSoc is moving towards serving practitioners and industry by also fostering standardization. ITU, on the other hand, has become increasingly aware of the value of academic scholarship in the standardization process. Bringing the intellectual power of the world R&D community into global standardization efforts ensures the best possible quality standards for next generation networks. ITU-T’s Kaleidoscope conference, technically cosponsored by IEEE ComSoc, serves as an important component of this approach.